Payton Tolle makes history as Red Sox beat Royals, 4-1, in Fenway finale

Payton Tolle didn’t need much time to turn a rainy Sunday afternoon at Fenway Park into a show.

After rain delayed the first pitch by an hour and 50 minutes, the Red Sox rookie left-hander struck out the side on nine pitches in the first inning, recording the eighth immaculate inning in franchise history and immediately bringing the Fenway crowd to life.

Tolle carried that momentum through six scoreless innings, and the Red Sox scored three times over the final two frames to beat the Royals, 4-1, in the series finale.

The rookie allowed four hits and one walk while striking out seven, throwing 73% of his pitches for strikes.

Tolle became the first Red Sox pitcher to throw an immaculate inning since Chris Sale on Aug. 26, 2021, and the first to accomplish the feat in the opening inning since Pedro Martinez on May 18, 2002.

The southpaw overwhelmed Kansas City with his fastball from the start.

Tolle struck out Nick Loftin looking at a 97.2 mph fastball after getting him to swing through two heaters. Bobby Witt Jr. followed with three consecutive swinging strikes against fastballs, all registering at least 97 mph.

Jac Caglianone fouled off a 97.2 mph sinker before swinging through consecutive four-seam fastballs to complete the feat.

Fans rose before Tolle delivered his ninth pitch and erupted when Caglianone swung through a 97.9 mph fastball. They were so locked into Tolle’s start that home plate umpire Roberto Ortiz drew boos when he called Tolle’s first ball of the afternoon on his second pitch of the second inning.

Boston gave Tolle a lead in the bottom half when third baseman Caleb Durbin, who had not homered since his grand slam in Toronto on Aug. 13, jumped all over a 92.5 mph fastball from Royals left-hander Noah Cameron and drove it into the Monster Seats for a solo homer and a 1-0 lead.

Cameron continued his strong second half, holding the Red Sox to one run on four hits over six innings Sunday. The left-hander has allowed two earned runs or fewer in eight of his last 10 outings since July 24, posting a 1.64 ERA over 65 2/3 innings.

With the early lead, Tolle looked dominant in his final test, which came in the sixth after the first two Royals reached on a single and a hit by pitch. The left-hander worked out of trouble without allowing a run, finishing his afternoon by striking out former Red Sox prospect Matthew Lugo on a curveball in the dirt. Catcher Adley Rutschman completed the play with a throw to first before Tolle could finally celebrate his final out.

Despite being denied his 10th win of the season, Tolle continues to rank among MLB’s top rookies. 

The left-hander ranks third among rookies with 166 strikeouts and fifth with a 3.02 ERA and 143 innings. He is also tied for fifth in WHIP (1.07), wins (9) and starts (25). Tolle’s 3.02 ERA ranks ninth among American League starters with at least 100 innings and second among AL left-handers.

Kansas City tied it after Tolle departed and was able to face the Sox bullpen. 

Erik Miller walked Isaac Collins and Luke Maile to begin the seventh. Nate Eaton helped limit the damage with a heads-up play in right field, allowing Tyler Tolbert’s 244-foot fly ball to drop before throwing to third for a forceout.

The Royals eventually pushed across the tying run, but Boston answered immediately, and took the lead for good. 

One other offensive note for the Royals, Witt Jr. has reached base in 35 of his last 37 games dating back to Aug. 4, including each of his last 12.

Roman Anthony entered Sunday with 18 strikeouts over his previous nine games and had acknowledged the need to put the ball in play more consistently from the leadoff spot. He did exactly that against left-hander Connor Thomas in the bottom of the seventh.

Anthony attacked the first pitch, taking an outside sweeper the opposite way for an RBI single that put Boston back in front, 2-1.

Since being reinstated from the 60-day injured list Aug. 30, Anthony is batting