The Boston Red Sox opened their 10-game road trip with a 5-4 win against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on Tuesday night.
With the win the Red Sox improved to 63-56 on the season, while the Nationals dropped to 53-67 on the campaign.
Check out the full box score here.
ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
The Red Sox bullpen came up huge in the win for Boston, pitching 4 2/3 scoreless innings.
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Nick Pivetta got the start going 4 1/3 innings allowing four runs on five hits while striking out seven and walking three. He threw 69.7% of his pitches for strikes (60-of-86 pitches) before giving the ball to the bullpen.
Brennan Bernardino, Johns Schreiber, Chris Martin and Josh Winckowski all shut down Washington's offense, allowing one hit and not walking any of the batters they faced before handing the ball to close Kenley Jansen, who retired the side in order on just five pitches.
STARS OF THE GAME
-- Alex Verdugo got the Red Sox on the board first with a leadoff home run on the fourth pitch of the game. The right fielder finished 1-for-4 from the plate with two RBIs and a run scored.
-- Triston Casas singled to right in the third inning, plating Rafael Devers and Reese McGuire for his 46 and 47th RBIs of the season. Casas is slashing .254/.355/.482.
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-- Pablo Reyes went 2-for-4 from the plate and scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch in the fourth inning.
WAGER WATCH
FanDuel Sportsbook set the odds of Verdugo hitting a home run at +630 entering the contest. The right fielder cleared those odds with his ninth bomb of the year. A $100 wager on Verdugo would've resulted in a $730 payout.
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ON DECK AT NESN
The Red Sox look to keep their success in the nation's capital going when their series with Washington continues Wednesday night. First pitch from Nationals Park is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. ET. You can watch all the action, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.
Featured image via Geoff Burke/USA TODAY Sports Images
