The battle between the American League’s two best teams has been one-sided so far.
The Boston Red Sox embarrassed the Los Angeles Angels 10-1 on Tuesday, and it didn’t get much better for the home club Wednesday night at Angel Stadium.
Left-hander Tyler Skaggs got the ball for L.A., but he quickly surrendered a run in the first inning and five in the third thanks to a grand slam from Rafael Devers that gave Boston an early 6-0 lead. That was all the cushion Rick Porcello would need, as the right-hander mowed down the Angels’ high-powered lineup to help the Red Sox lock up their sixth straight victory, a 9-0 win.
The Red Sox improve to 15-2 with the win, while the Angels fall to 13-5.
Here’s how it all went down:
GAME IN A WORD
Repeat.
The Red Sox hammered the Angels on Tuesday night and continued to pour it on Wednesday, taking an early 6-0 lead and coasting to their sixth straight win.
ON THE BUMP
— Porcello once again was brilliant on the hill for Boston. The 2016 American League Cy Young Award winner tossed six shutout innings, allowing six hits while striking out six and walking zero.
The right-hander allowed three singles in the first inning, but he struck out both Kole Calhoun and Zack Cozart to end the inning unscathed. Porcello cruised through the remainder of his outing en route to his fourth consecutive quality start to begin the season.
— Carson Smith pitched a 1-2-3 seventh.
— Marcus Walden recorded a scoreless eighth inning.
— Craig Kimbrel needed to get some work and tossed an easy ninth inning.
IN THE BATTER’S BOX
— The Sox jumped on Skaggs in the first inning. Hanley Ramirez doubled to left-center field and Mitch Moreland chased him home with a two-out, RBI single, giving Boston a 1-0 edge.
— Boston exploded in the third inning, as the Sox loaded the bases with zero outs in front of Moreland. The first baseman roped an RBI single to left field to make it 2-0. The bulk of the damage was done two batters later when Rafael Devers cleared the bases with a grand slam to right field, making it 6-0.
— The Red Sox continued their onslaught in the seventh inning when J.D. Martinez launched a solo home run to right field. His fourth homer of the season gave Boston a 7-0 lead. Martinez went 4-for-5 with a home run and three runs scored.
— Moreland put an exclamation point on the win with a two-run bomb in the ninth inning to make it 9-0. He went 3-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs.
TWEET OF THE GAME
We’re not thinking ahead, you’re thinking ahead.
UP NEXT
The Red Sox will finish off their three-game series with the Angels on Thursday. Eduardo Rodriguez will take the hill for Boston and will be opposed by Nick Tropeano. First pitch is set for 10:07 p.m. ET.
