The Boston Red Sox Wednesday, October 4, 2017 * The Boston Globe Drew Pomeranz to start Game 2 of playoffs for Red Sox Alex Speier After a regular season in which Chris Sale and Drew Pomeranz anchored the Red Sox rotation, that duo will likewise lead the team into the best-of-five Division Series against the Astros. Manager John Farrell announced prior to a team workout Tuesday that after Sale starts against Justin Verlander in Game 1, Pomeranz will get the ball against Houston’s Dallas Keuchel Friday in Game 2. Beyond that, Farrell said, the team continues to work to determine how it will try to stop the explosive Houston offense. Sale’s start in Game 1 became a certainty when the Red Sox clinched the AL East Saturday with a win over Houston at Fenway Park, eliminating any need for the All-Star lefthander to pitch in Sunday’s regular- season finale. Sale went 17-8 with a 2.90 ERA this season while leading the league with 214⅓ innings and 308 strikeouts. Sale will be making his first career postseason start. In six career starts against the Astros (most recently in 2016 while still with the White Sox), Sale has been overpowering, going 5-1 with a 1.31 ERA, 65 strikeouts, and 5 walks in 48 innings. “He’s going to give us a chance to win,” said outfielder Mookie Betts. “Can’t ask for anything more than that.” In preparation for Thursday, Sale, who last pitched Sept. 26, had what Farrell characterized as a high- intensity bullpen session Monday. “He’s tuned up and ready to go,” said Farrell. Pomeranz (17-6, 3.32) was a candidate for either Game 2 or Game 3, depending upon how he emerged from his six-inning effort in Saturday’s division-clinching win. Based on that performance, the Sox felt comfortable having Pomeranz pitch on five days’ rest Friday rather than giving him seven days between starts with an assignment in Sunday’s Game 3. For the season, Pomeranz was 6-2 with a 3.52 ERA and 10.2 strikeouts per nine innings when pitching with five days between starts. Beyond those two, Farrell said the Red Sox have yet to determine the rest of their rotation. Righties Doug Fister and Rick Porcello and lefty Eduardo Rodriguez are candidates to start in the series; Porcello and Rodriguez are also candidates for the bullpen. Fister has an excellent postseason track record (4-2, 2.60 in nine games), while Porcello has struggled (0-3, 5.66). Rodriguez has never pitched in the playoffs. Fister’s success will be considered. “You do like the fact of a veteran presence,” said Farrell. “Guys that have been in a postseason, guys who seemingly will pitch with more emotional control, or control the running game, or execute a pitch in a key moment. That has maybe a tendency to shine through a little more.” Recent performance also will help shape the decision. Rodriguez (6-7, 4.19) was hammered by Houston for five runs in 1⅔ innings in his final regular-season start, one day before Fister (5-9, 4.88) allowed three runs over 5⅓ innings against the Astros. Porcello (11-17, 4.65) allowed nine runs over 9⅔ innings in his final two starts, but in both instances, the Sox paired him with reliever David Price, who delivered dominant outings out of the bullpen. That fit of a starter and the bullpen is also a consideration as the Sox decide on their remaining series starters. “There’s got to be some complement there,” said Farrell. Farrell didn’t rule out the possibility of using Sale on three days’ rest in a potential Game 4, but he said that such a decision would be a product of what happens in the series opener. The manager did eliminate Price as a rotation candidate, instead eyeing the lefty to continue in his role as a multi-innings bullpen weapon. “He’s not going to start,” said Farrell. “I don’t think we can ask anything more from David Price from a physical standpoint the way he’s handled and embraced this role. It’s been outstanding.” Nunez improves Eduardo Nunez passed another set of tests regarding his injured right knee, running the bases and sliding during Tuesday’s workout. Farrell said Nunez has shown “marked improvement” from similar tests that he underwent prior to a one-game return to the lineup Sept. 25. “Everything points to him being available in the series,” said Farrell. The Sox are still trying