Red Sox recap: Alex Bregman with monster 5 hit night, Walker Buehler effective in 7-4 win over Rays

One day after the Red Sox were blown out 16-1 by the Rays, the offense rebounded in a big way thanks to Alex Bregman.

The Sox third baseman had a giant game offensively, going 5-for-5 with two homers and four RBI, in the Red Sox 7-4 win over the Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field.

Bregman set a new career high for hits in a game; his previous high was four hits, which he achieved 10 times over his career.

“He always has a plan,” said Alex Cora. “He was very calm today in the batter’s box. Didn’t chase. I know it’s killing him right now; he hasn’t walked in a while against a righty, but he’s swinging at the right ones. … He had an amazing night.”

The right-handed hitter had an RBI single in the first inning to make it 1-0 and then added a leadoff homer in the third, belting a hanging slider from Rays starter Ryan Pepiot over the wall in right field.

In the fourth, he smacked an RBI double off the wall in left field to put the Sox up 6-1. Bregman added his second homer of the night, a 403-foot blast the opposite way to right center field.

Rays outfielder Jake Mangum appeared to have robbed Bregman of his fourth home run when he leaped to make the catch, but as he came down, his arm struck the wall and the ball fell out of his glove.

Bregman said he and the Sox’ hitting coaches have been working hard with him on adjustments; it’s clear the hard work paid off.

“We just looked at some mechanical things and even after my first at-bat, we made a little bit of a change in the dugout before my second at-bat,” Bregman said. “And just talking with them, working through some things mechanically. And whether it’s timing or some different posture positions or how I’m loading, it paid off today big time. I’m super thankful for all three of them.”

Bregman is expected to miss the series finale to fly back to Boston for the birth of his second child. 

The Red Sox will recall infielder Nick Sogard from Triple-A Worcester to replace Bregman while he is on the paternity list, according to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo. Sogard is hitting .159 with four RBI and two stolen bases for the WooSox this season.

JARREN DURAN GOES OPPOSITE FIELD

Jarren Duran hasn’t exactly swung a hot bat to begin the season. Coming into the game on Tuesday night, he was hitting just .230 (17-for-74) with just four extra-base hits (three doubles and one triple) with a .581 OPS.

Duran led the majors with 45 doubles last season and tied for the league lead in triples with 14. It’s imperative for Duran to get going offensively.

Before the game, Cora said Duran’s at-bats have been “all over the place,” this season.

“Sometimes patient, sometimes too aggressive,” added Cora. “He’s getting into swing mode in certain at-bats and swinging and missing a lot. That’s the reality of it.”

Cora wanted his leadoff man to start hitting the ball more to left-center field, and that’s precisely what he did. Duran hit his first home run of the season, hammering a 96.6 mph four-seam fastball from Pepiot over the wall in left. His homer in the second inning put the Sox up 3-0.

Duran went 1-for-3 with two runs scored, two walks, and the homer with two RBI.

SPECTACULAR PLAY

Ceddanne Rafaela showed off his athleticism, making a great diving catch, robbing Mangum of a base hit with two runners on in the fourth inning.

Rafaela also contributed with his bat, going to the opposite field with an RBI single that put Boston up 5-1 in the third inning.

IMPRESSIVE OUTING

Walker Buehler was coming off an exceptional performance against the Blue Jays in the final game of the Red Sox homestand, where he went 6 1/3 innings. On Tuesday, he went five frames, allowing two runs off three hits while walking three and striking out three. The righty threw 89 pitches, 53 for strikes, with his fastball topping out at 95.7 mph.

The only Rays batter he was unable to solve on Tuesday was first baseman Jonathan Aranda, who led off the second with a solo homer. He ran into trouble in both the fourth and fifth innings, but his defense bailed him out. The Rays only went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left seven men on base.

Justin Wilson and Zack Kelly pitched the rest of the way in relief of Buehler. Kelly went 2 2/3 innings, trying to go the distance, but ran into some trouble in the ninth, prompting Cora to bring in his closer, Aroldis Chapman.

“Zack Kelly was outstanding,” Cora said. “He was great. We needed him to go as far as possible. Obviously the big guy came in at the end to finish the game, but Zack was amazing.”

KRISTIAN CAMPBELL’S ON-BASE STREAK

Kristian Campbell had gone 17 straight games reaching base, the second longest on-base streak to begin a career in Red Sox history behind only George Scott (26). His impressive run came to an end after he went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts in the win.

RED SOX NOTABLES

The offense had 12 hits, with everyone in the lineup getting on base at least once tonight with the exception of Campbell. Wilyer Abreu also went hitless in the game, but he did reach base on a walk.

Triston Casas, who was dropped to the seventh spot in the lineup, went 1-for-4. 

Trevor Story continues to swing a hot bat; he went 2-for-5 with a strikeout and is hitting .311 to begin the year.

The Red Sox and the Rays will play the third and final game of their series on Wednesday night at 7:05 p.m. The Sox will have southpaw Sean Newcomb (1-0, 6.30 ERA) on the mound to start the game, and he will be opposed by Zack Littell (1-1, 6.88 ERA), who pitched in two games for the Red Sox in 2023 before he was designated for assignment.