Pounding out 14 hits -- including two homers -- the Red Sox scored nine runs in the first four innings and went on to paste the Baltimore Orioles, 11-4, their third win in a row.
Michael Chavis (No. 1) and Xander Bogaerts (No. 7) hit homers for the Sox, who had four players collect multiple hits.
Garrett Richards went seven innings to qualify for his second victory of the season.
WHO: Red Sox (20-13) vs. Baltimore Orioles (15-17)
WHEN: 7:05 p.m.
WHERE: Oriole Park at Camden Yards
SEASON SERIES TO DATE: Red Sox 4-3
STARTING PITCHERS: RHP Garrett Richards (1-2, 4.40) vs. LHP Zac Lowther (0-0, 0.00)
TV/RADIO: NESN; 93.7 WEEI-FM
LINEUPS
RED SOX
Chavis 2B
Verdugo CF
Martinez DH
Bogaerts SS
Devers 3B
Vazquez C
Gonzalez LF
Renfroe RF
Dalbec 1B
ORIOLES
Mullins CF
Hays LF
Mancini 1B
Stewart RF
Mountcastle DH
Galvis SS
Franco 3B
Sisco C
Ruiz 2B
IN-GAME OBSERVATIONS:
B6: Superb glove work all around, as Bogaerts backhands a rocket, flips to Chavis who makes a nice turn and Dalbec finishes it by digging out a throw.
T6: Bogaerts belts a two-run homer to left, his seventh homer in the last 15 games after going the first games without one.
B5: Nicely turned double play as Bogaerts bounces a return throw to first just in time to nab Rio Ruiz at first.
B4: Richards shows some athleticism in coming off the mound to track down a dribbler, then makes a strong throw to first to nab Maikel Franco.
T4: The beating continues, as even the lone out this inning was productive scoring a run. The Sox have 12 hits already and everything's falling in.
T4: Alex Verdugo saw his on-base streak snapped at 24 straight games Friday night, but he's starting another one in earnest with three hits in his first three plate appearances.
B3: Though he's given up two runs in the first three innings, Richards has been very efficient with his pitches, with just 35 thrown. That could help him get through six or seven and give the bullpen (mostly) a night off.
T3: Bobby Dalbec strikes again. After a homer Friday night, he strokes a line single to left, scoring two. That's five RBI in this series for the first baseman.
T3: Red Sox keep piling up the baserunners. An infield single from Xander Bogaerts, a walk to Rafael Devers and a single to center by Vazquez scores Bogaerts. That it's for Lowther. Shawn Armstrong on.
B2: Impressive at-bat for Freddy Galvis, who went with a curveball outside the strike zone and flicked it down the left field line for a solo homer.
T2: Michael Chavis announces his return to the lineup by crushing a changeup up and away, just clearing the wall. Very quickly, the Sox have erased a 1-0 deficit and have themselves four runs in the second off rookie Zac Lowther.
T2: Hunter Renfroe continues to use the whole field, going back up the middle with a run-scoring single, scoring Gonzalez from second. That's eight RBI in May for Renfroe,
T2: Some sloppiness on the part of the Orioles helps contributes to a tying run for the Sox. With Christian Vazquez at first with a walk, Marwin Gonzalez reached out and slapped a liner to right for a double. But Stewart's throw bounced around the middle of the infield and enabled Vazquez to score from third.
B1: D.J. Stewart serves a liner into center for a run-scoring single as Cedric Mullins scores from first.
PRE-GAME STATS: The Red Sox have the best record in baseball, at 20-13 (.606)...They're 20-10 since losing the opening series of the season and are 5-1-3 in their last nine series....The Sox’ +30 run differential ranks third in the league...Their .714 road winning percentage is the best in the majors (10-4)...Red Sox pitchers have a road ERA of 3.17, which is second only to Baltimore's 3.11...Offensively, the Red Sox lead the majors in runs (172), batting average (.266), slugging percentage (.443), OPS (.774), doubles (75), and extra-base hits (117)...They've also struck out in just 21.8% of their plate appearances, the third-best mark in the majors.....The Sox have scored five or more runs in six of their last seven games for a total of 49 runs...In that span, they're batting .282 with 12 HR and an .828 OPS...The Sox are one of three teams in the majors to have at least 5 players with 15 or more RBI: J.D. Martinez (31), Rafael Devers (24), Xander Bogaerts (18), Alex Verdugo (16), and Hunter Renfroe (15)...Bogaerts leads the majors in hits (42) and is fifth in batting average (.344)...He leads all shortstops in AVG (.344), OBP (.389), slugging percentage (.574), OPS (.963), doubles (10), and extra-base hits (16). ...Meanwhile, Martinez leads the majors in RBI (31) and total bases (81) and is tied for the lead in homers (10)... He leads the AL in runs scored with 28..He ranks second in the majors in hits (41), third in extra-base hits (20), slugging percentage (.675), and OPS (1.098), fourth in OBP (.423), and seventh in AVG (.342)....Bobby Dalbec is only the 12th Red Sox player ever to hit at least 10 HR in his first 50 career games....: The visiting team has won each of the last eight meetings between the Red Sox and Orioles, including all seven games in 2021...The Sox own the highest wining percentage at Camden Yards (.605) among AL teams, going 144-94 from 1992 to the present...Sox pitchers have allowed only 0.71 HR/9.0 IP, the second-fewest in the majors, trailing only the Yankees at 0.68...They have allowed multiple HR only six times and are the only team yet to allow as many as three homers in a game....Cedric Mullins is 3-for-5 lifetime against Garrett Richards while Trey Mancini is 2-for-5 with a homer...Christian Vazquez has a five-game hitting streak in place and has had at least one RBI in four of his last five games...Marwin Gonzalez also has an active five-game hitting streak.
NOTES
- Michael Chavis, added to the roster right before gametime Friday to replace Kike Hernandez (hamstring), who was placed on the IL, is at second base and hitting leadoff. "I'm not sure I'm if here to prove anything,'' said Chavis. "I think I'm here to do what I can do, control what I can control and that's about it. I feel if I'm focused on what I need to prove in these 10 days, I wouldn't be able to focus on the process. It's easy to say I'm going to try to hit .500, hit a bunch of homers and not swing at bad pitches. But the process is, I'm not going to swing at bad pitches, I'm going to focus on plate discipline and focus on the process.''
- Alex Cora on Chavis: "He had a good spring, he was playing well in Worcester and he's going to get a chance today to get a few at-bats and make a difference.''
- Hirokazu Sawamura was touched for a homer Friday night and has allowed four in 14.1 innings. Cora sees fastballs down in the zone as the pitch most often coming back to bite Sawamura. "We have talked about it,'' Cora said. "We want him to elevate. At this level, it seems like fastballs down in the zone, that's what (hitters) are hinting and they put good swings on it. I think it's just a slight adjustment -- being able to elevate the fastball. You have to get ahead, but then he can expand up. Then, when he goes up, they get to the limit, and then he can use that split-finger, which I think has been playing better lately.''
- The Sox have had their starters provide five or more innings in 25 of their first 33 games, but Cora would like to see more starts of six innings instead five. "Six innings would be perfect,'' said Cora. "A quality start, that would be great. But right now, we're not getting that. Hopefully, we start turning the corer and start getting there. I think that's the next step -- for them to go deeper into games.''