to figure out whether Nunez, who is using a larger brace to provide added stability in the wake of his strained ligament, will be able to play defense. Given that Keuchel held lefties to a .145 average and .435 OPS, Farrell suggested that the Sox see that as a possibility for the righthanded Nunez to start at third in place of the lefthanded-hitting Rafael Devers. Farrell did not sound inclined to use Nunez (who hit .321 with an .892 OPS over 38 games after the Sox acquired him in a trade) as the DH in place of Hanley Ramirez (.242 with a .750 OPS in 133 games). “I wouldn’t rule it out completely, but I like the fact of the way Hanley was swinging the bat over the last five to seven or eight games,” said Farrell. More than one After the All-Star break, just two of Craig Kimbrel’s 31 appearances lasted more than one inning, and none of his 19 outings after Aug. 13 had him pitching in any inning but the ninth. Farrell is open to broadening that job description for the playoffs. “We’ve used him as much as two full innings,” said Farrell. “While you don’t necessarily want to do that all the time, one-plus innings are going to be on the table every day provided that the day before wasn’t two innings or a high number of pitches.” . Betts, who sat out two games last week after receiving a painkilling injection in his left wrist, said he’s not hampered by the injury. “I feel fine,” said Betts. “Everything is healed up and ready to go. Swinging and everything is normal.” . Potential AL Championship Series tickets will go on sale Wednesday at noon on redsox.com. Fans with disabilities can call (877) RED-SOX9 beginning at noon. Hearing-impaired patrons may call the TTY line at (617) 226-6644. There is a four-ticket limit, with prices ranging from $75 to $275. Secret to the Red Sox’ success was simple: Pitching Alex Speier On paper, the Red Sox had no business winning 93 games this season. After all, that total had been achieved a year ago by a team that looked like a juggernaut, a drastic contrast to this year’s duct-taped roster. The 2017 Red Sox did not have David Ortiz. Their reigning Cy Young winner saw his ERA jump by 1.50 runs per game. Their 2016 Opening Day starter made 24 fewer starts than he made last season. Tyler Thornburg, their anticipated eighth-inning reliever, never pitched. Nearly every member of the lineup underperformed his 2016 production. “While everyone refers to a blueprint,” said manager John Farrell, “we’ve had to turn the page on the blueprint a number of times and still have been able to maintain the results.” So how on earth did they do it? And why would it be a mistake right now to dismiss their chances of postseason success? Put simply, the Red Sox delivered one of the most dominant pitching seasons in team history. The team ERA was 3.70, roughly two-thirds of a run better than the American League average of 4.37. That 0.67 difference marked the second-greatest margin by which the Red Sox have ever beaten their league, topped only by a carried-by-Pedro 1999 team that was 0.71 runs better (4.00 vs. 4.71). The Red Sox outperformed the league by 15.3 percent — their biggest margin since Babe Ruth was a member of the rotation in 1918. Pitching in Where this year's pitching staff ranked in terms of the best performances ever by the franchise, relative to the league Season Red Sox Team ERA League ERA Difference Percent 1999 4.00 4.71 -0.71 15.07% 2017 3.70 4.37 -0.67 15.33% 1911 2.74 3.36 -0.62 18.45% 1912* 2.76 3.37 -0.61 18.10% 2007* 3.87 4.47 -0.60 13.42% 1914 2.36 2.91 -0.55 18.90% 1953 3.59 4.14 -0.55 13.29% 1904 2.12 2.66 -0.54 20.30% 1903* 2.57 3.11 -0.54 17.36% 2002 3.75 4.28 -0.53 12.38% 2000 4.24 4.77 -0.53 11.11% 1915* 2.39 2.90 -0.51 17.59% 1917 2.20 2.68 -0.48 17.91% 1918* 2.31 2.77 -0.46 16.61% 1993 3.80 4.19 -0.39 9.31% SOURCE: Baseball-Reference.com * - Won World Series While Chris Sale and Craig Kimbrel were the headliners in that effort, the contributions extended far beyond that duo. The Red Sox had 10 pitchers with an ERA+ (ERA compared to league average, with 100 being average and 110 being 10 percent above average) of 130 or higher (minimum 15 innings), tied for the most in AL history. They had 12 with an ERA+ of 120 and 13 with a mark of 110 or better.