Red Sox Notes: Boston is 2-4 to open the second half and welcome the Dodgers to Fenway Park this weekend; would an upgrade at first base help offensively?

The Red Sox were red-hot heading into the All-Star break, winners of 10 straight games, but have since stumbled out of the gate, going 2-4 on their road trip against the Cubs and Phillies.

Over the last three seasons, the Sox went into the All-Star break in playoff contention but have faded down the stretch, failing to make the postseason. Despite their results over the last week, Boston is still in the playoff picture, holding onto the final wild-card spot in the American League, 1 1/2 games ahead of the Rays and Rangers.

Boston managed two wins in each of the final games of their final two series against the Cubs and Phillies. On Wednesday night, Romy Gonzalez crushed his first career grand slam, which paved the way for a dramatic 9-8 win in 11 innings to avoid the sweep.

Gonzalez had been cooling off at the plate prior to his huge homer, going 0-for-20 with eight strikeouts. Alex Cora felt that Gonzalez was chasing pitches and whiffing too much but went into the game with a game plan to handle Phillies southpaw Jesus Luzardo.

“I’ve been getting heavy changeup out of the pitchers this series and even the Cubs series, so I feel like it was the game plan on me, attacking me with the changeup,” Gonzalez said. “I was just looking for it.

“Any time you can do it in a fashion like that and put the boys up, it’s huge. Obviously, I haven’t been swinging it well out of the break.”

Gonzalez’ grand slam arguably was the Red Sox’ biggest hit of the season, helping them secure a second win on a tough road trip.

Even though Gonzalez provided heroics, the Red Sox are reportedly looking at first base options ahead of the trade deadline. Gonzalez and Abraham Toro have been adequate in their platoon at first base. That said, neither player has a track record of maintaining their performances deep into the season.

The Diamondbacks' Josh Naylor made a ton of sense for the Red Sox, but was traded to the Mariners on Thursday night. He is on an expiring contract and is slashing .292/360/.447 with a 123 wRC+ and 11 homers in 93 games.

With Naylor off the board, Boston could look to swing a trade with the Orioles for first baseman Ryan O’Hearn. He could platoon against righties while Gonzalez hits against lefties, with Cora mix-and-matching him at second base with Marcelo Mayer hurt.

If the Red Sox were to add O’Hearn, they could send the Orioles back a handful of their impending Rule 5 prospects.

What he brings to the table is a hitter who rarely strikes out, owning a 16.5 percent strikeout rate. O’Hearn has looked good defensively over at first base with 3 Defensive Runs Saved and 5 Outs Above Average, which puts him in the 92nd percentile.

Offensively, he’s been a bright spot for the struggling Orioles; he’s in the 94th percentile for expected batting average (.296), the 80th percentile in hard-hit percentage, the 76th percentile in K percentage, and the 84th percentile in walk percentage.

The nerd stats are bright red on his Baseball Savant page, and getting a chance to deliver for the Red Sox, who are in the playoff hunt, could be what Boston needs.

Boston could call the Diamondbacks and get creative and try and trade for third baseman Eugenio Suarez and move him from the hot corner to first base. The Red Sox moved Kyle Schwarber from the outfield to first base during the 2021 season.

Suarez entered Wednesday with a National League-best 36 home runs and leads baseball with 86 RBI. His power and those stats would slot nicely in the middle of the Red Sox’ order. There’s been no reporting that the Sox have been linked to the DBacks slugger. He has been connected to the Reds and Yankees this past week.

O’Hearn and Suarez could help with the Red Sox’ Jekyll-and-Hyde offense that has been an issue at times this season. Boston still ranks amongst the top of the league, but when they scuffle, they look lifeless. In 16 games this season, they’ve scored 10 or more runs, and Wednesday night’s six-run fifth inning was the fourth time this month they’ve scored six or more runs in an inning, which is the best in the majors.

In their first five games out of the All-Star break, they scored just 10 runs; six came in Sunday’s win over the Cubs. They only scored four runs in the other four games. The Sox have faced tough pitching, particularly against the Phillies when they faced Zack Wheeler and Cristopher Sanchez. The offense struggled to put the ball in play and struck out at a rapid clip. Through the first two games in Philadelphia, Boston struck out 28 times: 16 in the first game and 12 in the second game.

