Triston Casas, after struggling at the plate, helps Red Sox win in extra innings

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BOSTON — Triston Casas hasn’t been able to hide from his struggles at the plate to start the season.

The first baseman entered the day hitting just .172 with a .509 OPS in 18 games, with Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora dropping him in the order recently from his customary fourth spot to seventh.

So when Casas came to the plate with the bases loaded and the score tied in the bottom of the 10th on Saturday, he was merely hoping to make hard contact. His lofting fly ball had enough to scrape off the wall in left, scoring the winning run for his first career walk-off hit in a 4-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox.

The hit and the victory gave the Red Sox a two-fold boost with hopes of sparking Casas at the plate, while also helping the club avoid losing three times to the White Sox in the span of seven games. In Chicago last weekend, the Red Sox dropped two of three. This weekend, they’ve won the first two games of a four-game series.

“They made a mistake and I was able to capitalize; it felt good,” Casas said. “Just to get the win was the best feeling.”

Boston’s offense has been inconsistent through the early part of the season, and it’s no coincidence that Casas has been searching for his rhythm at the plate. Before Saturday’s game, he’d drawn just five walks while striking out 18 times and collecting just four extra-base hits. His 7.1 percent walk rate is well below his career 13.6 percent walk rate. Casas admitted that hitting lower in the order has helped him see more at-bats and get a better feel for the pitcher.

“I get six batters to see how the guys are working,” he said. “I get to look at the characteristics of the fastball or whatever pitches I’m hunting.”

There have been glimpses that Casas may be turning a corner, including another walk on Saturday, but Cora is optimistic the walk-off hit can get Casas going and give him momentum at the plate.

“Hopefully,” Cora said. ”He’s been swinging the bat well, more aggressive, more conviction. He took a walk today, and that’s important. In that situation in the 10th, just put the ball in play. He did a good job staying with the pitch and we got the W.”

Garrett Crochet threw six scoreless innings against Chicago, allowing just four hits. (Eric Canha / Imagn Images)

The win helped the Red Sox avoid a loss on another solid day from starter Garrett Crochet. Six days ago against the same White Sox team, Crochet carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning, but didn’t have the same command on Saturday. Crochet wasn’t pleased with his outing, but still threw six scoreless innings, allowing just four hits. He walked two and struck out seven, throwing 96 pitches, 63 for strikes and recording 14 swings-and-misses. He exited with a 3-0 lead, thanks to a Rafael Devers three-run shot to left in the fifth.

“The stuff was good, but erratic,” Cora said. “Some deep counts, some two-strikes hits, but on a night that he was ‘OK’, that’s what we get.”

Crochet admitted he appreciates still being able to throw six scoreless innings, even against a struggling White Sox club. But also said he knows he won’t be able to get away with missing his spots too often.

“It feels good, but I kind of feel like I’m getting away with murder,” he said. “It’s only a matter of time until I get caught. I feel like the way that I’m throwing the ball isn’t up to my par. It’s only a matter of time before I get burned.”

Nevertheless, Crochet lowered his ERA to 1.13 on the season and his WHIP to 0.90. The Red Sox, however, nearly wasted the effort. Reliever Greg Weissert issued a one-out walk in the seventh before Casas and Trevor Story failed to turn a double play. Then Weissert hung a slider to Luis Robert Jr., who knocked it out of the park to tie the score.

But Justin Slaten, Aroldis Chapman and Garrett Whitlock held down the White Sox for the next three innings before Casas finally knocked in the winning run.

It marked Boston’s third walk-off win among their 12 victories, a dangerous way to play, but one the team will take until they find their collective footing, and something Crochet feels is coming sooner than later, especially at home.

“There’s a lot of guys who are new this year and have never called this place their home ballpark and are starting to really click with the atmosphere, which is really cool to see,” Crochet said. “I think that most importantly, we’re just meshing as a group right now and really starting to come together and win close ballgames.”

(Top photo: Eric Canha / Imagn Images)

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