Red Sox invent new way to lose in shocking meltdown vs. Rockies

Usually, reinventing the wheel is seen as a good thing.But for the Red Sox on Monday night, it was quite the opposite. Boston invented another way to shockingly lose a game in a 3-2 walk-off loss to the Rockies after Colorado outfielder Jake McCarthy hit a walk-off bases-clearing triple off closer Aroldis Chapman.McCarthy became only the sixth player since 1969 to hit a walk-off triple down two runs — and it was the last of eight consecutive hits spanning the eighth and ninth innings by the Rockies, per MLB.com.“That was surreal.It still hasn’t sunk in,” McCarthy said after his heroics for the 31-48 Rockies.

“Off a great pitcher like that, it all happened pretty fast.”Chapman, one of the sport’s elite closer, allowed all three runs and four hits in the ninth inning after inheriting a 2-0 advantage.But trouble started brewing the inning before when Garrett Whitlock also let up four straight hits in the eighth — the inning only ending because the Red Sox threw out two runners on the base paths. But the fielding let them down on the final hit with the bases loaded when left fielder Jarren Duran misplayed the ball twice, leading to all three runners scoring. The Red Sox had been in cruise control with a 2-0 lead after rookie Jake Bennett threw six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts.Making it all the worse for Boston is this type of comeback was one the Red Sox have been unable to mount themselves, carrying an 0-32 mark this season when trailing entering the eighth inning.That ineptitude, combined with their lack of hitting with runners in scoring position, leaves the team last in the AL East with a 31-45 record and just an eight-percent chance per Fangraphs to make the postseason.They’ve lost ace Garret Crochet for a significant time due to injury, and all signs seem to be pointing to them being trade deadline sellers. Ex-Yankee Sonny Gray told The Boston Globe he would be “open” to a conversation about a trade — and he could be among t...