The Boston Red Sox looked dead for much of the night Wednesday, but eventually, they came to life.
Boston erased a four-run deficit to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-4 in 13 innings at Busch Stadium.
Chris Young drove in Mitch Moreland with a two-out bloop single to left field to break the tie, and Ben Taylor sat down the heart of the Cardinals’ order to earn the save. The Red Sox’s bullpen was the unsung hero, as it combined to toss seven shutout innings.
The Red Sox improved to 21-18 with the win, while the Cardinals dropped to 21-17 with the loss.
Here’s how it all went down.
GAME IN A WORD
Unexpected.
The Red Sox looked listless for the first six innings, but they scored twice in both the seventh and eighth inning to erase the Cardinals’ 4-0 lead. After the bullpen kept the game tied, Young’s single put the Red Sox on top, and Taylor, the last man in the bullpen, picked up the save.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
Taylor shut the door in the 13th to earn the save.
The right-hander dealt with the heart of the Cardinals’ order and did so with relative ease.
ON THE BUMP
— Porcello didn’t look like he was long for the game through the first two innings, but the right-hander settled down and gave the Red Sox six solid innings. He allowed four runs on nine hits while striking out six and walking three.
The Cardinals jumped on the reigning American League Cy Young winner in the first inning when Dexter Fowler launched a leadoff home run into the right-field seats.
St. Louis tacked on three more runs in the second inning. Yadier Molina led off the inning with a double to left, and Aledmys Diaz followed with a bunt single. Magneuris Sierra plated Molina with a single left-center field, and Kolten Wong drove in Diaz with a double. Tommy Pham drove in the third run of the inning with an RBI groundout to give the Cardinals a four-run lead.
— Robbie Ross Jr. came in to begin the seventh inning and tossed 2/3 of an inning while surrendering two hits.
— Matt Barnes recorded the final out of the seventh inning.
— Joe Kelly got the call in the eighth inning and lasted 2/3 of an inning, allowing one hit and recording one strikeout.
— Robby Scott got the final out of the eighth inning.
— Craig Kimbrel pitched a perfect ninth inning.
— Heath Hembree pitched a scoreless 10th inning.
— Fernando Abad got the ball in the 11th and pitched two scoreless innings.
— Taylor picked up the save in the 13th inning.
IN THE BATTER’S BOX
— Jackie Bradley Jr. continued to swing a hot bat as he smashed a two-run home run to dead center during the seventh inning. The blast cut the Cardinals’ lead to two.
— The Red Sox tied the game in the eighth inning when Dustin Pedroia drew a one-out walk. Xander Bogaerts chased him home with a triple to right-center field to trim the deficit to one. Andrew Benintendi followed with a sacrifice fly to left field to plate Bogaerts and even the score.
— Boston broke the tie in the 13th inning when Moreland reached on a two-out bloop double. After St. Louis intentionally walked Bradley, Â Young drove in Moreland with a single to left field.
— Benintendi’s hitless streak extended to 26 at-bats after he went 0-for-5 with the sacrifice fly.
— Bradley, Bogaerts, Moreland and Mookie Betts were the only members of the Red Sox’s lineup to record multiple hits, notching two hits apiece.
TWEET OF THE NIGHT
Don’t worry, Pablo Sandoval should be back soon.
Can Mike Leake play third base?
Sorry, had to.
— Jason Mastrodonato (@JMastrodonato) May 18, 2017
UP NEXT
The Red Sox will begin a four-game series against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday night. Hector Velazquez will get the ball for Boston and will be opposed by Sonny Gray for Oakland. First pitch is scheduled for 10:05 p.m. ET.
Thumbnail photo via Jeff Curry/USA TODAY Sports Images
