Outlasting the rain and the Kansas City Royals, the Red Sox posted a 6-2 win, their sixth victory in a row, and extended their lead in the American League East to three full games.
The Red Sox got a three-run homer from J.D. Martinez in the third inning and made it stand up, though they added two more runs in the fifth and a solo homer from Hunter Renfroe -- the latter, following a delay of nearly two hours in the middle of the sixth inning.
Martin Perez earned just his second win in his last five starts, giving the Sox 5.1 innings, during which he allowed two earned runs. Four relivers finished up for the Sox.
WHO: Red Sox (49-31) vs. Kansas City Royals (33-45)
WHEN: 7:10 p.m.
WHERE: Fenway Park
SERIES TO DATE: BOS 2-0
SEASON SERIES TO DATE: BOS 3-2
STARTING PITCHERS: LHP Martin Perez (5-4, 4.09) vs. LHP Mike Minor (6-5, 5.12)
Tv/RADIO: NESN; WEEI 93.7 FM
LINEUPS
ROYALS
Merrifield 2B
Soler RF
Santana DH
Perez C
Dozier 3B
O'Hearn 1B
Olivares LF
Taylor CF
Alberto SS
RED SOX
Hernandez CF
Verdugo RF
Martinez DH
Bogaerts SS
Devers 3B
Renfroe RF
Vazquez C
Gonzalez 2B
Chavis 1B
IN-GAME OBSERVATIONS:
T9: Interesting that Matt Barnes is in for the third straight night -- and in a non-save situation, to boot.
B8: Hunter Renfroe, deep into the night and over everything. No. 12. Third homer in the last three games.
B6: Tarp's off. Delay was 1:50.
B6: Tarp's on.
T6: Workman does the job, getting an inning-ending double-play as the Royals strand a runner.
T6: Carlos Santana grounds to short, as Whit Merrifield scores from third, and chases Perez. Brandon Workman on with one out in the sixth.
B5: Bogaerts singles high off the wall in left-center, scoring Alex Verdugo.
T5: Put that one up against any number of catches by Jackie Bradley Jr. in CF over the years. Kike Hernandez sprinted a long, long way and made a last-second leaping grab right before the bullpen wall to take what likely would have been a triple for Hanser Alberto and a certain run for the Royals. Stupendous catch.
B4: The odd sequence in which both hitter and fielder gave up the play. Marwin Gonzalez, convinced he had popped the ball up, slammed the bat in disgust and began trotting down to first when he looked up and saw the ball was going to hit off The Wall. Left fielder Edward Olivares, meanwhile, casually took the carom and floated a throw back to the shortstop, whereas some more intensity could he resulted on throwing Gonzalez out at second.
B3: Rafael Devers didn't hit that well -- almost a check swing, off the end of the bat -- and still managed to hit it halfway up the wall for a double, sending Xander Bogaerts to third.
B3: J.D. Martinez stays hot, smoking a changeup to straightaway center field and into the bleachers for a three-run shot. That's seven RBI in the last 10 innings for Martinez, who had a four RBI game Tuesday night.
B2: In the early going, the Red Sox aren't having any better luck with Mike Minor, who limited them to just two runs in 6.2 innings a few weeks ago in Kansas City. Red Sox always seem to struggle against soft-serve lefties like Minor.
T2: Not a bad pitch from Martin Perez -- a changeup on the outer half -- but Salvador Perez got his long arms extended and drove that into the Monster Seats in left-center for a 1-0 lead for the Royals.
