2025 Boston Red Sox season

The 2025 Boston Red Sox season is the ongoing 125th season in Boston Red Sox franchise history, and their 114th season at Fenway Park. Alex Cora is the team's on-field manager, in the fifth season of his second stint in that role. The team opened the regular season in an away game against the Texas Rangers on March 27, and is scheduled to conclude with a home game against the Detroit Tigers on September 28.^[2]

2025 Boston Red Sox
League	American League
Division	East
Ballpark	Fenway Park
City	Boston
Record	71–59 (.546)
Owners	John W. Henry (Fenway Sports Group)
President	Sam Kennedy
Chief baseball officer	Craig Breslow
Manager	Alex Cora
Television	NESN: Dave O’Brien or Mike Monaco (play-by-play); Lou Merloni, Will Middlebrooks, Kevin Millar (analyst rotation); Jahmai Webster (in-game reporter); Tom Caron or Adam Pellerin (hosts); Jim Rice, Jonathan Papelbon, Lenny DiNardo, Deven Marrero (studio analyst)[1]
Radio	WEEI-FM / Boston Red Sox Radio Network: Will Flemming;[a] Sean McDonough, Mike Monaco, Lou Merloni, Will Middlebrooks (rotation)
← 2024 Seasons

After a feud with front office that started due to the free-agent acquisition of Alex Bregman and a requested position change, the Red Sox traded third baseman/designated hitter Rafael Devers in mid-June to the San Francisco Giants for two major-league pitchers and two minor-league prospects, with the Giants taking on the remaining $254 million^[b] of Devers' contract.^[5][6] Devers was the last player still on Boston's roster who had played for the team when they won the 2018 World Series, as he was a rookie that season.^[7]

Offseason

In September 2024, the team announced they would introduce a new "City Connect 2.0" uniform for the 2025 season, while retaining their existing City Connect uniform (yellow and blue) and retiring their blue alternate road jersey, which had been introduced in 2009.^[8] As of late November, the team had 10 players under contract for the 2025 season: Brayan Bello, Rafael Devers, Lucas Giolito, Liam Hendriks, Ceddanne Rafaela, Rob Refsnyder, Trevor Story, Garrett Whitlock, Justin Wilson, and Masataka Yoshida.^[9]

October–December 2024

October October 1: The team recalled Zack Kelly, Cam Booser, Zach Penrod, Bailey Horn, Cooper Criswell from Worcester; as well as Luis Perales and Wikelman Gonzalez from Portland. The team activated Rob Refsnyder, Rafael Devers, and David Hamilton from the 10-day injured list; as well as Kenley Jansen and Brennan Bernardino from the 15 day-injured list.[10] Reese McGuire and Yohan Ramírez, not on the 40-man roster, elected free agency.[11] October 9: It was reported that the team dismissed six members of the coaching staff—Ben Chadwick (trainer), Andy Fox (first base/infield coach), Rey Fuentes (mental skills coach), Mani Martinez (bullpen catcher), Luis Ortiz (assistant hitting coach), and Kevin Walker (bullpen coach).[12] October 27: The team named Dillon Lawson assistant hitting coach.[13] October 31: Eight players elected to become free agents: pitchers Luis García, Kenley Jansen, Chris Martin, James Paxton, Nick Pivetta, and Lucas Sims along with catcher Danny Jansen and outfielder Tyler O'Neill.[14] Paxton had already announced his intent to retire at the conclusion of the 2024 season.[15] Pitcher Lucas Giolito exercised his option to remain with the team for the 2025 season.[16] November November 4: The team activated players still remaining on the 60-day injured list from the 2024 season,[17] bringing the number of players on their 40-man roster to 39.[18] The team made free agent Nick Pivetta a qualifying offer of $21.05 million for the 2025 season.[19] The team exercised their $2.1 million club option to bring Rob Refsnyder back for the 2025 season.[20] November 5: The team declined a qualifying offer for Tyler O'Neill for $21.05 million, making him a free agent.[21] November 13: The team hired Chris Holt to serve as bullpen coach.[22] November 14: The team signed free-agent pitcher Justin Wilson to a one-year contract.[23] November 19: Pivetta declined the team's qualifying offer for 2025.[24] November 19: In advance of the Rule 5 draft, the team added pitcher Hunter Dobbins and outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia to the 40-man roster; in corresponding moves, pitchers Isaiah Campbell and Bryan Mata were designated for assignment.[25] Both later elected to become free agents.[26] November 22: The team named José Flores as first-base coach and Parker Guinn as catching instructor/bullpen catcher.[27] November 22: Pitcher Bailey Horn was claimed off waivers by the Detroit Tigers.[28] December December 10: The team signed free-agent pitcher Aroldis Chapman to a one-year contract.[29] December 11: The team acquired pitcher Garrett Crochet from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for minor-league prospects Kyle Teel, Braden Montgomery, Chase Meidroth and Wikelman González.[30] December 11: In the Rule 5 draft, the Toronto Blue Jays selected the contract of pitcher Angel Bastardo from the Red Sox.[31] The Red Sox did not select any players in the major-league portion of the draft.[32] December 11: The team acquired catcher Carlos Narváez from the New York Yankees in exchange for minor-league pitcher Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz and international signing bonus pool money.[33] In a corresponding move, the team designated Enmanuel Valdez for assignment.[34] December 13: The team signed free agent pitcher Robert Moreno to the minor-league contract.[35] December 15: The team acquired minor league pitcher Joe Vogatsky from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for infielder/outfielder Enmanuel Valdez.[36] December 20: The team invited non-roster pitchers Isaiah Campbell, Wyatt Mills, Michael Fulmer and Bryan Mata to spring training. The team also invited right-fielder Nate Eaton and catcher Seby Zavala.[37] December 21: The team acquired minor league pitcher Yhoiker Fajardo from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for pitcher Cam Booser.[38] The team also agreed to a minor league contract with Noah Davis.[39] December 23: The team signed free-agent pitcher Patrick Sandoval to a two-year contract.[40] December 24: The team traded catcher Mickey Gasper to the Twins in exchange for pitcher Jovani Morán.[41] December 27: Cedanne Rafaela, David Hamilton, and Nick Sogard changed their numbers to 3, 17, and 20 respectively.[42] December 28: Confirming previous reports, the team signed free agent pitcher Walker Buehler to a one-year contract.[43] It is later reported that this contract is a $21.05 million one year contract, with a $3.05 million signing bonus, a $15 million base salary, and a mutual option for 2026 valued at $25 million with a $3 million buyout.[44]

January–March 2025

January January 9: The Red Sox avoid arbitration with pitchers Garret Grochet, Tanner Houck, and Kutter Crawford. Each agreed to one year deals valued at $3.8 million, $3.95 million, and $2.75 million respectively.[45] The Red Sox and Jarren Duran did not reach an agreement, with Duran filing for $4 million and the Red Sox filing for $3.5 million.[46] January 14: The Red Sox signed free agent pitcher Sean Newcomb to a minor-league contract and invited him to spring training.[47] January 15: The Red Sox acquired catcher Blake Sabol from the Giants in exchange for international bonus pool space. To make space for Sabol on the 40 man roster, the Red Sox designated Chase Shugart for assignment.[48][49] The Red Sox also signed multiple free agents to minor league contracts and invited some of them to spring training.[50] January 17: The Red Sox avoid arbitration with Jarren Duran by signing him to a one-year deal with a club option for 2026.[51] The Red Sox also traded pitcher Chase Shugart to the Pirates in exchange for minor-league pitcher Matt McShane.[52] January 24: The Red Sox signed catcher Mark Kolozsvary to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training.[53] January 28: The Red Sox signed infielder Abraham Toro to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training.[54] The team also formally invited Toro as well as Nathan Hickey, Roman Anthony, Mark Kolozsvary, Kristian Campbell, Jacob Webb, Brian Van Belle, Marcelo Mayer, and Jovani Morán to spring training.[55] February February 15: The Red Sox officially signed free agent third-baseman Alex Bregman. It was first reported that Bregman had agreed to a three year deal (with opt-outs) with the Red Sox worth $120 million on February 12. To create space on the roster, Patrick Sandoval was moved to the 60-day injured list.[56][57][58] February 17: The Red Sox signed Trayce Thompson to a minor-league contract with an invitation to Spring Training.[59] February 18: The Red Sox signed Adam Ottavino to a minor-league contract with an invitation to Spring Training.[60] February 19: The Red Sox signed Matt Moore to a minor-league contract.[61] February 21: The Red Sox assigned multiple minor-league players to the team.[62] February 22: Jose Adames, Shane Drohan and Gabriel Jackson were assigned to the Red Sox.[63] March March 23: The Red Sox announce that they have released Adam Ottavino.[64]

Spring training

Spring Training non-roster invitees

Player Position 2024 team(s) Source Isaiah Campbell Pitcher Worcester Red Sox (AAA) [37] Yovanny Cruz Pitcher San Antonio Missions (AA) [50] Michael Fulmer Pitcher Worcester Red Sox (AAA) [37] Bryan Mata Pitcher FCL Red Sox (Rookie) / Greenville Drive (High A) / Portland Sea Dogs (AA) / Worcester Red Sox (AAA) [37] Wyatt Mills Pitcher — [37] Matt Moore Pitcher Los Angeles Angels [65] Jovani Morán Pitcher — [55] Sean Newcomb Pitcher ACL Athletics (Rookie) / Las Vegas Aviators (AAA) / Oakland Athletics [47] Adam Ottavino Pitcher New York Mets [60] Robert Stock Pitcher — [50] Brian Van Belle Pitcher Worcester Red Sox (AAA) [55] Jacob Webb Pitcher Baltimore Orioles / Norfolk Tides (AAA) / Bowie Baysox (AA) [55] Nathan Hickey Catcher Worcester Red Sox (AAA) / Portland Sea Dogs (AA) [55] Mark Kolozsvary Catcher Worcester Red Sox (AAA) [55] Seby Zavala Catcher Seattle Mariners / Tacoma Rainiers (AAA) [37] Nate Eaton Infielder Omaha Storm Chasers (AAA) [37] Abraham Toro Infielder Oakland Athletics / ACL Athletics (Rookie) / Las Vegas Aviators (AAA) [55] Roman Anthony Outfielder Portland Sea Dogs (AA) / Worcester Red Sox (AAA) [55] Kristian Campbell Outfielder Greenville Drive (High A) / Portland Sea Dogs (AA) / Worcester Red Sox (AAA) [55] Marcelo Mayer Outfielder Portland Sea Dogs (AA) [55] Trayce Thompson Outfielder Syracuse Mets (AAA) / Iowa Cubs (AAA) [59]

The team's equipment departed Fenway Park on February 3, known as "Truck Day", in preparation for the their arrival in Fort Myers, Florida to begin Spring Training.^[66] The first workout for the pitchers and catchers was held on February 12 at Fenway South, and their first full-squad workout took place on February 17, with the pitchers and catchers set to be joined by six infielders, six outfielders, and six infielder/outfielders for a total of 60 players, including 20 non-roster invitees.^[67] On February 19, pitcher Matt Moore was signed to a minor league contract, and invited to join the team for Spring Training on February 23.^[65]

The Red Sox' first spring training game was an exhibition contest against the Northeastern Huskies at Fenway South on February 21, which ended in a 5–2 victory for the team.^[68] The team's Grapefruit League schedule ran from February 22 through March 23,^[69][70] during which the Red Sox compiled a 15–12 record.^[71]

They concluded spring training with two games in Monterrey, Mexico against the Monterrey Sultanes on March 24–25,^[72] and won both games by 10–1 and 12–8 respectively.^[73][74]

Regular season

Opening Day lineup

Order	No.	Player	Pos.
1	16	Jarren Duran	LF
2	11	Rafael Devers	DH
3	2	Alex Bregman	3B
4	36	Triston Casas	1B
5	10	Trevor Story	SS
6	28	Kristian Campbell	2B
7	52	Wilyer Abreu	RF
8	12	Connor Wong	C
9	3	Ceddanne Rafaela	CF
—	35	Garrett Crochet	P

Source:^[75]

On March 26, manager Alex Cora announced that Rafael Devers would move to the designated hitter position while Alex Bregman would become the regular third baseman.^[76]

