Abbott (6-6) picked up the win Friday, allowing two runs on four hits and a walk over 5.2 innings in a 5-2 victory over the Red Sox. He struck out 10.
The 10 Ks were a season high for Abbott and marked the third time in 36 career big-league starts he's reached double digits. The 25-year-old lefty hasn't had consistent swing-and-miss stuff this year -- he hasn't fanned more than six batters in an outing since May 4 -- and continues to have trouble keeping the ball in the park, as both runs against him Friday came on solo shots, but he's been making it all work so far in 2024. Abbott will take a 3.40 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 70:26 K:BB through 84.2 innings into his next start, which is scheduled to come at home next week against the Pirates.
Abbott (5-6) took the loss against Milwaukee on Saturday, allowing three runs on four hits and three walks while striking out three batters over five innings.
Abbott navigated around a stream of baserunners to keep the Brewers off the scoreboard for four frames, but he put himself in quick danger by walking the first two batters in the fifth. That came back to hurt him in a big way when Joey Ortiz hit a changeup for a three-run homer, accounting for all the runs Abbott surrendered in the outing. It was the southpaw's second straight start of five frames after he went at least six innings in four consecutive outings between May 15 and June 3. Abbott has fared reasonably well this season with a 3.42 ERA and 1.20 WHIP, though his 60:25 K:B over 79 frames doesn't help his fantasy stock.
