Red Sox Wrap: Early Offensive Rally Pays Off In Win Vs. Yankees

The Boston Red Sox defeated the New York Yankees, 8-3, to begin a key three-game set at Yankee Stadium on Friday night.

With the victory, the Red Sox improved to 64-58 while the Yankees fell to 60-62.

Check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
Boston did the job coming into a critical series.

Instead of allowing an elite Yankees bullpen, which ranks first in lowest ERA (3.19) in Major League Baseball, to beat the Red Sox, Boston instead attacked New York’s starting pitching — delivering quite the beat down.

The Red Sox unloaded in the first two innings, creating a nightmare scenario for Jhony Brito and the Yankees. Brito was charged with allowing seven runs (six earned) off nine hits, including a three-run home run. New York skipper Aaron Boone pulled the plug on the right-hander after 2 1/3 innings, signaling to the Yankees bullpen in the third inning.

But again, by then, it was far too late.

The Yankees bullpen delivered New York with a huge sigh of relief, holding the Red Sox to just three hits through the remaining 6 2/3 frames of work — living up to the hype. But unlike New York, Boston was elite on both sides of the diamond amid its playoff hunt, getting six innings of one-run ball from Brayan Bello, which proved to be enough to put the Yankees away — still at the bottom of the American League East.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox sit three games out of the AL wild-card race.

STARS OF THE GAME
— Bello was lights out, returning to All-Star snub form in a huge spot on the mound. The 24-year-old provided the Red Sox with six innings, allowing just one run off six hits while striking out three New York batters. That gave Bello his third six-plus-inning performance in four starts made in the month of August thus far.

— Masataka Yoshida didn’t waste time widening the scoring gap between both division foes. Yoshida launched a three-run home run in the first inning off Brito, which traveled at 376 feet. The 30-year-old outfielder finished the night going 2-for-4 with four RBIs.

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— Red Sox (@RedSox) August 18, 2023

— Rafael Devers pushed a stellar effort from the No. 1 through No. 4 spots in Boston’s lineup (responsible for 11-of-12 Boston hits). Devers went 3-for-4 at the plate with two RBIs and a walk, giving the Red Sox some ninth-inning insurance with an RBI single.

WAGER WATCH
FanDuel Sportsbook set the odds of Yoshida racking up three-plus RBIs at +1200 entering the series opener. Yoshida cleared those odds with one swing of the bat, quickly, extending Boston’s lead to 4-0. A $100 wager placed on the Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year candidate would’ve resulted in a $1,300 total payout.

ON DECK AT NESN
The Red Sox return to the NESN airwaves for Saturday night’s second of three matchups with the Yankees. Boston and New York will face off again at 1:05 p.m. ET, and you catch the game, following a full hour of pregame coverage, live on NESN.