TUESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2019 The Boston Globe Sports D5
Holt,Sox
maypart
nextyear
don’t know what to expect.
“We’ll see what happens. I
just want to be comfortable
and happy.”
Holt has only 28 plate ap-
pearances against lefthanded
pitchers this season, the few-
est of his career since 2013
when he played only 26
games.
Holt is a career .272 hitter
in 449 at-bats against lefties
but has only one home run.
Over the last four seasons, the
Sox have increasingly viewed
him as a platoon player and
now almost strictly so.
“I play when I’m told, and
when I’m in the lineup, I try to
do a good job,” Holt said,
choosing his words carefully.
“I’m not going to come in here
flipping tables when I’m not
playing. I would like to play
more, but my job is to be
ready when my name is
called.
“I don’t mind facing lefties.
I’ve faced them a lot and I’m
comfortable against them.”
So adamant are the Sox —
or at least their analysts —
about Holt not facing
lefthanders that they have giv-
en righthanded-hitting Chris
Owings three starts at second
base this month.
Holt also is primarily a sec-
ond baseman with only occa-
sional games at other posi-
tions. That has changed, too.
Manager Alex Cora also
has been careful to give Holt
days off because of his injury
history. Holt missed six weeks
with a concussion in 2016,
nearly three months with con-
cussionlike symptoms in ’17,
and last season was out 10
days with a hamstring strain.
A scratched cornea put
Holt out initially this season,
then he strained his right
shoulder while playing for Tri-
ple A Pawtucket.
“We’ve got to take care of
Brock,” Cora said. “For him,
it’s a little bit harder to
bounce back from a night
game [before a day game].”
Cora, a backup during his
playing career, understands
the risks.
“It’s not easy. I’m not say-
ing he’s injury-prone, but
when you know you could
play every day, it’s hard,” the
manager said.
Another team might see
Holt as a more regular con-
tributor given his defensive
versatility and what has been
a strong year offensively. He
has hit .346 with a .909 OPS
in 56 games since coming off
the injured list May 27.
Holt has only three home
runs at a point in the game’s
history where teams lust for
power. But he also has a .374
on-base percentage the last
two seasons and hit .295 with
runners in scoring position.
“It would be cool to play
more,” Holt said. “I think
everyone wants to play every
day. I’ve had a good role that
has allowed me to have a ca-
reer in the big leagues and I’m
grateful for that.”
Another factor is Holt’s
community work. He has
been heavily involved with the
Jimmy Fund, making dozens
of visits to sick children to a
point where he has become
close to patients and staff at
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
The Holts donated
$15,000 to the Jimmy Fund
during the annual fund-rais-
ing drive last week and fol-
lowed that up by selling near-
ly 1,000 T-shirts they de-
signed to raise awareness of
childhood cancer and gener-
ate more funds.
“We have a lot of relation-
ships in the Boston area be-
cause of the Jimmy Fund, and
I feel that will continue
whether I’m here or not,” Holt
said. “That’s something when
the time comes we’ll have to
talk about. It’s significant. We
like being involved.”
The Sox open a two-game
series against the Rockies
Tuesday. With 30 games to
play in the regular season,
Holt isn’t focused on the fu-
ture.
“We’ll see what happens,”
he said. “I’m trying to control
what I can.”
uREDSOX
Continued from Page D1
NoarguingwithSerena’sforminreturn
By Howard Fendrich
ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW YORK — Playing her
first match at the US Open
since last year’s loss in a chaot-
ic, controver-
sial final, Sere-
na Williams
played nearly perfect tennis
and beat Maria Sharapova, 6-1,
6-1, in a contest devoid of dra-
ma Monday night.
Williams stretched her win-
ning streak to 19 matches
against Sharapova and now
leads their head-to-head series,
20-2.
‘‘Every time I come up
against her,’’ Williams said, ‘‘I
just bring out some of my best
tennis.’’
Sure did this time; the
whole thing lasted all of 59
minutes. Williams won twice as
many points, 56-28. She saved
all five break points she faced
and lashed serves at up to 115
miles per hour. She broke five
times.
Few players would have
stood a chance against Wil-
liams the way she performed —
and certainly not a diminished
Sharapova, who is ranked just
87th after missing much of this
season with a bad right shoul-
der.
Williams arrived at Flushing
Meadows, where she’s won six
titles, accompanied by ques-
tions about her back, because
spasms that flared up this
month forced her to stop play-
ing during the final of one
hard-court tune-up tourna-
ment and pull out of another
one entirely.
Didn’tseemtobeanissue
against Sharapova.