March/April

March/April game summaries

March 27–30, at Texas Rangers The Red Sox began the season with a four-game away series against the Texas Rangers. On Opening Day, Wilyer Abreu hit two home runs in the Red Sox’ 5–2 victory, the win going to Aroldis Chapman in relief and earning Justin Slaten his first save of the season.[77] In the second game, designated hitter Rafael Devers struck out during all four of his at-bats—for a 0–7 record with six strikeouts to begin the season—while Tanner Houck gave up four runs to Texas across his 5+2⁄3 innings start to result in a 1–4 loss.[78] Devers became the first Major League player with ten strikeouts in three games to open a season on March 29, while Walker Buehler gave up four runs over 4+1⁄3 innings and issued three strikeouts. Kristian Campbell hit his first home run as a Major League player, though Texas ultimately won the third game 4–3.[79] Rookie starting pitcher Richard Fitts gave up one run through his first five innings in the final game of the series on March 30, before Wyatt Langford and Adolis García each hit home runs against the Red Sox in the sixth inning. Devers went hitless and struck out twice, while Abreu hit an RBI double to score Campbell and then himself on an error by Ezequiel Duran. The Rangers won the game 2–3 and took the series 3 games to 1.[80] Series result: Red Sox 1–3 Rangers (11–13 runs) March 31–April 3, at Baltimore Orioles On March 31, the Red Sox began a three-game away series against the Baltimore Orioles. Jarren Duran recorded a two-RBI double to score Romy González and Kristian Campbell in the top of the second inning, followed by an RBI groundout by Campbell and solo RBI hits by González and Duran each late in the game. Starting pitcher Sean Newcomb gave up four runs, eight hits, and two walks in four innings, while reliever Justin Slaten gave up another four runs in the eighth inning for an 8–5 loss.[81] In the second game of the series, Trevor Story recorded his first home run of the season followed by an RBI single from Ceddanne Rafaela and an RBI double from Rafael Devers. Garrett Crochet, meanwhile, recorded eight strikeouts in eight innings and only four hits for a final tally of 3–0, affording the Red Sox their first shutout win of the season.[82] Tanner Houck faced Baltimore’s Charlie Morton in the series finale. Both Alex Bregman and Triston Casas recorded their first home runs of the season, while Campbell hit one of his own in response to a home run by Orioles center fielder Cedric Mullins. Houck recorded three runs, five hits, and six strikeouts in four innings pitched, followed by reliever Zack Kelly, who earned the win in the Red Sox’ 8–4 victory.[83] Series result: Red Sox 2–1 Orioles (16–12 runs) April 4–6, vs. St. Louis Cardinals The Red Sox held their first home game of the season at Fenway on April 4, in the first of a three-game series against the St. Louis Cardinals. Starting pitcher Walker Buehler recorded five runs and seven hits in five innings, followed by four combined runs scored against Zack Kelly and Cooper Criswell. After the Red Sox were able to offer run support beginning with an RBI double from Alex Bregman and a three-run home run by Trevor Story, followed by a second home run by Wilyer Abreu, RBI singles from Ceddanne Rafaela, Rafael Devers, and Jarren Duran, as well as an RBI groundout from Abreu and an RBI double by Carlos Narváez, the team and closer Aroldis Chapman earned a 13–9 win.[84] The second game of the series was scheduled to take place the following day, but due to rain delay was postponed into a day-night double-header to take place the day after, on April 6.[85] The makeup game on Sunday afternoon was started by Red Sox pitcher Sean Newcomb and Cardinals pitcher Andre Pallante respectively. Newcomb recorded one run, six hits and four strikeouts across 4+2⁄3 innings. Rob Refsnyder then scored a run for the Red Sox off of a single by David Hamilton, followed by a solo home run from Devers, before Cardinals catcher Pedro Pagés collected a total three runs combined from Red Sox pitchers Justin Wilson and Garrett Whitlock.The Red Sox forced extra innings after an RBI double from Romy González and a bases-loaded walk from Devers, tying the contest. At the top of the 10th, Chapman pitched a scoreless inning including two strikeouts, before Abreu hit a single which brought home ghost runner Alex Bregman and gave the Red Sox a 5–4 victory.[86] In the night game of the double-header, and final game of the series, pitcher Hunter Dobbins made his Major League debut starting for the Red Sox against Miles Mikolas. Allowing two runs across five innings, Dobbins was backed by run support which gave the team a 10–1 lead over St. Louis after only three innings, including RBI singles by Abreu, Rafaela and Duran, two-RBI doubles from Abreu and Bregman, and a two-RBI home run by Bregman. Though the Cardinals scored a further five runs against reliever Cooper Criswell over three innings, four of which in the top of the 9th, the Red Sox scored a further eight runs to take the series 2–1 with a final score of 18–7.[87] Series result: Red Sox 2–1 Cardinals (36–20 runs) April 7–10, vs. Toronto Blue Jays On April 7, Richard Fitts started for the Red Sox against José Berríos of the Blue Jays, going six innings with four strikeouts and three earned runs including two RBI singles off George Springer in the 2nd and 5th innings. Berríos allowed just one run across seven innings of work, an RBI sacrifice fly from Rafael Devers in the 2nd, while Triston Casas scored Boston’s only other run with an RBI single in the 8th before the Blue Jays won the game 6–2, ending the Red Sox’ five-game winning streak.[88] In the second game of the series, Boston’s Garrett Crochet faced off with Toronto’s Easton Lucas, each pitcher going scoreless through the first five innings before Springer hit a home run in the top of the 6th. Crochet exited the game with only two runs (one earned) through 5+2⁄3 innings, and while Ceddanne Rafaela hit an RBI single in the bottom of the 7th, Toronto took the game 6–1 and left Boston to fall back to a .500 winning percentage.[89] The Red Sox fell below .500 with a 2–1 extra-innings loss in the third game of the series, where each team scored once in the first inning—Will Wagner with an RBI groundout for Toronto, and Alex Bregman with a sacrifice fly for Boston—amidst a pitcher’s duel between the Red Sox’ Tanner Houck and the Blue Jays’ Kevin Gausman. The score remained tied through to the 11th inning, before Ernie Clement scored a run from a sacrifice fly off of Bo Bichette which went unanswered in the bottom of the inning by the Red Sox. Neither Houck nor Gausman earned the win/loss for the game; Toronto’s Jeff Hoffman earned the win and Nick Sandlin received the save, while Boston’s loss was recorded against Josh Winckowski.[90] On Thursday afternoon, Walker Buehler opposed Chris Bassitt, giving up one run and four hits against seven strikeouts across 6+1⁄3 innings, while Bassitt allowed one run and five hits with five strikeouts in 5+2⁄3 innings pitched. Prior to the 8th inning, the Red Sox’ sole run was scored by Jarren Duran from a Bregman single in the bottom of the 6th, while the Blue Jays held a 2–1 lead with an RBI single from Tyler Heineman and a run scored by Myles Straw off of an error by Trevor Story. A wild pitch at the bottom of the 8th allowed Rob Refsnyder to even the score for Boston, leading to the game going into extra innings after both teams went runless in the 9th. Andrés Giménez of Toronto scored on a sacrifice fly in the top of the 10th, followed by an RBI single from Duran which brought Blake Sabol home for Boston before David Hamilton scored the winning run for the Red Sox on an error from Giménez resulting in a 4–3 extra-innings win, preventing a series sweep.[91] Series result: Red Sox 1–3 Blue Jays (8–17 runs) April 11–13, at Chicago White Sox In the first game of this weekend series against the White Sox, Sean Newcomb faced off against Chicago’s Davis Martin. The Red Sox’ only run of the game was a sacrifice fly from Blake Sabol to bring home Wilyer Abreu in the top of the 7th inning, after Martin went six innings and collected six strikeouts. The White Sox went on to score eleven runs, six of which against Newcomb, including 2-RBI doubles from Jacob Amaya and Miguel Vargas, RBI singles off of Luis Robert, Lenyn Sosa and Omar Narváez, a sacrifice fly from Narváez, and RBIs from Sosa and Brooks Baldwin. The win-loss was credited to Martin and Newcomb, with a final score of 11–1.[92] The following day, Richard Fitts took the mound for game two, going five-innings and striking out five White Sox while allowing just two hits and zero runs. Chicago’s Martín Pérez, meanwhile, held the Red Sox scoreless through four innings before a Ceddanne Rafaela triple in the the top of the 5th scored Carlos Narváez and Romy González hit a single to score Rafaela. The White Sox answered by tying the game at the bottom of the 6th with an RBI home run from Robert against Boston reliever Zack Kelly, before Chicago earned a walk-off win with an RBI single from Baldwin for a 3–2 final score, the Red Sox’ fifth loss of their last six games.[93] Facing the team he was traded from to Boston, Garrett Crochet struck out eleven White Sox batters and threw a no-hitter through 7+1⁄3 innings in the final game of the series, with a final line of one run (one earned), one hit, and one walk across a total 7+1⁄3 innings pitched. Trevor Story doubled in the top of the 6th to bring in runs from Abreu and Bregman, followed by a solo home run in the top of the 9th, to earn Boston a 3–1 victory.[94] Series result: Red Sox 1–2 White Sox (6–15 runs) April 14–16, at Tampa Bay Rays The Red Sox opened their road series against the Rays with Tanner Houck, who only went 2+1⁄3 innings and exited with 12 runs (11 earned) and 10 hits, including two home runs by Yandy Díaz and Kameron Misner, with only one strikeout. Kristian Campbell hit a solo home run off of Shane Baz at the top of the 3rd for Boston’s only run of the game, while the Rays went on to score a further two home runs by Misner Junior Caminero against Baz’ scoreline of 11 Red Sox strikeouts and only two hits, aside from Campbell’s home run, across six innings for a 16–1 defeat.[95] On April 15, Alex Bregman hit his first 5-hit and 5-for-5 game of his career, beginning with an RBI single in the top of the 1st against Rays starting pitcher Ryan Pepiot, followed by a solo home run in the 3rd, an RBI double in the 4th, another solo home run in the 7th and a single in the 9th. Meanwhile Jarren Duran hit a home run in the 2nd, Wilyer Abreu scored in the 3rd off a single from Ceddanne Rafaela. Red Sox starter Walker Buehler finished with three strikeouts, two runs and three walks after 5 innings, while Taylor Walls and Díaz scored RBIs off reliever Zack Kelly in the 9th to bring the final score to a 7–4 Red Sox win after closer Aroldis Chapman replaced Kelly for the save.[96] In Game 3, Sean Newcomb struck out four Tampa Bay batters and allowed four hits without a run in 4+2⁄3 innings pitched, followed by three pitchers from the bullpen who earned a total of nine strikeouts and allowed only one hit. The Red Sox accompanied their pitching performance with a solo home run by David Hamilton for a 1–0 shutout victory against the Rays’ Zack Littell.[97] Series result: Red Sox 2–1 Rays (9–20 runs) April 18–21, vs. Chicago White Sox The Red Sox opened their four-game Patriots' Day weekend series at Fenway against the White Sox with an early 3–0 lead after the first inning following a 2-RBI home run by Trevor Story. This was followed by an RBI double from Rob Refsnyder before Andrew Benintendi hit a solo home run for Chicago in the top of the 4th. Despite Chicago earning another run in the 6th inning, the Red Sox scored an RBI home run from Rafaela, and a 3-run Story home run followed by a solo home run by Narváez—his first major league home run—to give the Red Sox a 10–3 victory after an RBI single by Brooks Baldwin at the top of the 9th gave the White Sox their third run of the game. Boston starter Hunter Dobbins struck out six Chicago batters in six innings, allowing two runs and only three hits to record the win, while the White Sox’ Martín Pérez earned the loss with four runs on five hits, two walks, and no strikeouts in only three innings.[98] In Garrett Crochet’s second start against his former team, he struck out seven and allowed only four hits across six innings, but the decision against the White Sox would go to reliever Garrett Whitlock when the game went into extra-innings, tied at 3–3. Chicago’s initial three runs came against reliever Greg Weissert in the 7th inning from an RBI single by Chase Meidroth and an RBI home run from Luis Robert, tying Boston after they took the lead in the bottom of the 5th with a 2-RBI home run by Rafael Devers. After Chicago went scoreless through the top of the 10th inning, Boston started the inning with Alex Bregman starting on second base as the ghost runner when White Sox pitcher Mike Vasil intentionally walked Wilyer Abreu, then walked Kristian Campbell to load the bases, before Triston Casas hit an RBI single off the top of the Green Monster to bring Bregman home for the 4–3 win.[99] Tanner Houck started for the Red Sox on Sunday afternoon, giving up an RBI home run to Matt Thaiss in the top of the 1st inning before ultimately striking out seven hitters and allowing only three further hits in six innings. Abreu went on to hit a 2-RBI home run in the bottom of the 1st, followed by an RBI single from Jarren Duran the following inning, however Boston then remained scoreless through the remaining innings of the game, while Chicago scored runs against Red Sox reliever Zack Kelly including a sacrifice bunt from Brooks Baldwin and a 2-RBI single by Edgar Quero in the 7th. This was followed by a home run from Andrew Vaughn in the 8th against Liam Hendriks, and a walked-in run after Thaiss was hit by a pitch with bases loaded in the top of the 9th, resulting in an 8–4 loss for the Red Sox.[100] Notably, this game was Hendriks’ first in nearly two years after recovering from treatment for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Tommy John surgery for an elbow injury.[101] On Patriots' Day, Red Sox starter Walker Buehler went seven innings with four hits, three walks, one run and nine strikeouts against Chicago. After the White Sox scored a run from an RBI single by Quero in the top of the 1st inning, Boston answered with a solo home run from Rob Refsnyder, an RBI single by Trevor Story, and a 2-RBI single from Kristian Campbell. Chicago earned a second run off an Benintendi home run in the top of the 8th, but ultimately earned a 4–2 victory for a 3–1 series win.