WHAT'S UP: : The Red Sox own sole possession of the AL’s best record (49-31, .613)...They have won their last five games, the AL’s longest active win streak. The Sox are a season-high 18 games above .500. The Sox are 24-17 (.585) vs. teams that entered today with a winning record, MLB’s third-best mark...Tonight will be the Red Sox’ 81st game of the season...This is the 15th time the Sox have won at least 49 of their first 80 games, having most recently done so in 2007 and 2018 (won World Series in both years). Under the 10-team playoff format from 2012-2019, 19 of 20 teams who won 49 or more of their first 80 games made the Postseason (all except the 2018 Mariners)...The Red Sox are 17-10 in June, after going 17-10 in April and 15-11 in May...The only other teams to win 15 or more games in each month this season are the Dodgers, A’s, and Giants (the Padres could join that list with a win at CIN today)....The Red Sox lead the majors with 27 come-from-behind wins this season...They are an MLB-leading 24-12 (.667) in games decided by one or two runs. The Sox lead the AL in runs scored with two outs (165). The Sox lead MLB in two-strike RBI (161), 17 more than any other team (HOU-144)...Rafael Devers (31) and Xander Bogaerts (27) rank first and second in MLB in two-strike RBI. With RISP & two outs, the Sox lead MLB in AVG (.276) and OPS (.842)....In their last 4 games, the Red Sox have hit .352 with a 1.012 OPS...They struck out seven times or fewer in each of those four games. The Sox are an MLB-best 44-4 (.917) when scoring four or more runs...Red Sox pitchers allowed five or more ER in each of their last two two games, after giving up two earned runs or fewer in each of their previous four...Since giving up 18 runs to TOR on June 13, the Sox have posted a 3.54 ERA in 14 games ...The Sox lead the AL with 1.05 HR/9.0 IP. Sox starters have thrown five or more innings 61 times, third-most in the majors...The Sox are 40-21 (.656) when their starter lasts 5.0 or more innings (9-10 in other games).....Red Sox relievers rank fourth in the AL and seventh in the majors in ERA (3.49)...Their nine active relievers have a combined 2.91 ERA for the Sox...Red Sox relievers have allowed zero runs in their last 11.0 IP... In their last six games, they own a 0.46 ERA (1 ER/19.2 IP) with only 1 XBH allowed (double). In their last 14 games, Sox relievers have posted a 2.15 ERA ...They have stranded their last 15 inherited runners...Martin Perez has allowed two ER or fewer in nine of his last 12 starts...He's allowed no homers in his last two starts and has earned a win in five of his last eight starts, tossing 5.0 or more innings with three ER or fewer in each of the five wins. Has tossed fewer than 4.0 IP in three of his last four starts after reaching 5.0 or more IP in each of his previous seven.... Whit Merrifield is 7-for-18 against Perez in his career while Carlos Santana is 7-for-16 with a homer...J.D. Martinez is 9-for-16 with a homer against Mike Minor...Xander Bogaerts had a five-game hitting streak and has reached base in 24 straight games, during which he's hit .356...
NOTES:
* Chris Sale threw his second live batting practice, tossing 18-20 pitches over the course of an inning following a warm-up session in the bullpen. Alex Cora, who watched on the field, called the session eye-opening. "The command of the pitchers, that was something I didn't expect,'' Cora said. "He was able to throw fastballs inside, fastball arm-side up-and-away to put people away. The changeup was good, the slider was good. Throughout the process, that's kind of the last thing that you get -- the changeup and the command. And for him to be dotting pitches already, that's a good sign.''
* The plan calls for Sale to return to Fort Myers and throw another live BP session next week for a duration of two innings. After that, he could begin a rehab assignment. Interestingly, usually pitchers begin their rehab assignments at the lowest affiliate level like Low Single A or High Single A. But rather than starting Sale at either Greenville or Salem, the Sox are leaning toward having him pitch solely for the two New England affiliates: Triple A Worcester and Double A Portland. "We always go up the ladder, but does it make sense to go up the ladder?'' said Cora. "The quality of the (opponent) at-bats, the quality of the defense around him...nothing against those kids (in the lower minors), but those kids are down there for a reason. They're just starting to play (pro) baseball. So (head trainer Brad Pearson) thinks we should keep him around and have him at the highest level (of the minors). And the fact that Worcester is right here, the facilities are good...We can do the same thing that we used to do with Pawtucket. He can get his work in here, and then go pitch. I think that's what Brad envisions, so hopefully, that's the case.''
* Christian Arroyo took swings against Sale and later did some work at second base. He's near returning from a knee contusion that sent him to the IL. The plan is for him to play with Worcester for a brief rehab assignment, then join the Sox on the upcoming West Coast road trip.
* Tanner Houck, who made his second start for Worcester Tuesday night since coming off the IL, earned good reports. "Everything went well,'' said Cora.
* Franchy Cordero is getting some pre-game work in at Worcester at first base. "Versatility is important to what we're trying to accomplish,'' Cora said. "If he can handle that position, it's not only good for us, it's good for him, too. It gives us another option, another versatile player and we'll take advantage of that.''
* Bobby Dalbec is out of the lineup after coming out of Tuesday's game with a tight right hamstring. "He's going to get treatment,'' said Cora. "He's better than (Tuesday) but not 100 percent.''
* Infielder Jeter Downs was selected to the Futures Game, which will be held two days before the All-Star Game in Denver a week from Sunday. "It's a showcase,'' said Cora. "He's going to be around the best of the best prospects in the league. Just to be in that environment will be special.''