They didn’t sweep the series, but the Red Sox showed they can keep up with one of the best teams in baseball.
Boston walked away with a 9-4 win over the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday in their second victory of the three-game set played at Target Field. Eduardo Rodriguez earned his eighth win of the season, while Twins starter Kyle Gibson took the loss.
Boston climbs to 41-35 with the win. The Twins fall to 48-25 with the loss.
Here’s how it all went down:
GAME IN A WORD
Essential.
The Red Sox needed this seven-inning outing from Rodriguez pretty badly.
ON THE BUMP
— Wednesday marked Rodriguez’s 15th start of 2019, but things didn’t start out the way the southpaw had hoped.
After giving up a one-out single in the first, a Nelson Cruz double could have driven in the game’s first run. But Jackie Bradley Jr. showed off his arm once again, throwing C.J. Cron out at home. Eddie Rosario would ultimately drive in Cruz with a single in the very next at-bat.
The Twins would score their second run of the game in the third off a single to left by Luis Arraez. Rodriguez gave up five hits and three walks through the first three frames.
Minnesota tied things up in the fourth thanks to a solo shot from Willians Astudillo. Rodriguez would give up the lead two batters later on another solo homer, this time by Max Kepler. Boston would end the inning down 4-3.
It wasn’t the prettiest outing, but Rodriguez did last seven innings in Wednesday’s game, allowing four runs (all earned) off eight hits while striking out nine.
— Matt Barnes took over in the eighth. He would allow two runners to reach, but would end the inning unscathed.
— Marcus Walden came in for a 1-2-3 ninth inning.
IN THE BATTER’S BOX
— Just one inning after Minnesota put the first run on the board, the Red Sox struck back.
Boston would score its first run of the game in the second off a Brock Holt single that drove Rafael Devers home from second. Michael Chavis would drive in the Sox’s second run of the game in the very next at-bat with a single of his own, allowing Xander Bogaerts to score from second as well.
The Sox would then load the bases just in time for a single from Mookie Betts that gave the Sox a 3-1 lead. But Boston would leave them loaded to end the second.
— Bogaerts would tie the game at four in the fifth with a double to the left field corner. The Sox took the lead on a Holt sacrifice fly that drove Eduardo Nuñez (who replaced Devers in the fifth inning after the third baseman left the game right hamstring tightness) home from third. Boston would make it 6-4 on another RBI single from Chavis.
— Betts led off the eighth with a triple hit high off the right field wall. Andrew Benintendi’s first hit of the game would drive Betts home, making it 7-4 Red Sox. Nuñez would make it 8-4 with a double to center field, and a bases-loaded walk to Holt would bring home the Sox’s ninth run of the game.
— Bradley and Sandy Leon were the only two Boston batters to go hitless in Wednesday’s game.
— Boston left 10 men on base throughout the evening.
TWEET OF THE DAY
Fact.
UP NEXT
The Sox kick off a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday at Fenway Park. First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. ET.