[102] Series result: Red Sox 3–1 White Sox (22–16 runs) April 22–24, vs. Seattle Mariners The Mariners came to Fenway Park and placed Bryce Miller on the mound to oppose Boston's Brayan Bello, who returned from the 15-day injured list to make his first start of the season. While he pitched just 5 innings, Bello showed little signs of rust, posting a one-run, four-hit, three-strikeout scoreline. The lone run Bello surrendered was a Jorge Polanco solo homer to center field in the top 1st. Rafael Devers summarily answered the Polanco long ball with an RBI sac fly in the bottom 1st that scored Jarren Duran. In the 3rd, the Sox took the lead on another timely hit from Alex Bregman, who doubled to left to score Ceddanne Rafaela. In the bottom 5th, Bregman scored again, putting the Red Sox up by three with a 2-RBI double to deep center that scored Devers and Rafaela. Seattle inched to within a run in the top of the 6th, as J. P. Crawford's center field single scored two Mariners. In the bottom 7th, however, Boston would break the game open. A four-run inning began with Triston Casas's second home run of the season – Casas stroked a pitch from Trent Thornton over the center field wall to score three runs, bringing home Kristian Campbell and Wilyer Abreu along with himself. Duran provided additional insurance later in the inning when he singled and then advanced to second base on an error, scoring Carlos Narváez. The back end of the bullpen was lights out for Boston, as the Red Sox benefited from two shutout innings from Garrett Whitlock and a shutout top of the 9th from Liam Hendriks, who shut the door on the Mariners for an 8–3 victory. Although not an official save situation, Hendriks' one-two-three 9th was a nice rebound from his shaky first outing in his return from Tommy John surgery. Bello (1–0) was credited with the win and Miller (1–3) with the loss.[103] After winning six of seven games, the Red Sox were handed an 8–5 loss in the second game of the series against Seattle. Sean Newcomb's struggles continued – though he struck out eight Mariner batters in his five innings pitched, the Massachusetts native also allowed eight hits and four earned runs, walking two. Mitch Garver's RBI single in the top 1st got things going for the Mariners, and while Newcomb held Seattle scoreless in the 2nd and 3rd, Crawford took Newcomb deep for a 3-run bomb to center field in the top 4th, putting Boston in a 4–0 hole. Romy González provided the first Red Sox run in the bottom half of the inning when his single to right field scored Trevor Story. In the 5th, Devers hit into an RBI ground out that scored Rafaela, cutting the Seattle lead in half. The Mariners would strike for two runs apiece in the top 6th and top 7th, however. In the 6th, a throwing error and a fielding error from Sox reliever Brennan Bernardino allowed Dylan Moore to reach base and then advance to second, which scored Leo Rivas. Moore then scampered home himself when Crawford singled to left. In the 7th, Josh Winckowski was held responsible for the continued Mariner onslaught, as Ben Williamson singled to right field to score Randy Arozarena, and Crawford's single brought in Rowdy Tellez for his fourth RBI of the game. Now up 8–2, Boston did attempt a comeback, drawing to within three runs in the bottom of the 8th when Casas homered to right with two men (Bregman and Devers) on, making the score 8–5 at a stroke. Seattle closer Andrés Muñoz shut the Sox down in the 9th, however, for his eighth save of the season, leveling this series at a game apiece. The Mariners' starter was Emerson Hancock, who struck out seven Red Sox and allowed two runs and six hits over six innings.[104] With Garrett Crochet becoming a burgeoning ace for Boston, hopes were high heading into the rubber game of the series. However, the Mariners would find Crochet's weak spots on this day, tagging him for four earned runs in five hits and five walks – which was all the offense Seattle needed in their 4–3 win. The M's got to Crochet early, Garver belting a pitch to deep center field for a 2-RBI double in the top of the 1st, scoring Arozarena and Moore. The Red Sox got a run back quickly in the bottom of the 1st, as Bregman took Seattle starter Bryan Woo deep for a solo shot to center, halving the Mariner lead. Up 2–1, however, Seattle continued to expose Crochet in the 2nd, with Moore carrying a fly ball deep enough to score Williamson. Rodríguez then scored Leo Rivas on an RBI ground out, putting the Mariners up 4–1. To Crochet's credit, he recovered for the rest of his outing, striking out nine Seattle hitters in total through five innings of work. But the damage had been done, and Woo was simply better, lasting six frames and only giving up two Boston runs and three hits while fanning eight Red Sox. Bregman struck again for the Red Sox in the bottom of the 3rd, driving in Duran. Narváez pulled the Sox to within a run in the 8th with his second home run of the season, a crack to right field off of Seattle reliever Gabe Speier. However, Muñoz was again effective in a save situation, striking out two Sox to shut the door on a 4–3 Mariners victory and a 2–1 series win for Seattle, with the Red Sox hoping to regroup as they head out on the road.[105] Red Sox lost the series 1–2 (15–16 runs) April 25–27, at Cleveland Guardians The first game of this three-game series, scheduled for Friday night, was rained out and would be made up on Saturday as part of a day-night doubleheader.[106] With a two-game slate on Saturday, Boston split the doubleheader, dropping the afternoon game by a score of 5–4 for their third straight loss, but then rebounding with a 7–3 victory in the nightcap. Tanner Houck was the afternoon starter. Through five innings pitched, Houck fanned six Cleveland batters but otherwise struggled to contain the Guardians, who tagged him for eight hits and a walk to manufacture four runs, all of them earned for Houck. Wilyer Abreu had gotten the game off to an excellent start for Boston, his home run off Ben Lively in the top 1st bringing home Trevor Story and Alex Bregman to make the score 3–0 at a stroke. Cleveland, however, responded by pummeling Houck in the bottom half of the inning. José Ramírez singled in Steven Kwan, Carlos Santana hit a sac fly to score Nolan Jones, Gabriel Arias singled home Ramírez, and Daniel Schneemann drove home Arias. All of a sudden, Cleveland held a 4–3 advantage. In the top 3rd, Rafael Devers took Lively deep for another long ball, this one a solo shot to right, knotting the game at 4–4. The winning run came in the 6th, with Houck having been relieved by Brennan Bernardino. Bernardino immediately fumbled by hitting pinch hitter Will Wilson with a pitch, and then allowing a single and a sacrifice bunt to discreetly advance Wilson to third base. Wilson then jogged home easily to score what would prove to be the game-winning run when Kwan singled to shortstop. Despite Houck's four earned runs, Bernardino was charged with the loss thanks to giving up the winning run. Boston's bullpen was strong enough from that point on, but so was Cleveland's, with reliever Tim Herrin earning the win and Cade Smith slamming the door on the Sox for his third save of the season. Boston only manufactured two base guys from innings four through nine.[107] In the evening tilt, the Red Sox sent Walker Buehler to the bump in hopes he could further improve his 3–1 record in his first year in a Boston uniform. Buehler looked a little shaky, surrendering seven hits through six innings of work and allowing three earned runs, but the former Dodger kept the wheels on the bus enough to pick up his fourth victory of the year, backed up by Boston's offense and the Sox bullpen (a coalition of Justin Wilson, Justin Slaten and Aroldis Chapman allowed no hits and just one baserunner). As for the Red Sox offense, they again got things going early, Trevor Story singling home Devers in the top 1st. In the top 2nd, the Red Sox put their foot on the gas against Guardians starter Doug Nikhazy, with Duran singling to center to score Kristian Campbell; Devers placing a ball in deep left center to score Duran; and Rob Refsnyder drawing a bases loaded walk, which forced Devers to waltz home. The Red Sox, and Duran in particular, weren't finished yet, coming right back in the top of the 3rd with a triple to right field to score Carlos Narváez. Then, with Devers at the plate, Duran stole home while Nikhazy was still beginning his pitching motion. The Red Sox now led, 6–0. However, insurance runs would be called for after the bottom of the 4th, when Cleveland's Ángel Martínez and Jhonkensy Noel provided an RBI single and a 2-run home run, respectively, to make the score 6–3. Bregman put the Red Sox ahead for good in the top 6th, as Duran scored another run on his shallow infield single. Leading 7–3, Boston took the second game from the Guards in relative comfort after that, setting up a rubber game on Sunday afternoon to determine the series winner.[108] The Red Sox' bats were flaming in the third and final game of the series, and were efficient in their scoring, as Boston plated 13 runs on the Guardians in 15 hits, an output that included a 5-run 5th inning. Brayan Bello twirled six innings of six-hit, three-run ball, keeping Cleveland scoreless through the first five frames, to earn his second victory of the season, while Guardians starter Logan Allen lasted only 4+1⁄3 innings, surrendering nine hits and being tagged for seven earned runs. Ceddanne Rafaela stitched together an RBI sac fly, an RBI double, and a 3-run home run off reliever Jake Junis for a 5-RBI output on the afternoon, and Duran went 4-for-6 with an RBI. For the second straight game, a Boston player stole home, this time Romy González in the top 5th. González benefited from a distracted Allen, who was trying to contain Kristian Campbell on the basepaths. All told, the Guardians only manufactured three runs, all of them coming off of a Nolan Jones 3-run long ball in the bottom of the 6th. With a 13–3 victory, the Red Sox took the Cleveland series with two straight wins after a close loss in the opener.[109] Boston's big offensive day on Sunday was marred, however, by an incident in the 7th inning involving a fan at Progressive Field. With Jarren Duran within earshot, the fan heckled Duran regarding a prior mental health struggle. The fan was summarily ejected from the game and removed from the premises, and the Guardians released a statement apologizing to Duran and the Red Sox as a whole.[110][111][112] Red Sox won the series 2–1 (24–11 runs) April 29–30, at Toronto Blue Jays The Red Sox opened a three-game series north of the border, their second of the season against their AL East rivals, with another offensive outburst. Boston's bats connected for five home runs, all of them coming in the opening three innings of the game, overwhelming Toronto starter Bowden Francis (three innings pitched, seven earned runs, eight hits, one strikeout). In the top 1st, Jarren Duran took Francis deep to right field on a solo home run, and Alex Bregman added a solo bomb of his own to left. In the 2nd, Kristian Campbell fired a Francis pitch into the bleachers, and in the top 3rd, Rafael Devers smashed his fifth home run, another solo homer. The Red Sox only led 4–0, however, as all of their home runs had been solo home runs. Fortunately, Boston broke that trend when both Bregman and Trevor Story singled, setting up a 3-run blast from Wilyer Abreu, who continued to be a revelation at the plate for the Red Sox with his sixth home run of the season. Francis was removed after being shelled over the opening three frames. Now up 7–0, Boston went scoreless for the next four innings, but thankfully, Garrett Crochet was twirling yet another sterling performance, striking out four Blue Jays and allowing just two runs and four hits across seven innings of work. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. mustered Toronto's only runs of the game in the bottom 3rd, when he took Crochet deep with Bo Bichette on base for a two-run blast. At this point, Boston rode the coattails of their 7–2 margin a big, but they showed pop in their bats again late in the game. In the top 8th, Duran hit into an RBI ground out that scored Ceddanne Rafaela. In the top 9th, with Bregman on base, Campbell struck again with a left-field double off of Jays reliever Casey Lawrence. Lawrence was also tagged with a Triston Casas RBI ground out that scored Abreu, sending the Boston output into double digits. Luis Guerrero and Brennan Bernardino followed Crochet's outing with an inning each of hitless ball to shut the door on the Jays in the opener of this series at Rogers Centre.[113] The middle game of this series was a dispiriting one for the Red Sox, who squandered a 6–0 lead to lose 7–6 in ten innings. Lucas Giolito made his long-awaited first start in a Boston uniform and his first since 2023. Giolito lived up to the hype for most of his outing, as he fanned seven Blue Jays hitters and lasted six innings while receiving run support early. Devers doubled, advanced to third base on a wild pitch, and scored on a balk from Jays starter Yariel Rodríguez, and Bregman rattled Rodríguez further with a solo home run. In the top 2nd, Boston added two more runs courtesy of a Duran RBI single to score Rafaela and a Devers RBI double to score Duran. The Sox went scoreless in innings three through five, but Giolito kept putting zeroes on the board, and Boston took a 6–0 lead in the top 6th when Carlos Narváez's 2-run blast also brought home Rafaela. Unfortunately, this was the last of the positive developments for Boston. In the bottom half of the frame, Giolito began to unravel, allowing two home runs – a 2-run bomb from Daulton Varsho and a solo shot from Alejandro Kirk. With their lead cut in half, the Red Sox dispatched Giolito before the start of the 7th, ending with a line of just five hits but also three runs, all of them earned. Garrett Whitlock emerged from the bullpen in the bottom 7th and fell victim to a third Toronto long ball, this one courtesy of Anthony Santander, who stroked a Whitlock pitch to right field for a 3-run home run with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Ernie Clement on base. In the 8th and 9th innings, Boston's pitching recovered, as Whitlock hurled a scoreless 8th and Aroldis Chapman volunteered a scoreless 9th, but Jays relievers Brendon Little and Jeff Hoffman (the eventual winning pitcher) also kept the Sox off the board in these innings. Deadlocked at 6–6 after nine, extra innings commenced with Boston placing Devers on second as their ghost runner. Hoffman delivered a one-two-three frame, however, which included strikeouts of Bregman and Abreu. In the bottom 10th, rather than trying Chapman for a second inning, the Sox opted for Justin Slaten. Slaten pitched with Guerrero Jr. as Toronto's ghost runner. Guerrero Jr. advanced to third on a Santander lineout, and Slaten then intentionally walked both George Springer and Varsho. With three baserunners and no room for error, Guerrero Jr. was able to jog home from third and score the winner run when Kirk singled to deep left field to deliver the winning RBI in walk-off fashion. The loss brought the Sox down to 17–15, with the rubber game set for Thursday at Rogers Centre.[114] Series tied 1–1, continued into following month

