BSJ Game Report: Red Sox 7, Phillies 4 - Streak hits 8 as Devers, Refsnyder & Arroyo power Boston

All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' win over the Phillies, complete with BSJ analysis and insight:

BOX SCORE

HEADLINES

Sox are rolling, Phillies are not: Sometimes in baseball, you can do no wrong. On the other side of the coin, there are stretches where nothing's working for you.

Obviously the Red Sox — who have won eight-straight games after Saturday night's win in front of a national TV audience, their best streak since 2021 — are feeling it right now, as evidenced by the music blaring in their clubhouse.

“Credit to the guys,” Alex Cora told reporters. “They work hard on their craft, they work hard on their game plan and they’re executing.”

On the other side of Citizens Bank Park, the Phillies dropped their sixth straight and were in no mood to talk. Even Bryce Harper, who belted his first homer since returning from the disabled list and is normally available after the game, did not address reporters.

"We just have to keep planning better, keep executing better, preparing better," said Phillies manager Rob Thomson.  "I have full faith in all of them, really, we just have to do a better job."

Sox solve Falter ... quickly: If you watched the first three innings of this one, and listened to the Fox broadcasters drone on about his resemblance to Sandy Koufax (really?!), you would have never known that Phillies lefty starter Bailey Falter entered with a 0-5 record and 5.01 ERA. The Sox were a fairly quiet nine up and nine down as Falter dominated the Sox with three strikeouts, including two of his final three batters in the third.

But the fourth was entirely different ... and then some. 

The Sox batted around to the tune of five runs on six hits. The first four batters reached, with Rafael Devers (two-run, bases-loaded double) and Christian Arroyo (two-out, two-run single) being the big blows to make it 4-1, before Reese McGuire's two-out RBI single gave Boston all the runs it needed. 

It literally happened that fast. Zero to 100 in a flash — as Falter couldn't even finish the 30-pitch inning. It was the 11th time this season Boston knocked an opposing starter from the game with fewer than 4.0 innings pitched, the most in MLB. They are batting .293 (185-633) as a team off starting pitching this season.

"The first time through, he was fantastic. It just looked like, the first time through, he got to two strikes and finished people off. He expanded (the zone), they expanded," Thomson said. "Second time through, he got to two strikes and left some balls in the middle of the plate, didn't expand."

Boston is batting .293 (185-633) as a team off starting pitching this season.

Devers now has 34 RBI on the season, the most in baseball. He posted his second three-hit game in his last three games and marked his ninth multi-RBI game of the season

TURNING POINT

Falter was already in some trouble to start the fourth as Rob Refsnyder (2 for 5, 2 RB) singled and Alex Verdugo doubled to give the Sox runners on second and third. But then to walk Justin Turner on four straight pitches to load the bases in front of Devers ... well, you mess with the bull, you get the horns.

TWO UP

Corey Kluber: Gave the Sox the 12th consecutive start of at least five innings, which has been huge for this team given the way the offense is going. Just be solid, and that will be good enough most nights. Kluber got a little loose in the second — hit by pitch, a bounced pitch not close and then a wild pitch led to an RBI single — but quickly got back into it. His curveball was especially pleasant in this one. Final line: 7 hits, 3 earned runs, 0 walks, 1 K and 1 Bryce Harper oppo taco. Kluber improved to 2-4.

Kenley Jansen: Leading 7-4, the closer entered and things got mildly interesting as Edmundo Sosa singled off Jansen's left arm, but then the big righty set down Kyle Schwarber (0 for 20 skid, .176 average ... woof, but still batting lead-off, go figure), Trea Turner and Harper in order to pick up career save No. 399 and drop his ERA to 0.84.

John Schreiber (2.16 ERA), Brennan Bernardino (1.08) and Josh Winckowski (1.57) set Jansen up with three innings of three-hit ball.

The Red Sox bullpen has a 1.29 ERA (2 ER, 14.0 IP) in the last four games

ZERO DOWN

I can't list Schwarber again, right? (He even had another awful play in left field)

NOTEWORTHY

- Boston extended their win streak to eight games, the longest active streak in baseball and the first time they have had a win streak of eight or more games since June 25-July 2, 2021 (8). During the current streak, they are slashing .341/.399/.544 as a team, and are averaging just over 12.5 hits per game. The Red Sox, with wins in the first two games, have won their third straight series and are 6-1 in their last seven series. 

- The Sox placed right-handed pitcher Zack Littell to the active Major League roster. He will wear number 52. Optioned right-handed pitcher Kaleb Ort to Triple-A Worcester following last night’s game against the Phillies.

Littell, 27, was acquired from the Texas Rangers in a minor league trade Friday. In nine games with Triple-A Round Rock this season, the right-hander went 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA (3 ER/12.0 IP) and held opponents to a .196 batting average (9-for-46). Selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 11th round of the 2013 First-Year Player Draft, Littell has gone 13-5 with three saves and a 4.08 ERA (77 ER/169.2 IP) in 145 Major League appearances (four starts) with the Minnesota Twins (2018-20) and San Francisco Giants (2021-22).

- Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla, with Game 3 next door today, stopped by batting practice to chat up Cora.

- Masataka Yoshida, given the night off with a 15-game hitting streak, met up with Harper, his idol, before the game.

UP NEXT

The series concludes, before an off day, with RHP Tanner Houck (3-1, 5.34 ERA) vs RHP Taijuan Walker (2-2, 6.91 ERA) at 1:35 p.m.