CATCHER’S INTERFERENCE

Whether you agree with the rule or not, catcher’s interference calls have been costly to the Red Sox, and that issue reared its ugly head in the Phillies series. Carlos Narváez leads all catchers with 16 Defensive Runs Saved and is third with 11 Outs Above Average, while producing at the plate, owning a .778 OPS in 78 games.

On Monday night, the Phillies walked it off in extra innings after home plate umpire Quinn Wolcott ruled that the Sox’ rookie catcher had interfered with Edmundo Sosa’s bat path on a check swing with the bases loaded. The interference allowed the go-ahead run to score, and it was the first time since 1971 that a game ended in a walk-off on a catcher’s interference call.

On Tuesday, Narváez was in the middle of controversy again after another run-scoring catcher’s interference was called when he stepped in front of the plate before the pitch, attempting to get Bryce Harper trying to steal home.

Wolcott spoke to a pool of reporters in Philly after the game and explained that home plate umpire Edwin Jimenez made the call even with Narváez being in front of home plate in the direction of the mound.

“He had Narváez stepping on or above the plate before the pitch was received, essentially...,” Wolcott said. “I would say that that constitutes a violation, because the purpose of the rule is to protect the hitter striking at the pitch, right? So he can’t invade the hitter’s space, either. Even if he were to come around the plate, it would still be a violation.”

“No reference in the rule about the hitter maintaining a hitter stance or anything like that,” Wolcott added. “It’s pretty cut-and-dried that the catcher just can’t go that far forward before he receives the pitch.”

Narváez was charged with an error that gave Brandon Marsh first base and a catcher's balk that allowed Harper to advance home and Nick Castellanos to take first.

“I just went up,“ Narváez said. “Maybe I went up a little early. I just wanted to catch the ball and tag. I saw the video. I wasn’t over the plate or something.

“I didn’t know that rule... I was arguing with him because I knew I wasn’t covering the plate. Then he told me that. First time I’ve seen that play.”

DODGERS COME TO BOSTON

It doesn’t get any easier for the Red Sox, who will begin a three-game series with the Dodgers at Fenway Park on Friday night. Los Angeles has gone 7-11 in the month of July, but did earn a walk-off over the Twins on Wednesday night.

Former Red Sox superstar Mookie Betts may miss Friday’s series-opening game due to personal reasons.

“There might be some things going on that he might not be around for, that he’s got to deal with personally,” Dave Roberts told reporters after Wednesday’s win. “Everything is okay with him, but yeah, we’ll see.”

Betts is hitting just .238 on the season and .185 with a .548 OPS in July.

Boston will have Brayan Bello, Garrett Crochet, and Walker Buehler due to start this weekend.

Alex Bregman is a full-go this weekend and will be crucial in this three-game series against the Dodgers.

MARCELO MAYER HURT

It looks like the Red Sox will be without Mayer, who was wearing a brace on his right wrist. He suffered an injury that forced him to leave in the fifth inning of Wednesday night’s game.

Mayer and the Red Sox are awaiting the word on his injury, which the team is currently calling “right wrist discomfort.”

According to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo, Mayer was expected to undergo an MRI in Boston on Thursday.

“I don’t know right now,” Mayer said about his injury. “I just iced it. It feels in some pain, but hopefully it’s not too serious and I can get back on the field soon.”

After working a two-out walk to load the bases in the top of the fifth, Mayer motioned to the dugout that he was hurt.

“I just felt a little tight grab in my wrist when I took a swing in my second at-bat,” Mayer said. “I knew I really couldn’t do anything after that, so I just called it (a game).”

If the Red Sox lose Mayer for an extended period of time, Gonzalez could be part of a platoon at second base if they acquire a first baseman. David Hamilton could be recalled from Triple-A Worcester, or possibly Vaughn Grissom. Kristian Campbell could be a possibility but still seems lost at the plate. Pitchers are pounding him inside, and he looks to be lunging at the plate.

“I still need to get with the medical staff and go over it and see what’s good,” Mayer said.

Mayer is no stranger to suffering injuries mid-season. The last two seasons, he saw his season get cut short due to a shoulder injury and last year due to a lower back issue. If he suffered something serious, like a hamate bone injury, it will be a brutal blow for the rookie, and it is seriously time to consider whether the club can count on him for a full baseball season.