May

May game summaries

May 1, at Toronto Blue Jays The Red Sox opened the month of May hoping to turn the page on a sour note to end April, but instead gave up a second straight come-from-behind loss to the Blue Jays in the rubber game of their series in Toronto. In a game in which Boston utilized only two pitchers, the Jays took advantage of reliever Justin Slaten after being mostly shut down by starter Tanner Houck. Houck twirled what, on most nights, would have been a winning scoreline – 7 innings pitched, and charged with only four hits and one run, while striking out six Toronto batters and allowing no walks. This enviable line, however, would go in the books as a no-decision – as would that of Jays starter José Berríos, who gave up 7 hits and 2 runs but struck out 8 across 6+2⁄3 innings. For the Red Sox, the scoring both began and ended with an Alex Bregman double to deep left field in the top 5th that scored David Hamilton and Rob Refsnyder, giving Boston a 2–0 lead. In the bottom 7th, the Jays cut the lead in half on Houck's only blemish: a solo shot over the left field fence from Daulton Varsho. Heading into the 8th, Slaten replaced Houck, and almost immediately ran into trouble. With one out, Slaten gave up a single to center from Nathan Lukes, followed by a double off the pine of Bo Bichette, advancing Lukes to third. Next to the plate was Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who carries his All-Star father's name for a reason. Guerrero Jr. uncorked a Slaten pitch to center field for a 3-run home run, at a stroke putting Toronto up 4–2. While that was the end of the run scoring, Slaten also walked Varsho before mercifully ending the inning. Suddenly in disaster mode, the Sox bats clammed up against Yimi García, who took the hill for the Jays in the top 9th. García fanned Trevor Story and Triston Casas before inducing a Refsnyder ground out to end the inning and the game. Slaten (0–2) was saddled with the loss while Mason Fluharty picked up the win for Toronto, with García earning the save. Boston crossed the border back into the United States having blown two late leads for a 2–1 series loss to the Blue Jays, hoping to right the ship back at Fenway Park against Minnesota.[115][116][117] Red Sox lost the series 1–2 (18–13 runs) May 2–4, vs. Minnesota Twins The Red Sox opened a three-game home series against Minnesota looking to put their disappointing Blue Jays series behind them. Brayan Bello made his third start of the season after returning from injury and was very serviceable, working 6+2⁄3 innings and allowing just four hits and one earned run, while striking out five Twins batters. Minnesota dispatched Joe Ryan to the mound and he was equally impressive, fanning eight Red Sox while also allowing just one run and four hits. However, it would turn out to be the bullpens that would decide this game. Ryan's only blemish was also the first run of the game – Alex Bregman sent a pitch arcing high over the Green Monster for a solo shot and an early 1–0 lead in the bottom 1st. In the top 2nd, Jarren Duran made an acrobatic diving catch, sliding into the left field wall to rob Ty France of a potential extra-base hit. Duran hit the wall hard but got up of his own volition and remained in the game, but Triston Casas wouldn't be able to say the same. In the bottom half of the 2nd, Casas beat out a throw to first on an infield dribbler but lost his footing on or near the bag and tumbled to the ground clutching his knee. Casas left the game on a cart and Romy González took over as both pinch runner and first baseman for the remainder of the contest. In the top 3rd, Ryan Jeffers gave Bello his only blemish by sending a solo homer of his own to left field, knotting the game at 1–1. From the bottom 3rd through top 7th, both starters continued their quality outings, both leaving with the 1–1 stalemate intact. Fortunately, Boston's bullpen (Justin Wilson, Greg Weissert and Liam Hendriks) would hold up, while Minnesota's began to show cracks. In the bottom 7th, Rafael Devers punched a 2-RBI single to shallow right field, bringing home baserunners Connor Wong and David Hamilton. Now up 3–1, Boston padded its lead in the 8th, as González doubled to bring in Trevor Story, Hamilton doubled to deep left field to score González, and Hamilton jogged home on a right field single by Duran, breaking the game open with a 6–1 Red Sox lead, which was preserved by Hendriks in a non-save situation. Wilson was named the winning pitcher while the loss was charged to the Twins' Louis Varland. Boston dealt the Twins their fourth straight loss while climbing back up to two games above .500.[118][119][120] Hunter Dobbins took the hill for Boston in the Saturday showdown, as the spot starter took the hill for the third time. However, this outing would result in Dobbins' first loss of the season, as he ran into trouble in the 6th inning from which the Sox could not recover. Dobbins' final line was seven hits and four runs (all earned) allowed across 5+2⁄3 innings with two strikeouts. Bailey Ober pitched opposite Dobbins for the Twins and put together a solid performance – despite also allowing seven hits, Ober fanned six Red Sox hitters and only gave up one run in 6 innings pitched. Devers began the scoring for Boston in the bottom 3rd with a single to center field that scored Jarren Duran. Minnesota responded in kind, however, scoring a run of their own in the top 4th when Ty France scattered a sacrifice ground out to score Carlos Correa from third base. After a scoreless 5th, Minnesota hit Dobbins for three runs in the top 6th: Kody Clemens took the rookie deep to right field to score two runs, bringing France home along with him. Trevor Larnach soon hit an RBI single to left which brought home Harrison Bader, and suddenly the Twins cradled a 4–1 lead. Boston rallied, however, in the bottom of the 7th against Twins reliever Brock Stewart as Duran smoked a pitch to the right center field gap and hustled for an RBI triple, as Connor Wong scampered home on the play. Devers then singled to right field to score Duran, drawing the Red Sox within a run. Unfortunately, once Stewart was relieved, Boston's bats quieted again, as Griffin Jax ended the 7th without further incident, Cole Sands hurled a scoreless Boston eighth and Jhoan Durán earned his third save of the year in the 9th, an inning in which the Sox got Ceddanne Rafaela to second base and saw Durán intentionally walk Bregman, only for Wilyer Abreu to fly out to end the game. With the series split 1–1, the final game of the series yet again became a critical rubber contest, with Garrett Crochet slated to pitch for Boston.[121][122][123] With Garrett Crochet on the mound for the rubber game of the series, the Red Sox faced the Twins' Chris Paddack. However, neither pitcher would earn a decision in this contest, as a crucial game would come down to bullpen strength yet again for Boston. Byron Buxton blemished Crochet early, taking the burgeoning ace deep in the top 1st for a solo home run and a 1–0 Minnesota lead out of the gate. However, the Sox would strike back in the 2nd and 3rd innings to take the lead. In the 2nd, Carlos Narváez notched a 2-RBI single with a hit to shallow left field that scored Abreu and Romy González, instantly putting the Sox up 2–1. In the next frame, González hit a sacrifice fly ball deep enough to score Bregman from third base, giving Boston a 3–1 lead. Crochet would be limited to five innings pitched, but not for a lack of effort – he allowed just four hits and only the Buxton homer in that span, fanning six Twins and giving up two walks. Paddack also went five innings, and while he coughed up the Twins' early lead, he settled down in the 4th and 5th innings, keeping Boston hitless and building a bridge to Minnesota's bullpen. In the 6th, Garrett Whitlock took over for the Red Sox and hurled a scoreless frame, as did the Twins' Brock Stewart. Whitlock allowed Minnesota to rally, however, in the top 7th, walking Harrison Bader and allowing a single to former Red Sox catcher Christian Vázquez. Ryan Jeffers then singled deep to left field to bring home both Bader and Vázquez, tying the game at 3–3. With the Boston lead squandered, Whitlock was relieved by Justin Slaten, who was looking to turn things around after taking two losses in the Toronto series, blowing late Boston leads. Unfortunately, Slaten's bad luck remained; he got two outs before allowing Bader to double to left field, bringing home Correa all the way from first base. Trevor Larnach then took a Slaten pitch to right field, allowing Bader to score and giving the Twins a 2-run cushion (5–3). Boston wasn't done offensively – in the bottom of the 8th, Abreu took Griffin Jax deep to right field for a solo home run, bringing the Sox within one – but Minnesota, still holding a one-run lead after a scoreless top 9th, again brought in closer Jhoan Durán, who set down the Red Sox with relative ease for his second consecutive save. Slaten (0–3) was charged with another loss, while Louis Varland, who pitched the 7th inning for Minnesota, picked up the win. The defeat brought the Red Sox back down to .500 and was their fourth loss in five games. With a day off before welcoming the Texas Rangers to Fenway Park, Boston would hope to get more out of both their offense and their bullpen against a team that took three of four games during the opening weekend.[124][125][126] Red Sox lost the series 1–2 (10–13 runs) May 6–8, vs. Texas Rangers The Red Sox opened their second series of the year against Texas hoping to turn the page on two consecutive series losses to Toronto and Minnesota. Unfortunately, the fates remained against the Boston nine on this day in the form of a 6–1 defeat. Lucas Giolito was dispatched to the hill for the Red Sox, making his second start of the season, and while at bat the team faced former Red Sox starter Nathan Eovaldi. Giolito struggled mightily against the Rangers' bats, which popped off for sixteen hits, ten of them against Giolito. The Red Sox also opened the game with yet another run allowed in the top of the 1st inning. Josh Smith singled to left center field, and Wyatt Langford hit into a force out, retiring Smith, but Langford reached base. Langford then advanced from first to third on a single by Joc Pederson, and with Marcus Semien at bat Giolito hurled a wild pitch that allowed Langford to scamper home for a 1–0 lead. Giolito kept his composure throughout the 2nd and 3rd innings, but let Texas break the game open with a 5-run 4th. The onslaught began with Pederson doubling to deep right field to score Corey Seager. Adolis García then lifted a ball to center for a sacrifice fly that scored Pederson. Jonah Heim kept the line moving, singling to center field to score Semien and advance Evan Carter to third. Carter then scored on Smith's base hit to shallow center. Langford then stroked yet another Giolito offering to center to score Heim. Texas now led 6–0 and had hung 10 hits on the embattled Giolito, who left the game after his disastrous 4th. With two outs in the inning, Brennan Bernardino entered the game and struck out Seager to end the frame, but the damage was done. Giolito's final line was six runs (all earned) on ten hits and just two strikeouts in 3+2⁄3 innings. Bernardino and Sean Newcomb combined to pitch the final 5+1⁄3 innings and kept Texas from expanding their lead, but Boston’s bats were handcuffed by Eovaldi (a final scoreline of five hits across six innings, one earned run, and seven strikeouts). The lone run of the game for Boston when Kristian Campbell hit a line drive to center that allowed Alex Bregman to score from second base. With the 6–1 loss, the Red Sox dropped their third straight game and clumsily backed their way into an 18–19 record, their first losing record since April 15. However, Boston remained in second place in the American League East. Showers and storms scattered throughout New England danced around Fenway Park and delayed the start of the game (scheduled for 6:45 p.m.) by 31 minutes, but the teams did manage to play all nine innings.[127][128][129] Boston struck back in the second game of the series and leveled back at .500 with a 6–4 win, setting up another rubber game on Thursday afternoon. Tanner Houck received the ball for the Red Sox and gave up three runs (two earned) and six hits with two walks and striking out two. Houck's 4+2⁄3-innings outing wasn't his most polished, but the Sox offense and a better outing from Boston's bullpen kept the team in the game in the later innings, though Houck earned a no-decision as the win went to reliever Brennan Bernardino. The run scoring began with Texas in the top 3rd, as Seager grounded out with the bases loaded, permitting Heim to score from third base. In the 4th, García took Houck deep with a solo shot to left field, giving the Rangers a 2–0 advantage. But the Red Sox would tie the game in the bottom 4th with a pair of solo home runs as Bregman and Wilyer Abreu both went deep off of Texas starter Tyler Mahle (who finished with a line of two runs, four hits, and no strikeouts in five innings of work). In the top of the 5th, the Rangers regained the lead as García hit a sacrifice fly that scored Seager. In the bottom 6th, however, Abreu struck again, sending a double to deep left center field that brought home Bregman. Kristian Campbell was also on the basepaths but was called out at home plate. In the bottom 7th, Bregman hit a single to left that was enough to score two runs, as Ceddanne Rafaela and Connor Wong both hustled home. Leading 5–3, Abreu provided pivotal insurance in the bottom of the 8th with his second long ball of the contest, another solo rocket to give Boston a three-run lead. Coming on to close in the 9th, Aroldis Chapman gave up a solo homer to Josh Jung, pulling Texas to within two, but Chapman still earned the save, his fifth of the year, as he hurled a 9th that included a 103.8 mph (167.0 km/h) pitch, the fastest in MLB to date in 2025.[130][131][132] After dropping two straight series deciders, the Red Sox finally got some rubber game luck in the third and final game of the Texas series, a Thursday afternoon getaway-day tilt. Boston managed their first shutout since April 16, defeating the Rangers 5–0. Brayan Bello took the hill for the Sox and had a scoreless yet shaky outing, giving up four hits and walking five Texas batters over a 4+2⁄3-inning performance. With two outs in the top 5th, Justin Slaten relieved Bello and got the final out of the frame and hurled the top 6th as well, ultimately being credited with the win, improving his record to 1–3. Garrett Whitlock pitched the 7th and Liam Hendriks hurled the final two innings and allowed just one baserunner. Hendriks got some theatrical defensive help when Rafaela tracked down a deep center field fly ball from Jung, making an acrobatic catch while slamming into the center field wall near the 420' markings. Offensively, the Sox plated five runs on just six hits, beginning in the bottom 2nd when Trevor Story made it to third base and then scored on a wild pitch to Jarren Duran. Duran then hit an RBI ground out that scored Carlos Narváez. In the top 5th, up 2–0, Boston added a third run on an RBI single from Rafael Devers, as Rafaela ran to home plate. In the 6th, Narváez singled to center field, bringing in Story, and in the 7th, Devers put a cap on Boston's offensive output with a solo home run over the Green Monster, his sixth long ball of the season. With a 2–1 series win, the Sox would pack up and fly to Kansas City to open a weekend series against the Royals, hoping to extend a two-game win streak.