‘‘The body’s good. I feel
good,’’ Williams said. ‘‘My
back’s a lot better. So I'm excit-
ed. This is going to be fun.’’
A year ago, she was beaten
by Naomi Osaka in straight sets
in a US Open title match that
devolved after a back-and-forth
between Williams and chair
umpire Carlos Ramos. He
warned her for receiving coach-
ing signals, which isn’t allowed
in Grand Slam play; when she
later broke a racket, he docked
her a point; when she argued
with him and called him a
‘‘thief’’ and a ‘‘liar,’’ he docked
her a game. The USTA decided
Ramos would not officiate any
match involving Serena Wil-
liams or her older sister, Venus,
at this year’s tournament.
There were plenty of other
matches around the grounds
Monday, with Roger Federerdropping his first set against
Sumit Nagal — a qualifier
ranked 190th — before coming
back to roll, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4;
No. 1 Novak Djokovic opening
defense of his title with a 6-4,
6-1, 6-4 win over Roberto Car-
balles Baena; and 21-year-old
American Reilly Opelka provid-
ing the biggest upset of the af-
ternoon in his US Open debutby eliminating No. 11 Fabio
Fognini, 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3.
Angelique Kerber, the 2016
champion, continued her
rough Grand Slam year with a
first-round exit against Kristina
Mladenovic, 7-5, 0-6, 6-4, while
2016 runner-up Karolina Plisk-
ova and reigning French Open
title winner Ash Barty both
struggled through rough startsbefore emerging to win.
TheWilliamsfamilyonly
dropped a total of three games
in two matches Monday, be-
cause Venus beat Zheng Saisai,
6-1, 6-0, earlier.
In other women’s results,
No. 12 seed Anastasija Sevasto-
va beat Eugenie Bouchard, a
former Wimbledon finalist and
top-10 player, 6-3, 6-3; former
Olympic gold medalist Monica
Puig fell by the same score to
Rebecca Peterson; and Ekateri-
na Alexandrova defeated 2011
US Open champ Samantha Sto-
sur, 6-1, 6-3.
On the men’s side, Djokovic,
the top seed, felt good enough
after his workmanlike first-
round victory to do a little
dancing. Djokovic, who is 34-1
in his last 35 Grand Slam
matches, dispatched Baena,
then gave an on-court inter-
view in which he acknowl-
edged dancing in Central Park
as part of his prematch prepa-
ration. Djokovic promptly went
to his bag and pulled out two
rackets that he used as faux
maracas while he showed off
his Latin dance moves to the
Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd.
Seventh-seeded Kei Ni-shikori became the first player
to advance when qualifier Mar-
co Trungelliti had to retire with
the 2014 U.S. Open runner-up
leading, 6-1, 4-1.
Another notable result came
when qualifier Jenson Brooks-
by downed perennial top-10
player Tomas Berdych, 6-1, 2-6,
6-4, 6-4.
Brooksby, an 18-year-old
Californian, earned his first
Grand Slam win and said after-
ward that he may reconsider
his plans to play at Baylor Uni-
versity after the US Open.
It was his second straight
year playing in the tourna-
ment, having received a wild
card last year. This time, he
made it through qualifying and
then took advantage of a clearly
limited Berdych, who has bat-
tled injuries for much of this
season.
Berdych, the 2010 Wimble-
don runner-up and a 2012 US
Open semifinalist, said after
the match he was ‘‘very close’’
to considering retirement. The
33-year-old Czech has missed
five months this year with back
and hip injuries, and he fell out
of the top 100 in April for the
first time since Jan. 26, 2004.LAFC,GalaxyareallthatglittersinTinseltown
By Frank Dell’Apa
GLOBE CORRESPONDENT
Los Angeles FC has been on
a record pace, dominating op-
ponents in its second MLS sea-
son. But LAFC
has struggled
against the LA
Galaxy, and
had to rally from a two-goal
deficit for a 3-3 draw in “El Tra-
fico” derby Sunday night.
ZlatanIbrahimovicscored
twice andCarlosPavóncon-
verted in his MLS debut as the
Galaxy pulled out to a 3-1 lead
in the 16th minute. ButLatif
Blessingcountered with two
first-half goals, andCarlosVela
equalized in the 53d minute,
before departing with a ham-
string injury in the 61st min-
ute.
LAFC (19-3-5, 62 points)
has totaled 74 goals and
clinched a playoff place with
more than two months remain-
ing in the season. The team has
seven games to go for records
for most points in a season (71,
set by the New York Red Bulls
last year) and goals (85, set by
the 1998 Galaxy).
