Red Sox Wrap: Eduardo Rodriguez Earns Ninth Win As Boston Sweeps Phillies

BOSTON — The Red Sox completed a sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies with a 6-2 win Sunday at Fenway Park. The victory improves Boston’s record to 64-72.

Red Sox starter Eduardo Rodriguez picked up the win with another solid outing. He’s now 9-5 on the season and has given up two earned runs of fewer in nine of his last 12 starts.

Here’s a recap of the series finale.

GAME IN A WORD
Offense.

The Red Sox continued to rack up runs (six) and hits (eight) against a struggling Phillies pitching staff Sunday. They also batted 2 for 4 with runners in scoring position and tallied three extra-base hits.

Boston now has scored six or more runs in four consecutive games.

IT WAS OVER WHEN…
The Red Sox scored four times in the second inning to take a 6-0 lead. It was more than enough run support for a locked-in Rodriguez.

ON THE BUMP
— Rodriguez pitched a perfect first inning with two strikeouts. He allowed two baserunners in the second, but no damage was done. Rodriguez ran into a little trouble in the third frame, giving up two singles and a walk that resulted in the Phillies scoring a run.

He bounced back with a scoreless fourth inning and brought his strikeout total to five. Rodriguez pitched a scoreless fifth frame, thanks to the help of a double play, and then pitched scoreless sixth and seventh innings before departing.

His final line: one earned run, eight hits, seven strikeouts and one walk in 102 pitches over seven innings.

— Junichi Tazawa pitched a perfect eighth inning in relief. He now has three straight scoreless outings.

— Robbie Ross Jr. closed out the game in the ninth inning. He gave up two hits and an earned run.

IN THE BATTER’S BOX
— The Sox opened the scoring when David Ortiz hit a two-run homer, the 497th of his career, into the right field seats in the first inning. Ortiz finished with three RBIs before leaving the game in the fifth inning because of right calf tightness. Allen Craig took over as the designated hitter.

— Jackie Bradley Jr. hit a two-run triple in the second inning to give Boston a 4-0 lead. He finished 1 for 4 with two RBIs and a run.

— Mookie Betts went 1 for 3, including an RBI single in the second inning. He also scored a run and walked once.

— Brock Holt went 2 for 3 with a pair of singles and one walk.

— Xander Bogaerts was 1 for 3 with a run and a walk.

— Ryan Hanigan was 1 for 3 with a run and a walk.

— Travis Shaw and Josh Rutledge were the only Sox starters without a hit. Although, Rutledge did score a run and walked once.

TWEET OF THE GAME
[tweet https://twitter.com/Shesta_Sox/status/640595611411214337 align=”center”]

UP NEXT
The Red Sox begin a three-game series with the American League East-leading Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night at Fenway Park. Rick Porcello (Boston) and Mark Buehrle (Toronto) are the probable starting pitchers.

Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images