[133][134][135] Red Sox won the series 2–1 (12–10 runs) May 9–11, at Kansas City Royals Boston kicked off its weekend series in Kansas City with a close-fought Friday night tango with the Royals that ended in a 2–1 defeat in 12 innings. In a game in which neither club scored in nine innings. Hunter Dobbins took the hill for the Red Sox and hurled six scoreless innings, giving up just five hits and fanning six Royals hitters. Michael Lorenzen, however, countered with seven shutout frames for Kansas City, allowing just three hits and striking out out seven Red Sox. This contest, however, would prove to be a battle of bullpens. Carlos Estévez pitched the top of the 10th inning for the Royals and pitched a one-two-three inning with Trevor Story as the ghost runner on second base. Aroldis Chapman responded in kind for the Red Sox, answering with a hitless inning of his own. In the top 11th, Boston finally broke the deadlock. Facing Daniel Lynch, Jarren Duran grounded out but succeeded in advancing ghost runner Ceddanne Rafaela from second base to third. Rafael Devers then hit into an RBI ground out that permitted Rafaela to scamper home, giving Boston a 1–0 lead. Alex Bregman then singled to left field but was left stranded by Kristian Campbell. In the bottom half of the 11th, with Garrett Whitlock pitching for the Sox, Kansas City tied the score when Whitlock walked Bobby Witt Jr. and then gave up a single to Vinnie Pasquantino that scored ghost runner Drew Waters. In the 12th, Boston gave the Royals a one-two-three inning, and Sean Newcomb took over on the mound in the bottom half of the inning. With Michael Massey on second base, the Royals needed just two batters to score what would prove to be the winning run – Cavan Biggio advanced Massey to third base with a sacrifice bunt before Freddy Fermín singled up the middle to bring Massey home for the walk-off win, another close late- or extra-inning defeat for Boston. The Red Sox would look to return to winning ways with Garrett Crochet expected to take the mound on Saturday.[136][137][138] Crochet indeed provided a masterful performance on Saturday in the middle game, and Boston's bats woke up as well, halting a 7-game Kansas City win streak with a 10–1 Red Sox win. Crochet provided 7 innings of one-run ball, allowing seven hits but also striking out nine Royal hitters. The outing improved Crochet to 4–2 on the season. Liam Hendriks and Brennan Bernardino hurled the 8th and 9th innings for Boston to shut down Kansas City, who scored only once, on a Mark Canha RBI single in the 3rd. As for the Red Sox, their ten-run output began with a Devers double to deep left in the top 3rd that scored Duran. Tied 1–1, Boston came alive again in the top 5th, with Duran singling with two runners on to score Carlos Narváez. Devers then blooped a single up the middle that scored Rafaela and moved Duran to third, and Duran jogged home on a Bregman single. In the top 7th, having forced Kansas City starter Cole Ragans out of the game and facing the Royals bullpen, Trevor Story stroked a pitch over the left-field fence for a 3-run home run, coming with Bregman and Devers on base. In the top of the 8th, up 7–1, the Sox onslaught continued with another 3-run inning: Narváez took Angel Zerpa deep to center for a 2-run blast that brought home Nick Sogard. Later in the inning, a Devers hit to shallow center field brought home Rafaela for the game's final run. Ragans finished with a line of four earned runs, seven hits, and eight strikeouts in five innings pitched; Boston tagged the Kansas City relief crew for six earned runs, five off of Zerpa. With a commanding win in their back pocket, the Red Sox gear up for yet another rubber game in the series finale on Sunday.[139][140][141] The Red Sox sent Lucas Giolito to the mound in the Sunday afternoon decider, and the embattled starting pitcher finally had a quality performance, earning his first win since 2023 with a scoreline of just two hits, one earned run, one walk and five strikeouts across 6+2⁄3 innings. Giolito let in the only Royals run of the game as Kansas City scored first in the bottom of the 3rd inning, allowing Kyle Isbel to reach on a sacrifice bunt and also permitting baserunner Luke Waters to score when Giolito committed a throwing error. This would prove to be the only blemish on Giolito's afternoon, however, as Boston immediately responded in the top 4th thanks to the bat of Wilyer Abreu, who crushed his tenth home run of the year to right field off of Kansas City starter Seth Lugo (whose final scoreline was three earned runs and six hits with five strikeouts across 6 innings pitched). In the top of the 6th, Rafael Devers continued to work out of his early-season slump with his seventh long ball of the season, a 2-run jack that also brought home Jarren Duran. Once Giolito left the contest, the Red Sox bullpen held down the fort with a coalition of Justin Wilson, Greg Weissert, and Aroldis Chapman. In the bottom of the 9th, Chapman allowed Vinnie Pasquantino to reach on an error by David Hamilton, and Pasquantino then advanced to second on a Salvador Perez single. With the potential winning run now at the plate in the form of Maikel Garcia, Chapman got Garcia to line out to Duran and then induced a pop fly from Mark Canha to end the ballgame and secure a 3–1 victory and a 2–1 series win for Boston, ending their Kansas City stay with back-to-back wins.[142][143][144] Red Sox won the series 2–1 (14–4 runs) May 12–14, at Detroit Tigers Coming to Comerica Park, the Red Sox faced a three-game litmus test of sorts against the Tigers, the team with the American League's best record. Fortunately, the Sox would have two more opportunities to defeat Detroit after the first tilt went miserably. With Tanner Houck making the start, the Red Sox faced Detroit's Jackson Jobe. Houck showed signs of trouble early, giving up a bottom-1st 2-run home run to Gleyber Torres to give Detroit an early advantage. Houck kept the Tigers off the board in the 2nd inning, but then completely unraveled in the 3rd, allowing the Tigers to tag the Sox for 9 runs in a single inning. The onslaught began with Kerry Carpenter scoring on a wild pitch from third after Houck gave up a double and then walked two Tiger hitters to load the bases. Riley Greene then blasted a pitch to deep right field and made it all the way around the bases for an inside-the-park home run, while also scoring Colt Keith and Torres in a sequence worsened by a Wilyer Abreu fielding error. Later in the inning, with Zach McKinstry on base, Houck hit Dillon Dingler with a pitch as his command continued to struggle. Trey Sweeney then made Houck pay with a 3-run home run to center field – and the nightmare inning just kept rolling. Houck gave up a Javier Báez single, a walk, and a Torres RBI single before finally being relieved by manager Alex Cora, who sent in Sean Newcomb for mop-up duty. Alas, Justyn-Henry Malloy added another run on the inning when he singled up the middle, before Newcomb was at last able to stitch together the two remaining outs needed to retire the Tigers offense. Houck exited with a stunningly crooked scoreline: 11 runs, all earned, on 9 hits, including 3 walks and 2 home runs, while striking out none, all in a mere 2+1⁄3 innings. Sean Newcomb would pitch the entire remainder of the game, going 5+2⁄3 and giving up 3 runs (2 earned) and 9 hits while striking out 4 Tigers. Ahead 11–0, Detroit would add on three more runs throughout the remainder of the contest, while Boston's hitters managed to stitch together a mere two runs, an Abreu solo home run in the 6th (his 11th of the year) and an Abraham Toro solo shot in the 9th (his first of the season as first in a Boston uniform). The Detroit starter Jobe gave up just one run and 3 hits while fanning 7 Red Sox, as the shellshocked Boston nine would have no choice but to flush this forgettable outing down the toilet and try to even the series in the middle game. Houck fell to 0–3 on the season with his disastrous outing; Brayan Bello was the scheduled Tuesday starter for Boston.[145][146][147] In the second game of the series, Brayan Bello took the mound for Boston, while Detroit utilized a bullpen game strategy headlined by Tyler Holton and Keider Montero combining to pitch the first 5 innings. Bello lasted 4+2⁄3 innings with three runs (two earned) and six hits with four strikeouts. This game, however, would feature lots of back-to-back offense from both teams and three blown Boston leads that would ultimately give way to Detroit earning a walk-off win in the 11th inning in a loss that proved just as, if not more, demoralizing than the 14–1 whooping the Sox had received the day before. The offense began in Detroit's favor in the bottom 1st, with Riley Greene hitting an RBI single that scored Kerry Carpenter. In the top 2nd, Carlos Narváez tied the game on an RBI single to left that brought home Nick Sogard. In the bottom of the 3rd, Detroit's Javier Báez walked, advanced to third on a Carpenter single, and then scampered home on a Narváez error while Zach McKinstry was at bat. In the top 4th, the Sox tied the game at 2–2 thanks to a solo shot from Bregman that cleared the left field wall, his tenth home run of the season. Spencer Torkelson answered in kind, though, with his eleventh home run of the season in the bottom half of the 4th, a solo bomb to right that gave Detroit the lead back at 3–2. In the top of the 5th, Boston plated two runs: Rafaela doubled home David Hamilton, and Jarren Duran blooped a single to left to score Rafaela. Up 4–3, the Sox managed to keep the Tigers off the scoreboard in the bottom 5th – but Detroit, and Báez, struck again in the 6th. Báez cracked a pitch from Garrett Whitlock to right field for a 3-run jack, a home run that also brought home baserunners Jace Jung and Torkelson. Boston tied the game yet again, however, in the top of the 8th, courtesy of Hamilton, who vaulted a ball over the right field wall; Narváez was on base, making it a 2-run homer, and the score returned to a deadlock: 6–6. In the bottom 9th, Aroldis Chapman set down the Tigers side to force extra innings, and Boston appeared to have the edge in the top of the 10th after ghost runner Sogard advanced to third on a Narváez single and scampered home on a Rafaela force out. Greg Weissert earned the first two outs of the bottom 10th, and looked to have a save in sight before Trey Sweeney found a hole in the outfield and singled to bring home ghost runner McKinstry, making it a 7–7 ballgame. In the 11th, Kristian Campbell earned his first hit of the game, and it couldn't have come at a better time for the Red Sox – his 2-run home run to right field (his 5th of the season) gave Boston a 9–7 advantage. Curiously, however, manager Alex Cora left Weissert in the game in the bottom half of the inning, and Jace Jung singled off of him to start the inning, moving ghost runner Dillon Dingler to third base. Javier Báez, already with a 3-run blast to his name, came to the plate and launched a moonshot to left field on the first pitch of the at-bat, at a stroke bringing home three runs and giving Detroit the walk-off victory, a 10–9 win. With two painful losses in this series, the Sox went back to .500 (22–22) and braced for the final game of the three-game set: a Wednesday tilt that would pit Boston against defending Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.[148][149][150] Though it wasn’t for a lack of effort, the Red Sox dropped the third and final game of the Detroit series 6–5 thanks to a second straight Tigers walk-off win, as Boston got swept in a three-game slate for the first time this season. Boston sent Hunter Dobbins to the hill to counter Detroit's ace Tarik Skubal. Dobbins went five innings and gave up five runs (all earned) on nine hits (no walks), though he did manage four strikeouts. Skubal had a solid outing, pitching 7+1⁄3 innings and fanning a total of eleven Red Sox batters, although he also coughed up five earned runs and gave up seven hits. Boston struck first against Skubal with more offense in the top of the 1st, this time a Rob Refsnyder RBI sacrifice fly that scored Devers. Trey Sweeney countered in the bottom 2nd by singling to left to score Riley Greene. The Sox took a 2–1 advantage in the top 4th off of Alex Bregman's 11th home run of the season, as he took Skubal deep to center field. Detroit tied the game again, however, with a Dillon Dingler RBI ground out in the bottom half of the inning that brought home baserunner Colt Keith. In the bottom of the 6th, the Tigers would take their first lead of the game: Riley Greene tagged Dobbins for a 2-run long ball to center. Dingler then reached base and was brought home by Sweeney on a sac fly. Down 5–2, the Sox needed a big inning, and they responded immediately, hanging three of their own on the board in the top of the 7th. Ceddanne Rafaela's RBI single to right scored Nick Sogard; Jarren Duran's single up the middle scored Carlos Narváez; and Devers's single to center brought home Rafaela. In the bottom of the 7th, Liam Hendriks was assisted on the mound by a highlight-reel-worthy defensive play: when Trey Sweeney took a Hendriks pitch deep to center, both Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu advanced on the ball as it neared the fence. At the warning track, Abreu leaped to deflect the ball, which ricocheted out of his glove and into Rafaela's glove for the second out of the inning. Unfortunately, the Boston highlights on the night would end there. In the bottom 9th, with the score still tied at 5–5, Andy Ibáñez pinch hit for Zach McKinstry. Chapman walked Ibáñez, who proceeded to steal second base and advance to third on a throw by catcher Connor Wong that sailed over second base and into the outfield. Chapman struck out Sweeney and induced a Javier Báez pop fly but then gave up a pinch-hit single to Justyn-Henry Malloy, allowing Ibáñez to jog home as the walk-off winning run, bookending a painful series for the Red Sox, who mercifully get a day off before facing Atlanta back at Fenway Park.[151][152][153] Red Sox lost the series 0–3 (16–30 runs) May 16–18, vs. Atlanta Braves The Red Sox opened up a three-game set at Fenway Park on May 16, facing down the Atlanta Braves in their yearly "crosstown" rivalry series, owing to the Braves' former presence in Boston along the Sox. The Red Sox debuted their new City Connect alternate jerseys, an off-green uniform with yellow numbers meant to be a nod to the colors of the Green Monster. In the Friday opener, the Red Sox faced their former ace pitcher Chris Sale. To counter, Boston dispatched their newest top arm in Garrett Crochet. Both Sale and Crochet had fine outings and pitched deep into the contest, each going seven innings and notching eight strikeouts apiece. However, Sale gave up one earned runs and just five hits, while Crochet's outing was a smidge bumpier, giving up two runs on seven hits. Both of Atlanta's two runs against Crochet came in the top of the 2nd inning, when Matt Olson and Sean Murphy tagged the Mississippi native for back-to-back solo home runs to begin the inning, giving the Braves a 2–0 advantage. Fortunately, Crochet worked out of the inning with three quick consecutive outs. For the majority of the innings, Sale and Crochet simply dueled – no runs were hung on the board from the bottom of the 2nd through the top of the 7th. It was only in the bottom 7th that Boston broke through, breaking the Sale shutout thanks to Rob Refsnyder's solo home run over the Green Monster, his third long ball of the season. With Sale and Crochet both now gone, the bullpens took over, and Sox reliever Greg Weissert kept the Braves off the board in the top 8th, and Daysbel Hernández kept the Sox scoreless in the bottom half of the inning. In the top of the 9th, the Red Sox bullpen ran into trouble when Liam Hendriks walked Marcell Ozuna and then allowed pinch-runner Luke Williams to second on a Murphy ground out. Though Hendriks had two outs, he walked Ozzie Albies and then got the hook in favor of Brennan Bernardino. Bernardino summarily walked Michael Harris II, which loaded the bases. Two subsequent consecutive walks by Bernardino to Stuart Fairchild and Nick Allen forced home two runs, breaking the game open for Atlanta, giving the Braves a 4–1 lead with only a half-inning left for Boston. Raisel Iglesias came on to close for the Braves and shut down the Red Sox, recovering from an Alex Bregman hit-by-pitch and a Trevor Story single, which brought home Bregman, to close out the game, a 4–2 Braves win and the Red Sox' fourth consecutive loss. Despite Boston's bullpen woes, Crochet remained the pitcher of record, and thus his record dropped to 4–3. Sale (2–3) was credited with the win and Iglesias picked up his eighth save.