The Red Sox opened a three-game series in St. Louis on Friday night riding the momentum of back-to-back strong pitching performances from Garrett Crochet and Sonny Gray, looking to capitalize on a matchup that, on paper, favored their offense.
The Cardinals turned to Dustin May, the former Red Sox starter acquired by Craig Breslow at last year’s trade deadline to bolster pitching depth.
Entering the game, May had struggled mightily, allowing 13 earned runs on 17 hits over just 7 1/3 innings, with two home runs, three walks, seven strikeouts, a hit batter, and two wild pitches. His 15.95 ERA was the highest by a Cardinals pitcher through his first two starts with the club since Alan Benes (17.18 in 1995).
But on Friday night, May looked like a different pitcher. He kept Boston’s offense off balance, snapped the Red Sox’s two-game winning streak, and led St. Louis to a 3-2 win in the series opener.
Boston’s offense never got going, managing just two hits off May across six innings. The right-hander allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits while striking out four on an efficient 75 pitches before being lifted by manager Oli Marmol.
The Red Sox were also without Roman Anthony in the starting lineup Friday, as Alex Cora opted to rotate his roster.
“We’ve got to play everybody,” Cora said. “Masa is putting together good at-bats, and we need that to continue. J.D. (Jarren Duran) got a few days earlier this week, his is part of the rotation. Today was Anthony’s day off. He’s available to pinch-hit, but a full day off is important.”
Even so, Boston’s offense looked lifeless. The Red Sox managed just five hits, four of them singles, went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position, and struck out seven times.
After falling behind 1-0, Boston scratched across two runs in the fourth. Masataka Yoshida led off with a single, moved to third on Wilyer Abreu’s base hit, and scored on Trevor Story’s RBI fielder’s choice. Story later advanced to third on a Marcelo Mayer single and scored on a well-executed double steal to give Boston a brief lead.
Great speed by Trevor Story to score to make it 2-1 Red Sox pic.twitter.com/6SWYfz5n5O
— Lucas Parmenter (@Lucasparmenter0) April 11, 2026
But the offense couldn’t capitalize on its chances late.
Trailing 3-2 in the eighth, Ceddanne Rafaela sparked hope with a leadoff bloop double and moved to third on a Duran flyout. Caleb Durbin was then hit by a pitch to put runners on the corners, but Cardinals left-hander JoJo Romero shut the door, striking out Yoshida on a 3-2 sinker before getting Willson Contreras to fly out.
In the ninth, closer Riley O’Brien needed just eight pitches to retire the side, sealing a loss that reflected Boston’s stagnant offensive approach throughout the night.
“We didn’t slow down the game,” Cora said. “He had good stuff today, he was throwing harder than what he’s thrown his first two outings, he threw more strikes, but still, we had our chances but we have to be better offensively.”
For the second straight start, Connelly Early struggled to find efficiency, running up his pitch count and lasting just 4 1/3 innings. He allowed one earned run on five hits with two walks and five strikeouts.