The Red Sox began their road trip in style Monday afternoon, cruising to a 12-2 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Sox pounded out 16 hits, with every member of the lineup collecting at least one hit. Four of those hits were homers, with Michel Chavis, Jackie Bradley Jr., Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers all hitting the ball out.
David Price, coming off the IL after a stint with elbow tendinitis, allowed two runs over five innings, none earned. Four relievers took it from there. The Blue Jays didn't collect a hit after the second inning.
WHO: Red Sox vs. Toronto Blue Jays
WHEN: 1:07 p.m.
WHERE: Rogers Centre
STARTING PITCHERS: LHP David Price (1-2, 3.75) vs RHP Edwin Jackson (0-0, 3.60)
TV/RADIO: ESPN/WEEI 93.7 FM
IN-GAME OBSERVATIONS:
3:46 In the span of five pitches, the Red Sox go upper-deck. Solo homer by Devers in what was likely his hardest-hit ball of the season. Fourth homer of the afternoon for the Red Sox.
3:45 Bogaerts tomahawks a pitch up above the letters and sends it into the second deck.
3:43 Red Sox pitching has Jays lineup since the second. Toronto has only one baserunner from the third through the eighth -- and that was a leadoff walk in the seventh.
3:07 Sox keep mashing with three more hits this inning, producing one run and runners at the corners, chasing rookie Elvis Luciano.
2:55 That's all for Price, who leaves after five innings. Made just one mistake -- the homer by Maile -- and had cruised through the last three innings, retiring the final 10 hitters in a row. But Sox are smart to limit his workload in first start back, with five innings and 67 pitches. Brandon Workman on for the sixth.
2:47 Jackie Bradley Jr. goes the other way for his first homer of the season, scoring Steve Pearce (walk) ahead of him. Last regular season homer came last Sept. 20, 153 at-bats ago.
2:27 After needing 39 pitches to get through the first two innings, Price has two efficient innings in a row, needing 10 pitches in the third and just five in the fourth. He's retired the last seven straight since the two-run homer by Maile.
2:21 Benintendi swings over a curveball that drops out of the bottom of the zone -- and curses himself as he does it.
2:07 Michael Chavis has had some difficulty with high heat -- as the Astros proved over the weekend -- but he absolutely destroys hanging breaking balls, like that one from Jackson. Two-run homer, second homer in as many days and nine for the season.
2:02 Hard line drive to left for Bogaerts who knocked in two runs as the Red Sox re-take the lead. Bogaerts now has 30 RBI for the season, including three in his last three at-bats.
1:48 Price misses location with a fastball -- should have been in; left it over the outside corner -- and Luke Maille hammers it out to left for a two-run HR. Natural to expect that Price might not have his best command after missing a few weeks.
1:45 Michael Chavis botches a routine grounder for his third error of the season. Sloppy play, as he appeared a little took casual and had the ball clang off the heel of his glove.
1:19 Red Sox force a mistake by the Jays with a steal of second. Devers takes off and draws a bad throw, allowing Bogaerts to trot home.
1:16 Devers manages to fight off a fastball in on the hands and bloop it into RF, scoring Moreland from second base.
LINEUPS
RED SOX
Benintendi LF
Betts RF
Moreland 1B
Bogaerts SS
Devers 3B
Chavis 2B
Pearce DH
Bradley CF
Leon C
BLUE JAYS
Sogard 2B
Drury 3B
Smoak 1B
Grichuk RF
Galvis SS
Jansen DH
Davis CF
Urena LF
Maile C
WHAT'S UP: The Red Sox avoided a sweep by the Houston Astros Sunday, snapping a two-game losing streak...This afternoon's game -- played as a matinee because of Victoria Day in Canada -- is the start of a seven-game road trip through Toronto and Houston...The Sox are 8-2 in their last 10 road games and have won each of their last three road series after starting the year by dropping each of their first four...The Sox have pitched to a 2.99 ERA in their last 10 road games with a 1.01 WHIP while averaging 11.3 strikeouts per nine innings...In the last 21 games overall, the Red Sox bullpen has posted a 1.99 ERA while limiting hitters to a .169 average, 0.96 WHIP and a .551 OPS...Since making his major league debut, Michael Chavis leads the Red Sox in homers (eight) and RBI (22)...The last rookie with 22 or more RBI in his first 25 games in the major leagues was Fred Lynn, who had 23 between the end of 1974 and the start of 1975...Since RBI became an official stat in 1920, Chavis is one of only eight players to record at least eight homers and 22 RBI in their first 25 games...Over his last 17 games, Christian Vazquez is hitting .436 with an OPS of 1.110. He has a six-game hitting streak, during which time he's 11-for-20 with four extra-base hits...Vazquez leads the Sox with a .316 average. Among MLB catchers with at least 100 plate appearances, he's third in average and fifth in OPS (.898)...The Red Sox are 29-11 against the Blue Jays since the start of 2017, going 10-1-2 in the last 13 series...In their last 16 games with Toronto, the Sox are 13-3, outscoring the Jays 99-54 in that span...The Sox own a .567 winning percentage at SkyDome/Rogers Centre, better even than the home team (.543)….Since the start of 2017, the Sox have stolen more bases against the Jays than any other team has stolen against a single opponent, swiping 58 bags in 67 attempts for an 86.7 percent success rate...David Price is 21-3 with a 2.43 ERA in 30 career appearances against Toronto, 29 of them starts...In his last 10 outings in Toronto, Price is 8-0 with a 3.09 ERA...The Sox have homered in 15 of their last 17 games and totaled 30 homers in those 17 games...Andrew Benintendi had a three-game hitting streak and has scored 11 runs in the last 13 games...Mookie Betts has a four-game hitting streak...He is second in the league in runs scored with 39...Xander Bogaerts has reached base in 16 of his last 27 plate appearances....Jackie Bradley Jr. is hitless in his last 10 at-bats...Mitch Moreland has averaged a homer every 10.75 at-bats, third best in the American League...Price is making his first start since May 2, when he was placed on the IL with elbow tendinitis...He has a 2.63 ERA over his last four starts....Justin Smoak is just 4-for-20 with six strikeouts against Price....Brandon Drury is 1-for-3 with a homer....Both Betts and Bogaerts are hitless in their careers against Edwin Jackson while Bradley is 2-for-5.
PRE-GAME NOTES:
- The Sox made two roster moves, both of which were expected. They activated David Price from the IL and activated C Sandy Leon from the paternity list. To make room, the Sox optioned catcher Oscar Hernandez and RHP Josh Smith to Pawtucket.
- J.D. Martinez is getting the game off, with Alex Cora telling reporters that he'll offer rest to regulars as the Sox find themselves in the midst of a stretch in which they play 33 games in 33 days.