[154][155][156] Boston came back from a shaky start to the second game of the Braves series to earn a 7–6 victory in walk-off fashion, a much-needed win to avoid a five-game losing streak. Lucas Giolito started for Boston while Atlanta sent Grant Holmes to the mound; neither pitcher would factor into the win-loss column. Giolito struggled in a four-inning outing, giving up six runs, all of them earned, on eight hits, while striking out three Braves hitters; Holmes allowed just two runs on three hits in six innings while fanning five Red Sox. Atlanta struck early and with power, with Olson and Ozuna tagging Giolito for back-to-back home runs in the top first; Olson's long ball came with Austin Riley on base while Ozuna's was a solo blast, giving the Braves a 3–0 lead. In the top of the 3rd, Giolito gave up a third Braves home run, this one a 2-run shot by Drake Baldwin that gave Atlanta a 5–0 advantage. Jarren Duran got Boston on the scoreboard in the bottom of the 3rd with a 2–run jack to center field that brought home baserunner Carlos Narváez. Giolito continued to struggle in the 4th, however, giving up an RBI single to Riley that bounced into left field and scored Eli White. With a 6–2 deficit, Boston pulled Giolito and went to the bullpen beginning in the 5th, while Holmes remained through the 6th. The 5th and 6th innings were scoreless for both teams, but the Sox launched their comeback in the bottom 7th against Atlanta reliever Aaron Bummer. Rafael Devers made it a 6–3 game when he singled to left field, bringing home Ceddanne Rafaela. Alex Bregman then hit his 16th double of the season to score Devers. In the top of the 8th, Garrett Whitlock hurled a scoreless inning for Boston, while in the bottom half of the frame, down 6–4, the Red Sox assault continued when Abraham Toro and Narváez tagged Rafael Montero for back-to-back hits. With Narváez at first and Toro at third, Narváez was pinch-run for by David Hamilton, who promptly stole second base, setting the table perfectly for Duran. Duran's single to right field was sufficient to score both Toro and Hamilton, tying the contest for the first time since the top of the 1st. Closer Aroldis Chapman was called upon to pitch the top of the 9th. Atlanta pressed, with Ozuna drawing a walk from Chapman and Ozzie Albies singling to put two runners on with two out. However, Chapman held firm, striking out Harris II to keep the score knotted at 6–6. Headed into the bottom of the 9th, the Sox faced Pierce Johnson, who had relieved Montero late in the 8th. Devers promptly drilled a 2–1 pitch high to deep right field for his first career walk-off home run, sending Fenway into a frenzy and giving the Red Sox a much needed 7–6 victory. With the series now tied at a game apiece, the Sox were expected to call on Brayan Bello to pitch Sunday afternoon in the rubber game.[157][158][159] Sox fans would have hoped that the team would build upon their Saturday walk-off win by building a streak of victories, but the Boston nine went right back to the loss column in the Sunday finisher, as Atlanta pummeled Boston 10–4. Bello faced Spencer Schwellenbach, who took the mound for the Braves. Bello was quick to run into trouble, giving up a Drake Baldwin RBI double that scored ex-Sox Alex Verdugo and Ozzie Albies RBI ground out that scored Austin Riley, both in the top 1st. In the 3rd, Marcell Ozuna tagged Bello for an RBI single that brought home Matt Olson, giving Atlanta a 3–0 advantage. In the bottom half of the frame, the Red Sox roughed up Schwellenbach to take a brief lead: David Hamilton doubled, then advanced to third on a Ceddanne Rafaela single; Schwellenbach then walked Jarren Duran, juicing the bases and setting up a Rafael Devers grand slam home run to center field, putting Boston ahead 4–3. However, Devers' long ball would turn out to be the only run-scoring offense of the game for the Red Sox – Schwellenbach recovered and remained in the game, whereas the Braves' bats picked up where they left off, tying the score at 4–4 when Riley singled to deep left field to score Nick Allen. In the top of the 5th, the Braves knocked Bello out of the game with a 3-run frame that would put Atlanta up 7–4. Michael Harris II walked with the bases loaded, scoring Ozuna; Eli White singled up the middle to drive in Baldwin; and Albies scampered home on an Allen RBI sacrifice fly. In the sixth and seventh innings, reliever Sean Newcomb held Atlanta off the board in the sixth and seventh, but Atlanta's bullpen did the same for the remainder of the game. The Braves added insult to injury with a 3-run top 8th: Matt Olson hit an RBI sac fly and Ozuna crushed his eighth home run of the season, a 2-run blast, to center field. The final 10–4 margin saw Schwellenbach (3–3) take the win after pitching seven innings with three strikeouts, having given up four runs on six hits. Bello was saddled with the loss after pitching 4+1⁄3 innings and allowing seven runs, all earned, on ten hits, and fanning three Braves batters.[160][161][162] Red Sox lost the series 1–2 (13–20 runs) May 19–21, vs. New York Mets The Red Sox entered into a three-game series against their 1986 rival Mets and started out with a much-needed 3–1 victory in the Monday night opener. Hunter Dobbins toed the rubber for Boston, while New York sent Japanese sensation Kodai Senga to the hill. After Dobbins pitched a scoreless top 1st, the Sox got to Senga early, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first. Alex Bregman hit into an RBI ground out that scored Jarren Duran, and Rafael Devers scored on a bloop single to left from Trevor Story. Up 2–0, Duran laced a Senga pitch to deep right and hustled all the way around for an RBI triple that scored Carlos Narváez – and that was all the offense the Red Sox would need on this evening. The Mets responded in the top of the 3rd, with Tyrone Taylor singling to center field to bring home Francisco Álvarez, but Dobbins held firm and got out of the inning without further damage. The Sox loaded the bases in the 4th when Devers walked with two men on, but Bregman hit into an inning-ending ground out. With Dobbins out after 4+2⁄3 innings (one earned run on five hits, one walk and two strikeouts), the Boston bullpen took over and stitched together a much-needed scoreless effort, with Justin Wilson, Greg Weissert, Justin Slaten, and Aroldis Chapman combining to give up just three hits. Wilson was credited with the win when he came in for Dobbins and struck out Francisco Lindor with two Mets on base to end the top of the 5th. Meanwhile, Chapman picked up his seventh save of the season while Senga (4–3) was charged with the loss after hurling six innings and giving up three runs, all earned, on five hits and three walks; Senga also fanned five Sox hitters. Boston's pitching staff would look to keep New York off the scoreboard on Tuesday with Walker Buehler set to start.[163][164][165] The Red Sox pitching staff, and especially the bullpen, continued their strong performance in the middle game of the Mets series on Tuesday, hurling a shutout to secure a 2–0 Boston victory that sent the Sox back to .500 (25–25). Starter Walker Buehler returned from the injured list and was cruising in the third inning (no hits, no runs, four strikeouts in 2+1⁄3 when he was ejected from the game. Buehler had just hit Francisco Lindor with a pitch that he felt Lindor had leaned into, and Juan Soto had come to the plate and received an 0–1 pitch from Buehler that home plate Mike Estabrook called a ball. Buehler began arguing Estabrook's call and Lindor's behavior on the hit by pitch, and was immediately tossed out of the game by Estabrook. Manager Alex Cora came to defend Buehler and was also tossed. The Buehler and Cora ejections marked the first and second of the season, respectively, for the Red Sox. With Buehler out, the Sox were forced to turn to the bullpen early, and turned to Brennan Bernardino. Luckily for Boston, however, a coalition of Bernardino, Garrett Whitlock, Justin Wilson, Greg Weissert, Justin Slaten, and Aroldis Chapman was sterling for the remainder of the contest, giving up just four hits and stitching together three strikeouts across 5+2⁄3 innings. The win was credited to Whitlock and Chapman earned the save for the second consecutive day, his eighth on the year. Boston's run scoring was both efficient and meager, but the two runs the Sox produced proved to be plenty. Both of the Red Sox runs came in the bottom of the fifth inning, and both were solo long balls. Narvàez took Mets starter Clay Holmes deep to center field on a solo shot to center, and Devers slammed his own solo home run of the inning to almost the same exact spot as Narváez. The dingers were Narvàez's and Devers's fifth and tenth of the season, respectively, as Devers's hot streak continued. New York starter Holmes went six innings and allowed just two runs on four hits while fanning five Boston batters, but he was charged with the loss as the Mets offense was kept off the scoreboard entirely. With two wins in the books, the Sox would look to complete the three-game sweep in the series finale on Wednesday with Garrett Crochet set to pitch.[166][167][168] Boston went for the series sweep on Wednesday, with Garrett Crochet facing off against New York starter Tylor Megill. Crochet has a fine outing, hurling 5+1⁄3 innings and giving up just one earned run and five hits while striking out five Mets. Megill gave up one run on four hits in 4+2⁄3 innings of work while striking out ten Red Sox. In the end, though, this game would end up being decided by the bullpens. The Mets drew first blood when Brett Baty singled to center off Crochet in the top 2nd to bring in baserunner Mark Vientos. Crochet and Megill dueled each other until Megill ran into trouble in the bottom 5th. Nick Sogard singled to the shallow infield to start the inning for Boston, and was advanced to second by a Carlos Narváez infield single. Megill then hit Ceddanne Rafaela with a pitch to load the bases. Jarren Duran then hit a sacrifice fly to deep center field that allowed Sogard to jog home for the Sox' first run of the game, tying the score at 1–1. After walking Rafael Devers with two outs, Megill was relieved by Huascar Brazobán, who struck out Alex Bregman to prevent further damage and keep the score tied. After a scoreless 6th, Boston's bullpen, which had been sterling through the first two games of the series, ran into trouble with Liam Hendriks on the mound. Hendriks gave up consecutive singles to Luis Torrens, Tyrone Taylor, and Luisangel Acuña. Brennan Bernardino came in to relieve Hendriks, but Baty struck again with a 2-RBI single to deep left field that drove home both Torrens and Taylor. Francisco Lindor then hit into a force out that advanced Acuña to third, and, after a Lindor stolen base and a Starling Marte walk, Juan Soto smoked a Bernardino pitch to deep center field for an RBI sac fly that scored Acuña. The Red Sox then struck out in order in the bottom 7th, left Devers on base in the 8th, and the Mets added insult to injury with a Lindor solo shot over the Green Monster in the top 9th; Edwin Díaz set down the Sox in the bottom 9th, securing a 5–1 win for New York. Hendriks was saddled with the loss while Brazobán was the pitcher of record for the Mets. The loss set Boston back below the .500 mark, and the Red Sox would look to make significant strides with a four-game set against surprisingly struggling Baltimore, with Lucas Giolito set to start.[169][170][171] Red Sox won the series 2–1 (6–6 runs) May 22–25, vs. Baltimore Orioles The first game of this series, scheduled for Thursday, May 22, was postponed due to heavy rain and rescheduled for the afternoon of Friday, May 23, as part of a day-night doubleheader.[172] On May 23, the afternoon game was played, but the evening game was postponed and rescheduled for Saturday, May 24, as part of a day-night doubleheader.[173] Amidst two postponements, the Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles did fit in one game in fair weather on Friday afternoon to start the series. Brayan Bello faced off against Cade Povich. After two scoreless innings, the Orioles drew first blood with a two-run inning in the top of the 3rd. Jackson Holliday tagged Bello for an RBI single that scored Heston Kjerstad, and Adley Rutschman hit into an RBI ground out that scored Jorge Mateo. In the bottom 4th, the Red Sox got on the board with a Nick Sogard RBI ground out of his own, scoring Trevor Story. It would prove to be the first run of many for Boston. In the bottom of the 6th inning, with Povich out of the game, the Sox struck four a five-run frame against the Baltimore bullpen. Ceddanne Rafaela started it off with a bloop single that scored Sogard, and Jarren Duran singled to advance Rafaela to third base and bring home Kristian Campbell, giving Boston their first lead of the game at 3–2. Rafael Devers then crushed his eleventh home run of the season to center field, a 3-run jack that scored Duran and Rafaela. In the top of the 8th inning, Ramón Urías hit an RBI single to right field, making the score 6–3. However, Boston would pull away in a huge way in the bottom of the 8th with a 13-run inning. This otherworldly Sox frame saw the club bat around twice, with 18 Boston hitters coming to the plate and eight of those runs coming against Orioles third baseman Emmanuel Rivera, who was serving as a reliever for an overwhelmed Baltimore bullpen. For the sake of brevity, the circumstances of every run in the inning cannot be elucidated, but highlights included a grand slam from Devers, his second of the season and twelfth home run of the season (Devers finished with 8 RBIs and a 4-for-6 performance on the day), and Rob Refsnyder's fourth long ball of the year, a 3-run shot over the monster. Having finished his outing long before Boston's huge inning, Brayan Bello finished with two runs on six hits in four innings pitched and seven strikeouts; Cade Povich had a scoreline of one earned run on four hits in five innings with six punchouts. The winning pitcher for the Sox was Garrett Whitlock, who pitched two scoreless innings of relief, and the losing hurler for the Orioles was Seranthony Domínguez, who was on the mound when Boston first took the lead in the bottom 6th. The final score of 19–5 made for the most runs scored by the Sox this season, besting their 18-run effort against St. Louis on April 6. Now at 25–25, the Sox would look to continue their hot offense in Saturday’s doubleheader, with Hunter Dobbins scheduled to go for Boston in the first game.