The Boston Red Sox scored four times in the sixth inning on Saturday evening, rallying past the Los Angeles Dodgers 8-5 in the middle game of a three game interleague series at Fenway Park.
After a 7-4 Los Angeles win on Friday night in the first game back at Fenway Park for Mookie Betts since being traded, the visiting Dodgers took an early lead. Amed Rosario singled in Betts in the top of the first inning, after Mookie had doubled to lead it off. It didn’t take long for Boston (69-61) to respond, as for a third straight game Alex Verdugo led off a first inning with a solo homerun. Chris Taylor grounded into a forceout in the fourth to score Rosario to make it 2-1 LA, before Justin Turner the former Dodger tied it back up with a leadoff solo homer to leftfield in the last of the frame. A two-run homerun by Max Muncy would end the day for Red Sox starter James Paxton in the fifth that gave the guests their final lead at 4-2. It was the 30th longball of the season for Muncy. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Boston took the lead for good. Turner led off with a double, Rob Refsnyder singled, and then with one out Adam Duvall put one into the monster seats on an 0-2 pitch from LA starter Julio Urias for a 5-4 advantage. Trevor Story followed that with a walk and stole second base, and then scored the eventual game winner on a Reese McGuire single. Turner added another run batted in when he singled in Connor Wong with one out in the seventh to make it 7-4. The Dodgers (79-49) tried to inch back in the eighth that included a Betts RBI single. With the bases loaded and one out, Garrett Whitlock got Will Smith to flyout to rightfield. Chris Martin then came on to relieve Whitlock and would face Muncy with the bags still full, and got a huge strikeout looking to end the threat. Muncy and manager Dave Roberts both got thrown out of the game for arguing balls and strikes after the punchout. The Sox got an insurance run in the last of the eighth on a fielders choice by Luis Urias that Betts bobbled scoring Devers, who led off by being hit by a pitch. John Schreiber came out of the bullpen in the top of the ninth inning. He would allow a single by Jason Heyward and then hit James Outman with a pitch with one out. After striking out Taylor looking for the second out, David Peralta worked a work to load the bases bringing Betts to the plate as the potential go-ahead run. Schreiber would pick up the save when Betts would flyout to Duvall in deep center on the warning track to end it.
Brennan Bernardino (2-1) picked up the win in relief for Boston. Whitlock and Martin both got a hold, with Schreiber picking up his first save. Paxton in his no-decision allowed four runs on four hits with five walks and four strikeouts in 4.1 innings. Turner had three hits, while Duvall and Refsnyder added two a piece. Betts had three hits and Heyward had two in the defeat for Los Angeles. Betts is 4 for 10 in the series against his former team so far with two RBI. Urias (11-7) gave up six runs on eight hits with one walk and nine strikeouts in 6.0 innings in suffering the loss. The rubber game of the three game series is Sunday afternoon at 1:35. Righthander Tanner Houck (3-7, 5.08 ERA) takes to the hill for Boston, while Los Angeles counters with a bullpen game as lefty Caleb Ferguson (7-3, 2.81) will be the opener and righty Gavin Stone (0-0, 12.75) is expected to follow. The Red Sox, who are trying to battle their way into one of the three American League wildcard playoff spots, are in the middle of a very tough schedule. After the series with the Dodgers, they play the Houston Astros again for a three game set beginning Monday night at Fenway.
Story by Chris Lessner
Mookie Betts looks on from second base during the LA Dodgers 7-4 win at Fenway Park on Friday night. The Red Sox came from behind on Saturday evening to beat LA 8-5. Photo taken by Chris Lessner
