HOUSTON — As reporters approached Brennan Bernardino’s locker after he delivered in a big spot for the Red Sox on Wednesday, he joked it was nice to be getting questions about a positive development after weeks of negative ones.
Bernardino, who entered the day with a 9.58 second-half ERA and had been demoted to the minors, albeit briefly, last week, had the signature moment on a day when Boston’s bullpen shut down Houston’s offense in a big rubber game win. With manager Alex Cora limiting starter Cooper Criswell to two times through the order in 4 ⅓ innings, the Red Sox needed 13 outs from their much-maligned bullpen. The biggest came in the bottom of the seventh.