[174][175][176] Boston split a day-night doubleheader Saturday in a pair of one-run contests. It began with a 6–5 walk-off victory for the Sox in game one, in which Hunter Dobbins went to the mound to oppose Baltimore's Zach Eflin. Dobbins had a scoreline of four runs on five hits and seven strikeouts across four innings and a sliver of the 5th inning without recording an out; Eflin pitched five frames, giving up five runs (four earned) on five hits – neither starter would earn a decision. Ramón Urías drew first blood for the O's, tagging Dobbins for a double to deep center field that brought home Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman for a 2–0 advantage. In the bottom of the 1st, the Red Sox got to work, tying the game 2–2 on a pair of solo shots from Duran (his fourth homer of the season) and Wilyer Abreu (his twelfth). Dobbins and Eflin matched each other with scoreless innings in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th, but in the top of the 5th Dobbins started off the inning by allowing a Kjerstad double and a Rivera single, advancing Kjerstad to third. At this point, Dobbins got the hook and was relieved by Sean Newcomb, who promptly induced a Jackson Holliday RBI force out that allowed Kjerstad to scamper home to put the Orioles back on top. Newcomb then walked Rutschman, putting Holliday on second, and Henderson laced a hit to center field to score Holliday, putting the Sox in a 4–2 hole. Baltimore added a fifth run, and third in the inning, when Rutschman scored on a Newcomb wild pitch with Ryan O'Hearn at bat. Abraham Toro got one run back for Boston in the bottom half of the inning when he stroked an Eflin offering over the center field wall for Eflin's third surrendered homer of the contest. It was Toro's second long ball of the season. In the 6th, Carlos Narváez pulled the Red Sox within one when he hit into a force out that allowed Devers to score on a throwing error by Henderson. Later in the inning, Sogard added an RBI ground out of his own when his dribbler allowed Abreu to score. With the game now tied 5–5, Boston's and Baltimore's bullpens duked it out through the late innings, with Aroldis Chapman keeping the Orioles off the board in the top 9th and Félix Bautista hurling a one-two-three inning in the bottom 9th, sending the game to extras. In the top of the 10th, Greg Weissert handled the Orioles competently; with Rutschman placed on second as Baltimore's extra inning ghost runner, Weissert struck out Henderson, induced a Urías lineout, intentionally walked O'Hearn, and then fanned Jorge Mateo. In the bottom of the 10th, Gregory Soto came on to pitch for the Orioles. Ceddanne Rafaela was placed on second as the ghost runner. Duran popped out for the first out of the inning, but Devers continued his hot streak of clutch hitting with a line drive up the middle that brought Rafaela home for the winning run, completing a 6–5 Boston victory. Weissert got the win while Soto was charged with the loss.[177][178][179] In the evening game, Lucas Giolito toed the rubber for Boston against Baltimore's Tyler Rogers. Giolito had his best outing since rejoining the roster, giving up six Oriole hits but no runs while fanning six Oriole hitters, all in a seven-inning outing. Rogers, meanwhile, went 6+1⁄3 innings, also giving up no runs and only surrendering two hits while striking out five Red Sox. No runs were scored by either team until the top of the 8th, when O'Hearn singled to shallow right field to bring home Henderson for a 1–0 lead. In the top 9th, Luis Guerrero walked Rivera and Mateo, who then stole second base. Dylan Carlson's RBI double then scored Mateo, giving the Orioles a 2–0 lead. Abraham Toro slammed his second home run of the doubleheader for the Sox in the bottom 9th, pulling them to within one run, but reliever Seranthony Domínguez recovered to earn his first save of the year as he closed out the Sox for a 2–1 Oriole win. Andrew Kittredge earned the win for Baltimore while Brennan Bernardino was tagged with the loss. The Red Sox would look for a series win by taking three from four out of Baltimore with a victory on Sunday, with Walker Buehler set to pitch the finale.[180][181][182] In the Sunday afternoon finale, Buehler pitched opposite Baltimore starter Dean Kremer, and this time, both starters would prove to be the pitchers of record. Buehler and Kremer dueled through three scoreless innings for both teams, until the Orioles hung a number on the scoreboard first in the top of the 4th. Gunnar Henderson drew a walk, then advanced to third base on a Ryan O'Hearn single, and a Ramón Urías RBI sacrifice fly allowed Henderson to jog home for the first run of the game. Kremer continued his strong start with a scoreless bottom 4th and 5th, while the Orioles added on again in the top 5th, when Buehler gave up a Dylan Carlson long ball to right field, his first bomb of the season and a solo shot that put the Orioles up 2–0. In the top of the 6th, Buehler was relieved by Greg Weissert, who gave up an O'Hearn solo shot to center. Kremer was relieved with one out in the bottom 6th, and the Orioles' bullpen held up, keeping the Red Sox off the board again in the 7th and 8th, putting the O's within range of a shutout. Meanwhile, O'Hearn struck again in the 8th, this time with an RBI double that scored Henderson – and two Boston throwing errors on the same play allowed O'Hearn to take third and ultimately come home, putting Baltimore up 5–0. Abraham Toro prevented the shutout for Boston in the bottom 9th with an RBI single that drove in Marcelo Mayer. Mayer, who had made his MLB debut on Saturday, recorded his first two MLB hits and his first MLB run in this game; however, he also committed one of the two throwing errors on the O'Hearn play in the 8th. Buehler went five innings and was tagged for the loss despite twirling three strikeouts and only giving up two runs on four hits. Kramer earned the win by hurling 5+1⁄3 innings and, despite giving up seven Boston hits, set down four Sox batters and never gave up a run. The Baltimore victory gave them a split on the series, and gave the Red Sox two consecutive losses, a discouraging result after such a strong start to the four-game set. The Sox would look to improve with a trip to Milwaukee to face the Brewers, with Garrett Crochet set to start a Memorial Day matinee.[183][184][185] Red Sox split the series 2–2 (27–17 runs) May 26–28, at Milwaukee Brewers The Red Sox began a two-series interleague trip in Milwaukee with a Memorial Day matinee against the Brewers, and Garrett Crochet got the nod to take the mound against Chad Patrick. Crochet twirled a fine outing, giving up just two earned runs on five hits and striking out eleven Milwaukee hitters across 6+2⁄3 innings. However, Milwaukee tagged Crochet immediately in the bottom of the 1st, with leadoff hitter Jackson Chourio hitting a solo home run to center field to give the Brew Crew a 1–0 advantage. Crochet kept the Brewers off the board in innings two through four, and Patrick (4+2⁄3 innings, no runs, three hits, six strikeouts) did the same as Boston's offensive woes continued. Milwaukee struck again in the bottom of the 5th when Andruw Monasterio doubled to deep left field to score Joey Ortiz from second base. In the top 8th, down 2–0, the Red Sox at last got some offense going against the Brewers bullpen, as Kristian Campbell hit into an RBI force out that scored Rafael Devers from third. In the bottom 8th, however, Milwaukee restored its two-run lead when Eric Haase tagged reliever Garrett Whitlock for a bloop infield single with the bases loaded that enabled William Contreras to jog home from third. Brewers closer Trevor Megill faced Boston in the top of the 9th, and though Jarren Duran pulled the Red Sox within a run with an RBI single that brought home Trevor Story and advanced Ceddanne Rafaela to third base, Megill was able to intentionally walk Devers and then induce a Connor Wong fly out to end the game and secure the 3–2 win for Milwaukee. Boston lost its third straight game and dropped yet another decision by one run. Crochet, despite a strong performance, was charged with the loss to lower his record to 4–4. The victory was credited to Brewers reliever DL Hall. Veteran Sox outfielder Rob Refsnyder, who came in the game as a pinch hitter and drew two walks, was vocal after the loss, saying he was "tired of losing close games", saying it was "disappointing when we can't come through" for Crochet, and bluntly stating "we suck right now."[186] The Sox would look to get back in the win column in the middle game of the series with the Tuesday starter still to be determined.[187][188][189] In the Tuesday evening game, Boston's losing streak continued with a 5–1 loss to the Brewers that came in extra innings, putting another painful end on a game that was otherwise close for the majority of the contest. Richard Fitts made a spot start for the Red Sox and Aaron Civale toed the rubber for Milwaukee. This game was scoreless through five innings, with Fitts on a short leash, pitching the first three innings and surrendering two hits and striking out a pair; Civale went five frames and pitched to one batter in the 6th and allowed just one run on three hits with four strikeouts. Boston was first to draw blood in the top 6th: Rafaela doubled to left field off of Civale, and Civale was relieved by Aaron Ashby. Devers grounded out to advance Rafaela to third base, and then scored on an Ashby wild pitch, giving the Sox a 1–0 lead. Boston's bullpen kept Milwaukee off the scoreboard in the 6th, 7th, and 8th innings, and closer Aroldis Chapman came on looking to secure a 1–0 victory in the bottom 9th. However, Christian Yelich immediately doubled off of Chapman and then stole third base with Rhys Hoskins at the plate. Chapman then walked Hoskins. Monasterio came on to pinch-run for Hoskins, and Massachusetts native Sal Frelick drove in the game-tying run with a center field RBI single that scored Yelich. Entering extra innings, Trevor Story was placed on second base as Boston's ghost runner in the top 10th. Abraham Toro continued his hot hitting with an infield single to move Story to within 90 feet of home plate. However, Rafaela and Duran whiffed for back-to-back strikeouts against two separate Brewer relievers (Grant Anderson, then Rob Zastryzny), and Devers hit into an inning-ending fly-out. Liam Hendriks came on to pitch the bottom of the 10th, with Joey Ortiz the baserunner on second. Brice Turang hit a leadoff single to center to advance to third base, Jackson Chourio walked, and, after inducing a William Contreras fly-out, Yelich struck again by belting a grand slam walk-off home to right-center field that suddenly gave the Brewers a 5–1 victory. Hendriks was charged with the loss for Boston while Zastryzny was credited with the win. Now nursing a four-game losing streak and three games under .500 at 27–30, the Red Sox were in desperate need of a win, and would look to salvage the final game of the series on Wednesday afternoon, sending Brayan Bello to the mound.[190][191][192] In the Wednesday afternoon finale, Bello faced Freddy Peralta and twirled 4+2⁄3 innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on three hits with two strikeouts. Peralta countered with a five-inning outing and a scoreline of three earned runs on six hits with six strikeouts. For the second consecutive contest, however, neither starter would earn a decision. Boston scored first in the top 2nd when Rafaela's home run off of Peralta sailed over the center field fence for a solo shot and a 1–0 lead. Jake Bauers countered with his own solo dinger for the Brew Crew off of Bello in the bottom 3rd. Devers put the Red Sox ahead 3–1 in the top 4th with a 2-RBI single that scored both Duran and Connor Wong. The back-and-forth scoring continued in the bottom 5th and 6th, as Jackson Chouriou scored Bauers to pull within a run, and Milwaukee tied the contest and took the lead on the same hit in the following inning by way of a 2-RBI double from Caleb Durbin that scored both Frelick and Contreras. Wilyer Abreu tied the game again for Boston with his 13th home run of the season, a solo bomb to center off of Brewers reliever Nick Mears. After a scoreless 8th and 9th (Hunter Dobbins pitched the 8th for the Sox as part of a 3-inning relief appearance; Chapman pitched the 9th), the Sox and Brewers went to extra innings for the second straight game. Nick Sogard was Boston's ghost runner in the top 10th; Story singled to advance Sogard to third. David Hamilton then hit into a force out to allow Sogard to score, giving the Red Sox another one-run lead. In the bottom 10th, however, a crucial error would shift the game in Milwaukee's favor. Daz Cameron was the Brew Crew's ghost runner, and Frelick started the inning with a single that advanced Cameron to third. Isaac Collins then hit into a force out single, but Kristian Campbell was off-line on a throw to home plate, allowing Collins to advance to second, Frelick to third, and Cameron to score, tying the game for the Brewers. Justin Slaten then pitched to Durbin, who hit a sacrifice fly; Durbin's fly ball made for the second out on the inning, but was deep enough to score Frelick from third base, giving Milwaukee a second consecutive extra-inning win by a score of 6–5. The Red Sox' late-inning woes continued as Boston dropped its fifth straight game, falling to four games below .500, its worst mark of the year. The Sox left Milwaukee with their tails between their legs, hoping that a day off on Thursday would allow them to readjust prior to facing the Atlanta Braves again, this time in Atlanta in a three-game weekend series.[193][194][195] Red Sox lost the series 0–3 (8–14 runs) May 30–31, at Atlanta Braves The Red Sox began a three-game series in Atlanta, the road half of their six-game interleague rivalry series with the Braves. Boston sent Lucas Giolito to the mound to oppose Grant Holmes. The Braves drew first blood in the bottom 1st when Matt Olson singled to right field with two men on; a Wilyer Abreu throwing error allowed Olson to advance to second, Marcell Ozuna to third, and Ronald Acuña Jr. to home plate, giving Atlanta a 1–0 lead. The Red Sox took the lead in the top of the 4th when a slumping Trevor Story belted a pitch over the left-field wall for his much-needed seventh home run of the season, a dinger that also scored Abraham Toro. In the top of the 6th, Toro gave the Sox a 3–1 lead with an RBI double that brought home Carlos Narváez. Still up 3-1 entering the 9th inning, Boston was in need of insurance to pad a bullpen that had given up two straight walk-off losses, and Rafael Devers provided in the form of a line drive up the middle that scored both Ceddanne Rafaela and David Hamilton, giving Boston a 5–1 cushion. Aroldis Chapman came on to close and hurled a one-two-three inning that included two strikeouts, although the four-run lead the Sox had was sufficient that Chapman wasn't considered in a save situation. Giolito tossed 4+1⁄3 innings and gave up just the one Atlanta run on five hits, striking out three, though Garrett Whitlock was credited with the win in relief. Holmes, meanwhile, was saddled with the loss despite a nine-strikeout outing in which he gave up three Sox runs on six hits in 5+2⁄3 innings. Having mercifully broken their five-game losing streak, the Red Sox would look to build on their momentum with a second straight victory in the middle game in Saturday with Walker Buehler scheduled to start.[196][197][198] In the Saturday contest, Buehler got the start for Boston while Spencer Schwellenbach was dispatched to the mound for Atlanta; Schwellenbach had taken the loss for Atlanta in a 10–4 loss to the Red Sox back on May 18; he would fare significantly better this time, pitching 6+1⁄3 scoreless innings while giving up just five hits and fanning eleven Sox hitters. Buehler struck out six Braves but also gave up all of Atlanta's five runs on ten hits in 5+2⁄3 innings of work. Although Brennan Bernardino and Nick Burdi kept the Braves off the scoreboard in relief, Atlanta's bullpen was just as strong, following Schwellenbach with 2+2⁄3 frames of hitless ball while adding three more strikeouts, meaning that 14 Boston hitters went down on strikes on the day. Atlanta’s run scoring began with an Olson RBI double in the bottom 1st that scored Acuña. In the bottom 4th, the Braves tagged Buehler for four runs, as Austin Riley smoked a solo shot to center field for a 2–0 lead, Michael Harris II had an RBI single up the middle to bring home Ozzie Albies, and Acuña took Buehler deep for Atlanta's second home run of the inning, a two-run blast that came with Harris on base. The Red Sox, meanwhile, didn't earn a baserunner until the top of the 4th, when they mustered two men on base with two outs until Schwellenbach struck out Marcelo Mayer swinging. Toro continued his hit streak with a leadoff single in the 5th and was advanced to third base on a Rafaela hit, until a Jarren Duran groundout ended the frame. Schwellenbach improved to 4–4 while Buehler dropped to 4–3; the 5–0 defeat marked Boston's sixth in seven games, ending a miserable May for the Red Sox. The team would try to turn the page when opening June with the rubber game of the series on Sunday, with Garrett Crochet scheduled to start.[199][200][201] Series tied 1–1 (5–6 runs), continued into following month

