The Red Sox and Mariners will play the second game of their four-game series on Friday. The first pitch is slated for 9:40 p.m. Eastern. On Thursday, Boston won the opener 6-4, with O’Neill homering for the seventh straight year.
Righty Nick Pivetta will start for Boston, facing Seattle’s George Kirby.
Left- and right-handed hitters have about equal splits against Kirby. He has limited right-handed hitters to a.247 batting average and.659 OPS, compared to.246/.672 for left-handed hitters.
O’Neill has never confronted Kirby. Rafael Devers is 5-for-10 against the righty, including a homer. Trevor Story is 2-for-5 against him, including two home runs.
The only difference between Friday’s and Thursday’s lineups is that the Red Sox are starting Reese McGuire at catcher.