LAFC, whose lead investor
is Hollywood mogulPeterGu-
ber, a Boston native who grew
up in Newton, has done nearly
everything right since actor-co-
medianWillFerrellgot behind
the controls of a front-loader at
the Banc of California Stadium
ground-breaking.
But the success of LAFC also
raises questions about the sta-
dium’s 22,000 capacity, which
might be unable to accommo-
date the team in the future.
LAFC has not spent extrava-
gantly, making Vela its only
eight-figure investment ($6.3
million salary, $5.5 million
transfer fee) before addingBri-anRodriguez($11.5 million)
this month. CoachBobBradley
has built a skillful, speedy
squad that can be expected to
challenge CONCACAF’s best
teams with a couple of major
acquisitions next year.
The rivalry between the
Black & Gold and the Galaxy
has helped push both teams
forward. The Galaxy signaled
their ambition by bringing in
coachGuillermoBarrosSchel-
otto,plusJonathandosSan-
tos, Ibrahimovic, and Pavón,
and appears to be among the
few teams capable of upsetting
LAFC in the postseason.
Should LAFC continue to
win, it will have to contend
with possible renegotiations
with players such as midfield-
ers Blessing andMark-Antho-
nyKaye, who are starting
ahead of former Revolution
captainLeeNguyenandAndré
Horta(loaned to SC Braga),
plus defenderEddieSegura.Leftanddeft
After drilling the deciding
goal in the Revolution’s 2-1 win
over the Chicago Fire,Gustavo
Bousaid he could recall having
scored few times left-footed. In
fact, Bou is listed with 78 ca-
reer goals, five left-footed, on
transfermarkt.com.
Videos of Bou’s scores while
playing in Mexico show four
left-foot conversions, all from
close range, most on the edge
of the goal area. But Bou’s fin-
ish against the Fire was im-
pressive because it was taken
from outside the penalty area,
where he almost always fires
away right-footed. This was a
solid strike, causing the shot to
wobble knuckleball style.
Bou, 29, has displayed plen-
ty of touches and tricks. Butdefenders have not had to be
conscious of him as a two-foot
finisher from long range.
Asked if Bou had shown a
left-foot threat in training, Rev-
olution defenderAndrewFar-
rellreplied: “Not like that. I’ve
never seen him knuckle it like
that. From the first day he got
here, he can strike a ball. He
took it and it looked like it was
going straight to the keeper but
it knuckles a little bit off to the
left.”
The Revolution (10-9-8, 38
points) are in sixth place going
into Saturday’s game against
seventh-place Toronto FC (10-
10-7, 37 points), and have a 4-
point cushion and a game in
hand in the playoff race.Faststarts
When Liverpool and Sevilla
FC met in a friendly at Fenway
Park last month, Liverpool
supporters predominated in
the crowd of 35,654. But Sevil-
la upset things, playing a phys-
ical style and upping the inten-
sity in taking a 2-1 victory over
the Reds.
Now, both clubs are leading
their leagues. Liverpool (3-0-0,
9 points) is the Premier’s only
unbeaten and untied team.
Sevilla (2-0-0, 6 points) is tied
with Atletico Madrid, ahead of
Barcelona and Real Madrid, in
La Liga.
Sevilla won the Spanish title
once, in 1945-46, and usually
sets realistic goals: developing
players for the transfer market
and qualifying for European
tournaments. This year,
though, Sevilla has spent 151
million euros ($167 million) on
transfers and made only one
major sale — forwardWissam
BenYedderto AS Monaco for
40 million euros ($44 million).Meanwhile,JorisGnagnon,
who was red-carded after a bla-
tant kick in taking downYass-
erLarouciin the second half of
the Fenway friendly, has been
loaned to Rennes in France.
Larouci is performing for Liv-
erpool’s U-23 team.
Liverpool players com-
plained about the malicious-
ness of Gnagnon’s foul, but
they should be reminded of
former Reds midfielderAdam
Phillips’sstuds-up crusher on
AS Roma’sSalihUcanat Fen-
way in 2014. RefereeAlanKel-
lycautioned Phillips, then 16,
and making his Liverpool de-
but, but could have red-carded
him, though former Liverpool
managerBrendanRodgers
tried to justify the challenge.
“It was a challenge you
don’t see here, or in Europe,”
Rodgers said. “But in the Pre-
mier League, that’s a good
tackle.”Youngguns
RoccoCommissocould be
in for an eventful first season
as owner of ACF Fiorentina.
Commisso, an all-Ivy League
second-team player at Colum-
bia in 1968 and ’69, has at-
tempted to revitalize La Viola
after taking over the Serie A
club.
