Red Sox' offense erupts for 17 runs in blowout win over Orioles behind ace Garrett Crochet

The Red Sox badly needed Garrett Crochet to look like an ace again on Saturday and he delivered. With Boston staring down a five-game losing streak, Crochet turned in six scoreless innings in a dominant 17-1 win.

It wasn’t just Crochet. The Red Sox offense exploded for 17 runs on 17 hits, delivering a much-needed breakout and a chance for the lineup to finally let loose. Andruw Monasterio led the way with a career-high three extra-base hits, two doubles, and a grand slam in the ninth, the first of his career and Boston’s first grand slam of the season.

Monasterio became the first Red Sox player to hit a grand slam at Oriole Park at Camden Yards since Jarren Duran did it three years ago to the day.

Boston punctuated the performance with a 10-run ninth inning, turning a blowout into a laugher. One night after Camden Yards ran out of home run fireworks, the Red Sox brought their own, launching three homers in the ninth alone.

"That's f-cking baseball, man. It's unreal," Alex Cora said about his club's 17-run outburst to reporters after the game.

Crochet's performance was a big part of setting the tone on Saturday afternoon. The hard-throwing lefty leaned heavily on his fastball, throwing his four-seamer 53 times (59%) and using it 78% of the time the first time through the Orioles’ lineup.

He set the tone early, retiring the side in order in the first and striking out Gunnar Henderson swinging for the first of his seven punchouts. He followed with a quick second inning, striking out Pete Alonso and retiring Tyler O’Neill and Jeremiah Jackson.

Crochet ran into his first bit of trouble in the third. After Wilyer Abreu made a sliding grab in right to record the first out, Coby Mayo doubled down the left-field line. Crochet then struck out Blaze Anderson but issued a walk to Taylor Ward, putting two on. With Henderson due up and a chance to tie the game, Crochet froze him with an 84.7 mph sweeper to end the threat.

Crochet retired the Orioles in order in the fourth and faced four batters in the fifth, issuing a walk to Leody Taveras.

His final inning came in the sixth, when he allowed a leadoff single to Ward, struck out Henderson, and gave up a single to Adley Rutschman. He quickly neutralized the threat by getting Alonso to ground into an inning-ending double play.

In total, Crochet tossed six innings, allowing three hits and no runs with two walks and seven strikeouts. He generated 12 swings and misses while throwing 90 pitches, 57 for strikes. Crochet is now 2-1 in his career against Baltimore with 35 strikeouts.

The Orioles managed their lone run in the seventh on an RBI groundout by Taveras against Greg Weissert.

Boston’s lineup got rolling early. With two outs and Monasterio on second after a double, the slumping Caleb Durbin delivered one of his biggest hits of the season, ripping an RBI double to give the Red Sox the lead. Connor Wong followed with a walk, Isiah Kiner-Falefa added an RBI single, and Ceddanne Rafaela chipped in with another to make it 3-0.

The Sox scored three runs on four hits, their most in an inning since the seventh in Monday’s 8-6 win over the Tigers.

They added on in the fourth with a Willson Contreras sacrifice fly, and later broke the game open when Wong cleared the bases with a three-run double to make it 7-0.

From there, it turned into a rout. Contreras added an RBI single, Monasterio crushed the first grand slam of his career, and after the Orioles turned to position player Weston Wilson, Boston kept pouring it on, a two-run homer from Durbin and a three-run shot from Contreras in his second at-bat of the inning.

“You take ‘em when you get ‘em,” Durbin said of his first home run of the season and as a member of the Red Sox, which came off a positional player. 

Monasterio finished 3-for-5 with a home run, two doubles, and four RBIs, while Contreras went 2-for-4 with a homer and five RBIs. As a team, the Red Sox racked up 17 hits, their highest total in a game this season.

For Monasterio, the breakout was notable. He entered hitting just 1-for-18 against left-handers before jumpstarting a three-run second inning with a double off Trevor Rogers.

It also marked the second straight game Boston recorded 10 or more hits, a potential sign the offense is beginning to emerge from its extended slump.

Saturday’s win could provide a much-needed spark, though Boston still sits at 10-17, in last place in the AL East and 7.5 games behind the Yankees. If the Red Sox are going to climb back into contention, it will have to come one win at a time.

They’ll look to build on their biggest offensive performance of the season Sunday, when Connelly Early (1-1, 2.88 ERA) takes the mound in the series finale against Orioles right-hander Kyle Bradish (1-2, 3.96 ERA). First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m.