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Romano, who lives halfway between Boston and the Bronx, admits he’s extra pumped to face the Red Sox — because he hates them.
“I’m a big Yankees fan,” he said. “I’ve been to a lot of Yankees-Red Sox games at Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park. I wish we were playing in Fenway Park. I know the Yankees are three games behind them. It’ll be pretty cool to face them.”
Romano will be opposed by a right-hander struggling through an unusual season. Rick Porcello (10-17, 4.46) won the American League Cy Young Award and Comeback Player of the Year Award last season after leading the league in wins while going 22-7 for East Division-champion Boston, a vast turnaround from his 9-15 2015 season.
Porcello has slid backward in 2017, leading the league in losses and threatening to become the first pitcher to lead the league in losses one season after leading in wins since White Sox right-hander LaMarr Hoyt led the AL with 18 losses in 1984, one season after piling up 24 wins and winning the Cy Young.
Porcello is a combined 6-3 in August and September for the first-place Red Sox, who are 88-64.
The Reds are 1-9 against the Reds Sox, 1-4 in Cincinnati. Boston won all four games the teams played in 2014.
Cincinnati is 39-38 at home, already surpassing by one last season’s home win total.
Devin done: Hopes that catcher Devin Mesoraco might squeeze in some at-bats before the end of the regular season appear to be dashed, Price said.
Mesoraco has been on the disabled list after suffering a broken left foot when he was hit by a pitch from Jose Quintana on Aug. 14.
“His foot hasn’t progressed as rapidly as it would have needed to get to the point where he could play before the season is out, and it’s not because he’s behind schedule,” Price said. “Everything had to go right.”
Price expects that Mesoraco and pitcher Homer Bailey will be able to go through normal off-seasons.
Workload upgrade: Price reported that "everything went well" when right-hander Anthony DeSclafani threw a 42-pitch side session in Arizona on Wednesday.
DeSclafani threw a three-inning simulated game on Monday and is pitching in games every five days. He was scheduled to throw 65 pitches in Arizona on Saturday.
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