Fiorentina appears to have
plenty of weapons, though it
was outscored, 4-3, by Napoli
in its league opener Saturday.
The Fiorentina youngsters did
not seem fazed by Napoli’s vet-
erans, keeping high-priced cen-
tral defendersKalidouKouliba-
lyandKonstantinosManolas
off-balance.
The average age of La Vio-
la’s roster is 25, and coachVin-
cenzoMontellawent with a
starting lineup averaging 23years. Among the three for-
wards, 21-year-oldFederico
Chiesawas the oldest.
Commisso, CEO of Media-
com Communications Corp.
and owner of the New York
Cosmos, has spent judiciously
on transfers, adding 22-year-
old defenderPolLirola($13
million) and ChileanErickPul-
gar($11 million). He also has
been willing to gamble on old-
er players such asKevin-Prince
Boateng, 32, andFranck
Ribéry, 36, who played key
roles as substitutes against Na-
poli.
Boateng converted the third
goal with a low shot from dis-
tance in the 65th minute, four
minutes after entering the
match. But Napoli capitalized
on a counter,LorenzoInsigne
heading in the deciding goal
two minutes later. Ribery en-
tered as a late replacement for
RiccardoSottil, and appeared
to have been pulled down in
the penalty area byElseidHys-
aj, the non-call costing Fioren-
tina a chance to equalize.
The technical, all-out at-
tacking performance of both
Fiorentina and Napoli signaled
a promising start in Serie A.
Napoli, hoping to challenge
eight-time defending champi-
on Juventus, could improve
with the addition of Mexican
wingerHirving“Chuckie”Loza-
no, plus the return of 22-year-
old wingerAdamOunas, who
won the African Nations Cup
with Algeria. Lozano was ac-
quired on a 38 million euro
($42 million) transfer from
PSV Eindhoven.
Should Mexican stars con-
tinue to attract the interest of
Serie A and other European
leagues, MLS will have to up
the ante, as well.MONDAY’S KEY RESULTS
Men’s first round— Novak Djokovic (1) def. Roberto Carballes Baena, 6-4,
6-1, 6-4; Roger Federer (3) def. Sumit Nagal, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4; Daniil Medvedev
(5) def. Prajnesh Gunneswaran, 6-4, 6-1, 6-2; Kei Nishikori (7) def. Marco Trung-
elliti, 6-1, 4-1, ret.; Reilly Opelka def. Fabio Fognini (11), 6-3, 6-4, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3;
Borna Coric (12) def. Evgeny Donskoy, 7-6 (9-7), 6-3, 6-0; David Goffin (15) def.
Corentin Moutet, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-0; Jenson Brooksby def. Tomas Berdych, 6-1,
2-6, 6-4, 6-4.
Women’s first round— Ashleigh Barty (2) def. Zarina Diyas, 1-6, 6-3, 6-2;
Karolina Pliskova (3) def. Tereza Martincova, 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-3); Elina Svitolina
(5) def. Whitney Osuigwe, 6-1, 7-5; Serena Williams (8) def. Maria Sharapova,
6-1, 6-1; Madison Keys (10) def. Misaki Doi, 7-5, 6-0; Anastasija Sevastova (12)
def. Eugenie Bouchard, 6-3, 6-3; KristinaMladenovic def. Angelique Kerber
(14), 7-5, 0-6, 6-4; Johanna Konta (16) def. Daria Kasatkina, 6-1, 4-6, 6-2; Sofia
Kenin (20) def. Coco Vandeweghe, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3; Petra Martic (22) def. Tamara
Zidansek, 6-4, 4-6, 6-1; Venus Williams def. Saisai Zheng, 6-1, 6-0.
TUESDAY’S FEATURED MATCHES
Men— John Millman vs. Rafael Nadal (2); Alexander Zverev (6) vs. Radu Al-
bot; Stefanos Tsitsipas (8) vs. Andrey Rublev.
Women— Naomi Osaka (1) vs. Anna Blinkova; Simona Halep (4) vs. Nicole
Gibbs; Denisa Allertova vs. Petra Kvitova (6); Paula Badosa vs. Kim Bertens (7);
Aryna Sabalenka (9) vs. Victoria Azarenka; Sloane Stephens (11) vs. Anna Kal-
inskaya.USOpenataglance
MATTHEW STOCKMAN/GETTY IMAGES
Serena Williams made quick work of Maria Sharapova — 6-1, 6-1 — in their first-round match at the US Open on Monday.US OPENSOCCER
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