The Red Sox kicked off their big series against the league leading-Minnesota Twins with a pitching masterpiece from Rick Porcello, blanking the Twins, 2-0.
Porcello went seven innings and allowed just four hits and a walk while striking out eight.
The Sox scored a run in the first inning on a single by J.D. Martinez. They added a huge insurance run in the eighth when Martinez doubled with one out and one out later, Xander Bogaerts doubled him home.
Colten Brewer worked around some trouble in the eighth and Ryan Brasier nailed it down in the ninth for the save.
WHO: Red Sox at Minnesota Twins
WHEN: 8:10 p.m.
WHERE: Target Field
STARTING PITCHERS: RHP Rick Porcello (4-6, 4.69) vs. RHP Jose Berrios (8-2, 3.01)
TV/RADIO: NESN/WEEI 93.7 FM
IN-GAME OBSERVATIONS:
10:43 Huge double from Xander Bogaerts -- on an 0-and-2 pitch, no less -- to deliver Martinez from second for a much-needed insurance run.
10:19 With Brandon Workman and Marcus Walden unavailable because of heavy use of late and Heath Hembree on the IL, Red Sox turn to Colten Brewer for the eighth in a one-run game. This is a gamble.
9:48 Not hit hard at all, but Xander Bogaerts hits a soft liner to left, snapping a streak of 18 in a row retired by Berrios.
9:41 In an era where almost every pitcher averages a strikeout per inning, Porcello doesn't -- he came in averaging 7.4 per nine innings. But tonight, mixing his fastball and a slow curve, he's got a lot of swings and misses. There, he got Nelson Cruz to chase a fastball up in the zone, stranding a runner.
9:27 Porcello continues to cruise through the Twins lineup, allowing just two hits through the first five. And because the Twins have been so aggressive, often swinging early in the count, Porcello's pitch count is just 56 through five innings.
8:45 Berrios has adjusted nicely after allowing hits to each of the first three hitters he faced. He's retired the last eight in a row, with three by strikeout.
8:40 Rick Porcello has been sharp through two innings, working at a quick tempo and displaying good movement on his fastball.
8:18 J.D. Martinez slaps a single to left, scoring Mookie Betts. The Red Sox are getting good swings off Jose Berrios in the first inning.
LINEUPS
RED SOX
Betts RF
Benintendi LF
Martinez DH
Devers 3B
Bradley SS
Holt 2B
Chavis 1B
Bradley CF
Leon C
TWINS
Kepler RF
Polanco SS
Cruz DH
Rosario LF
Cron 1B
Gonzalez RF
Sano 3B
Castro C
Schoop 2B
WHAT'S UP: The Red Sox have a five-game winning streak (tying a season high) and are five games over .500 for the first time all season....Boston is 7-0 in its last seven road games, and have swept their last two road series...With a win in any of the next three games, the Sox can lay claim to their fifth straight winning road trip...The Sox are 4-0 in extra-inning road wins this season...Since 2007, the Red Sox are 11-1-0 in season series against the Twins and have won nine of the last 13 head-to-head matchups, including wins in the last three games...During their current winning streak, the Sox are averaging 7.8 runs per game and batting .323 with an OPS of 1.022....They've hit 14 homers in the five games...Over the last 27 games, the Red Sox have 111 extra-base hits, most in the baseball....The Sox have at least one double in every one of the 16 games they've played this month...Since May 27, they lead all of MLB with 44 doubles....Jackie Bradley Jr. has a seven-game hitting streak, during which time he's hitting .357 (10-for-28) with four doubles and two homers...He's reached base safely in the last 12 games...Over his last 26 games, Bradley is slashing .307/.396/.659 with 17 RBI and 17 extra-base hits....J.D. Martinez has four homers in his last four games...Over his last 29 games, he has 12 homers, tying him for the most in the American League in that span...Of his last seven hits, six have gone for extra bases....In his last three games, Rafael Devers is 7-for-14...He leads the American League in RBI with 37 since the beginning of May.....Xander Bogaerts leads the A.L. in runs scored (56) and doubles (21)….With tonight's start, Bogaerts will tie Rico Petrocelli for most starts at shortstop for the Red Sox with 762, seventh on the team's all-time list....Michael Chavis has a six-game hitting streak...Mookie Betts tied a season high with three hits Sunday and reached base five times...Since coming off the IL, Brock Holt is hitting .388 with a .444 OBP...Sandy Leon has six RBI in his last 10 games....In 13 career starts at Target Field, Rick Porcello is 7-3 with a 2.96 ERA...Among pitchers 33 pitchers with 10 or more starts at Target Field, his ERA there is second only to Justin Verlander (2.39)...In each of his last three starts, Porcello has thrown at least seven innings and allowed one or no runs...The Sox are 7-3 in Porcello's last 10 starts....Nelson Cruz is just 6-for-36 (.167) with 10 strikeouts lifetime against Porcello....Jonathan Schoop is 8-for-25 (.320) against Porcello....Martinez is 4-for-11 (.364) against Jose Berrios while Leon is just 1-for-9 with three strikeouts.
PRE-GAME NOTES:
- The Red Sox made two roster moves earlier in the day, activating RHP Hector Velazquez from the IL and activating RHP Ryan Brasier from the bereavement list. To make room on the roster, the Sox optioned RHPs Josh Smith and Travis Lakins to Pawtucket.
- RHP Nathan Eovaldi played catch Monday and will resume his throwing program.
- Alex Cora said that RHP Brandon Workman would be unavailable tonight, with RHP Marcus Walden questionable. Both have pitched frequently in the last week, with Workman appearing in five games over the last seven days and Walden having pitched three times in the last four days.
- 1B Steve Pearce, who spent some time in Lowell over the weekend as part of his rehab, will shift his rehab to Pawtucket beginning Tuesday and play there three straight days as he comes back from a back injury.