Boston just took down the Diamondbacks for the second straight night, sealing the series at Fenway Park with a dominant 9-4 victory. It was an offensive explosion, with the Red Sox bats collecting 13 hits on the heels of a 16-hit performance the night before. This team is absolutely rolling right now, and Arizona just can’t find an answer.
Boston’s Bats Exploded, Despite Moreno’s Monster Shot
The Red Sox wasted zero time getting on the board against Merrill Kelly. In the first inning, Caleb Durbin popped a sacrifice fly to bring home Wilyer Abreu. Then, newly acquired catcher Adley Rutschman delivered big time, crushing a two-run single that scored Ceddanne Rafaela and Nick Sogard, giving Boston an early 3-0 lead. But just when it looked like Boston was going to run away with it, Arizona fought back hard. Facing Boston left-hander Ranger Suarez in the third, the Diamondbacks loaded the bases, setting the stage for Gabriel Moreno. He absolutely LAUNCHED a towering grand slam to center field, scoring Corbin Carroll, Ildemaro Vargas, and Ryan Waldschmidt. That monster shot extended Moreno’s hitting streak to a career-best 12 games and tied the game at 4-4.
Did Boston flinch? Nope. They responded immediately. In the bottom of the third, Rutschman came through again, crushing his first home run as a Red Sox player to tie the game right back up at 4-4. Then, Durbin scored on a Merrill Kelly wild pitch, and Boston reclaimed the lead. From there, it was all Red Sox. Andruw Monasterio singled home a run in the fifth to make it 6-4. Then Mickey Gasper launched a solo homer in the sixth, and Willson Contreras drove in Nick Sogard with an infield single. Gasper capped his huge night with an RBI single in the seventh, scoring Jarren Duran and pushing the lead to 9-4. Eight different Red Sox hitters recorded at least one hit. Talk about a team effort!
Kelly Gets Shelled, Suarez Grinds Out a Win
On the mound, Merrill Kelly had a rough outing for Arizona. He was charged with six earned runs on seven hits and four walks in only four-plus innings, giving the Diamondbacks very little chance to compete. Meanwhile, Ranger Suarez (5-3) earned the victory for Boston, despite giving up Moreno’s grand slam. The veteran left-hander allowed four runs over 5⅓ innings, picking up his first win since June 29. After Suarez exited, Boston’s bullpen was absolutely lights out, combining to throw 3⅔ scoreless innings and allowing just three hits to shut down Arizona’s offense. That’s how you close out a game!
Today, the series wraps up at Fenway, and it’s shaping up to be an old-fashioned pitchers’ duel. Arizona is handing the ball to Brandon Pfaadt (7-1, 3.11 ERA), who has been good all season and flat-out outstanding this past month. His last outing was a gem against Chris Sale in Atlanta, helping the Diamondbacks to a 2-0 victory, and it was his fourth straight start without allowing a run. The Red Sox will counter with Payton Tolle (8-6, 2.97 ERA), who was dominant in his last start on August 13 in Toronto, throwing eight shutout innings with just two hits and four strikeouts in a 7-0 victory. Before that, he punched out a career-high 14 batters. This one feels like it could go down to the wire.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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