June

June game summaries

June 1, at Atlanta Braves The Red Sox opened June desperately needing the change in the calendar after an 11–17 May. With burgeoning ace Garrett Crochet in the mound in the rubber game of the Sox' series in Atlanta, the Braves countered by dispatching Bryce Elder to the bump. Crochet outdueled Elder in yet another low-scoring game; the Mississippi native twirled seven full innings and gave up just one run on five hits while striking out twelve Atlanta hitters; Elder didn't perform poorly but was shaky early, surrendering three runs, all of them earned, in the first inning – all the runs the Sox would need – on a total of six hits across 5+1⁄3 innings, walking three and striking out four. The Red Sox' run-scoring came all in the top 1st – indeed, all on one hit – but Crochet's strong outing would make them hold up. Rafael Devers doubled to deep right center field, and Abraham Toro singled to left to advance Devers to third two at-bats later. Marcelo Mayer then drew a walk from Elder to advance Toro to second load the bases. All the baserunners came home on a 3-RBI double that Trevor Story stroked to deep center, instantly putting the Sox up 3–0. A Kristian Campbell groundout got Elder out of the jam. In the bottom half of the inning, Marcell Ozuna hit a solo home run to right field following two Crochet strikeouts. Boston's starter recovered right away, though, inducing a Matt Olson groundout to end the inning. Crochet struck out two more in the 2nd and got revenge on Ozuna by fanning him in the 3rd with two outs and two men on for Atlanta. Crochet hurled only one inning out of seven – the bottom 5th – without striking out a Braves batter. Greg Weissert came on for the Sox in the bottom 8th and pitched a one-two-three frame to build a bridge to closer Aroldis Chapman, who in the 9th retired three of four Braves to secure the 3–1 win and earn his ninth save of the year. Crochet improved to 5–4 while Elder dropped to 2–3. It still was a frustrating road trip for Boston – a 2–4 journey through two cities that included consecutive walkoff losses – but the Red Sox ended the Braves series on a positive note, looking to establish further momentum with a three-game home series against the Angels. Richard Fitts was scheduled to start in the Monday opener, looking for his first win of the season.[202][203][204] Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (8–7 runs) June 2–4, vs. Los Angeles Angels The first contest of a three-game home series at Fenway was won by the Angels, 7–6. Boston starter Richard Fitts allowed six runs (five earned) in the first inning, including three home runs, and took the loss. It was the first time any visiting team had ever hit three first-inning home runs at Fenway Park.[205] Reliever Hunter Dobbins pitched the next five innings and allowed just one run, giving Boston a chance to make the game competitive, mainly via a four-run bottom of the fourth inning. Entering the ninth with a one-run deficit, the Red Sox were unable to score against Los Angeles (and former Boston) closer Kenley Jansen. Jarren Duran had three hits and scored twice, while Ceddanne Rafaela homered. Defensively, Boston committed two errors.[206][207][208] The second game of the series went to extra innings, with the Angels winning, 4–3. Red Sox starter Brayan Bello had a no decision after allowing three runs on seven hits in six innings. The three runs he allowed all came in the third inning, putting Los Angeles ahead, 3–0. Boston tied the game after scoring once in the bottom of the third, and twice in the bottom of the sixth. After neither team could score in the final three innings of regulation, the Angels scored once in the top of the 10th off of Zack Kelly; he took the loss when the Red Sox were unable to score in the bottom of the frame. Rafaela again homered, but also committed one of Boston's three errors during the game.[209][210][211] Boston avoided being swept in the series by winning the closing game on Wednesday afternoon, 11–9. Starter Lucas Giolito left after 1+2⁄3 innings, having allowed seven runs on eight hits, but escaped with a no decision. Losing 7–5 through the first three innings, the Red Sox outscored the Angles in the final six innings, 6–2. Cooper Criswell, the seventh Boston pitcher of the game, recorded the final five outs and was credited with the win. Rafaela hit a two-run walk-off home run, his third consecutive game with a home run. The homer went around the Pesky Pole—measured at just 308 feet (94 m), it was the second-shortest major-league home run in the Statcast era (since 2015).[212][213][214] Red Sox lost the series, 1–2 (20–20 runs) June 6–8, at New York Yankees The Red Sox opened a three-game series at the belly of the beast – Yankee Stadium – against their hated rival New York Yankees in the two teams' first meeting of 2025. Boston sent Walker Buehler to the mound to oppose New York's Will Warren. The Yankees pounced on Buehler immediately, tagging the starter for a five-run bottom of the 1st, as Buehler gave up two home runs – a 3-run bomb to center by Jazz Chisholm Jr. that came with Aaron Judge and Trent Grisham on base, and a 2-run long ball over the infamous right-field "short porch", coming with Jasson Dominguez on base. Buehler was pulled after a bottom 2nd that went little better, as he gave up two New York runs to put the Yanks up 7–0. Chisholm struck again when his single with two men on brought home Judge and advanced Paul Goldschmidt to third, and, with the bases loaded, Goldschmidt was forced to jog home after Buehler hit Volpe with a pitch. The Red Sox would come back in this game, but the damage was done, as Buehler exited with an abysmal scoreline of seven runs (five earned) on seven hits and two walks across two innings. Zack Kelly relieved Buehler. In the top of the 5th, the Yankee bats having been quieted temporarily by the Sox pen, Boston got on the board when Marcelo Mayer turned on a pitch from Warren and sent it over the center-field wall for a lead-off solo shot – his first major league home run. The Yankees added an eighth run in the bottom 5th and a ninth in the bottom 7th (a Goldschmidt home run), but Boston scattered five runs across the top 6th and top 7th, efforts that included a Romy González 2-RBI single and a Rafael Devers solo home run, his 13th of the year. However, the Sox offense faltered in the 8th and 9th against the back end of New York's bullpen while trailing by three, and Warren was credited with the win (4 runs on 3 hits with six strikeouts in 5+1⁄3 innings), and Devin Williams earned his seventh save of the year for the Yankees. The Sox would look for better returns in the Saturday middle game with Garrett Crochet set to start.[215][216][217] In the Saturday evening tilt, nationally televised on FOX, Crochet took to the mound against the Yankees' Ryan Yarbrough, but this game would turn out to be a showcase of power bats rather than power arms. The Sox drew first blood with a Kristian Campbell RBI single in the top of the 2nd, but Crochet struggled in the bottom half of the frame, giving up a leadoff hit to Cody Bellinger and walking DJ LeMahieu prior to hanging a pitch to Yanks catcher Austin Wells that Wells let sail over the right field short porch, at a stroke putting New York up 3–1. Fortunately for the Red Sox, their offense not only recovered in the top 3rd but found a significant groove, keeping the line moving with a five-run inning that put Boston right back ahead, 6–3. The run-scoring started with Abraham Toro singling up the middle with the bases loaded, which allowed Rob Refsnyder to jog home and score to pull the Sox within a run. Trevor Story then laced a double to left field which allowed Toro to score the tying run, let Romy González score the go-ahead run, and enabled Carlos Narváez to hustle home ahead of the throw to score a third run, putting the Sox up 5–3. Boston added its sixth run of the evening two batters later when a Campbell base hit brought home Story. Crochet recovered in the bottom 3rd with a 1-2-3 inning, and in the top 4th González tagged Yarbrough for a 2-run shot to left field that put the Sox up by 5, 8–3. Yarbrough was pulled after four innings. The Yankees weren’t done, however, and a Wells RBI double and a Pablo Reyes RBI ground out in the bottom 4th pulled New York to within three runs with an 8–5 deficit. Crochet was pulled after six innings of work (a final scoreline of five runs on six hits, but with nine strikeouts), and LeMahieu's timely single with two men on in the bottom 8th scored two Yankee runners and cut Boston's lead to 8–7. Rather than risk their fortune in yet another one-run game, however, Boston's offense ignited again in the top of the 9th, as Story's bloop single to center with two men on scored Narváez and Mayer, refreshing Boston's lead to 10–7. Closer Aroldis Chapman then came on for the bottom 9th, and the former Yankee hurled a 1-2-3 frame to shut down his former team and earn his 10th save of 2025. With the victory, the series would again come down to a rubber game, this time a Sunday Night Baseball matchup between Hunter Dobbins and Carlos Rodón.[218][219][220] Dobbins, after a brief stint on bullpen duty, returned to the starting pitcher role in the rubber match against Rodón and the Yankees in what would prove to be another slugfest. Again, the Yankees took Boston deep early, as Aaron Judge smashed his 22nd long ball of the season – a 2-run homer – to center field to put New York ahead 2–0 after one inning. However, Dobbins recovered, and he and Rodón kept the game otherwise scoreless until the top of the 5th inning. In the 5th, the Red Sox finally put Yankee Stadium's short porch in right field to their advantage, as Campbell squeaked a Rodón offering over the wall with Ceddanne Rafaela on base, tying the game at 2–2. In the bottom 5th, however, DJ LeMahieu returned the favor with a solo homer, also to right, giving the Yankees a 3–2 lead. In the top 6th, Boston's bats broke the game open, beginning with a rather poetic home run – Carlos Narváez, who had spent nearly a decade in the Yankees organization before joining Boston prior to the 2025 campaign, smoked a pitch to left field for his first career home run at Yankee Stadium – against his former team. It was Narváez's 6th home run of the year and came with both Refsnyder and Devers on base, making for a 3-run jack that put Boston up 5–3. The Sox added two more runs on the inning when Jarren Duran's shallow infield single brought home baserunners Story and Toro. Up 7–3, the Red Sox went to the bullpen for the 6th inning after getting five solid frames from Dobbins, who finished with a scoreline of three earned runs on four hits; Rodón also had been pulled after five, having given up five runs on three hits and three walks. In the Yankees' bottom 6th, New York answered Boston's offense with a 2-run frame (a Jazz Chisholm Jr. RBI sac fly; a Trent Grisham bases-loaded walk forcing home a baserunner) to pull the score to 7–5. The 7th inning was scoreless, but Boston added two runs in the top 8th, both off solo long balls (Toro's 4th home run; Story's 8th). After a scoreless bottom 8th from the Boston pen, the Red Sox hitters could have eased off the gas – but didn't, as Devers added his own solo home run and Toro continued a productive evening with an RBI double to score Marcelo Mayer. Now up 11–5, Boston hoped to give Aroldis Chapman a night of rest, but the Yankees tagged reliever Robert Stock for two runs in 2⁄3 of an inning, forcing Boston to summon Chapman, who closed the door on an 11–7 victory to seal the series win for the Sox. Boston took two consecutive and two of three games from the Yankees in the Bronx, and the team would return to Fenway Park for a homestand looking to build on some much-needed momentum. Starters Dobbins and Rodón were credited with the win and loss, bringing their records to 3–1 and 8–4, respectively.[221][222][223] Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (27–23 runs) June 9–11, vs. Tampa Bay Rays Boston returned to Fenway Park to open a three-game series against division rival Tampa Bay, a highly anticipated contest due to both the MLB debut of Roman Anthony, who had crushed a 498-foot home run with AAA Worcester over the weekend, and also because of Boston's impressive back-to-back wins at Yankee Stadium against a stalwart New York team. However, Anthony would go for 0-for-4 in an extra-inning heartbreaker that the Red Sox would lose in 11 innings, 10–8. Brayan Bello faced Tampa Bay's Shane Baz – neither starter would earn a decision. Bello's outing was middling (4 runs, 3 earned on 7 hits and a walk, with 4 strikeouts in 6+1⁄3 innings), while Baz hurled 5+1⁄3 innings while giving up 3 runs on 3 hits with 3 walks and striking out 5 Red Sox. Bello and Baz kept the contest scoreless through the first three innings, before Jake Mangum drew first blood in the 4th with an RBI single for Tampa. In the top 5th, Brandon Lowe stroked an RBI single to left and Yandy Diaz hit an RBI single to right to advanced all the way to third base on an Anthony fielding error. In the bottom half of the inning, trailing 3–0, Connor Wong hit into an RBI ground out to put Boston on the board. In the 6th, the Rays went scoreless while Boston tied the game courtesy of a 2-RBI double from Romy González, scoring Abraham Toro and Rafael Devers. In the 7th, though, the Rays would retake the lead off Sox reliever Brennan Bernardino. Josh Lowe doubled to deep right center to bring home Taylor Walls, and then scored on a Bernardino wild pitch to Jonathan Aranda, who singled in Díaz. Boston now trailed 6–3, but drew within two runs in the bottom 7th courtesy of a Toro RBI ground out followed by a Story single that drove in Jarren Duran. The 8th passed with neither team scoring, and then the Rays expanded their lead in the top 9th, as Aranda hit a sac fly to put Tampa Bay up by two. In the bottom 9th, the Sox were up against the wall, but scratched out two runs to tie the game at 7–7 and force extra innings – Anthony hit into a ground out that permitted Devers to scramble home, and Kristian Campbell singled in the infield to score Toro. In the top 10th, with the aid of a designated runner on second base, Walls hit a sac fly to put Tampa up by one, but Aroldis Chapman, pitching in his third consecutive game, put out the fire. In the bottom 10th, with Ceddanne Rafaela having been placed on second base, the Sox scored a very lucky game-tying run when Rafaela hustled all the way from second base to home plate on an infield dribbler from Toro, which appeared to be the game-ending putout, until Aranda committed both a fielding and a throwing error enabling Toro to reach and Rafaela to score. Rafaela perhaps angered the baseball gods, however, when he lost track of the score and celebrated as if he had scored the winning run; Story popped out to end the inning and reliever Zack Kelly subsequently allowed two runs to score, including one on a bases-loaded walk to Junior Caminero, in the top of the 11th. In the bottom 11th, needing another two runs just to force a 12th frame, Rob Refsnyder, pinch-hitting for Anthony, drew a walk, but Campbell lined out, González was called out on strikes (a pitch that appeared low to manager Alex Cora, who was subsequently ejected for arguing the call), and Rafaela lined out, ensuring Tampa the victory and Boston yet another extra-inning loss (in their 12th extra-inning game of the season, they fell to 4–8 in such games). Ian Seymour got the win in relief in his own major league debut, while Kelly was saddled with the loss, falling to 1–3. Struggling Lucas Giolito would look to provide a quality start for the Sox in game two of the series on Tuesday.[224][225][226] The Red Sox sent Giolito to the bump on Tuesday to oppose Ryan Pepiot. Giolito had a fine outing, overcoming three walks to give up just one run on three hits while striking out four Rays hitters across six innings of work. For Tampa Bay, Pepiot hurled 5+2⁄3 innings, and, despite striking out nine Boston batters, gave up three runs, all earned, on five hits, with two walks. Boston's bullpen would be strong enough to prop up Giolito's start and shut down the Rays in the late innings. Roman Anthony's middling performance in his major league debut was put in the past with an impressive game two performance, coming with his family in the stands. Anthony gave Boston its first lead of the game and notched his first major league hit and RBIs when, in the bottom of the 1st, he placed a Pepiot pitch in deep left field for a 2-RBI double that brought home baserunners Carlos Narváez and Devers. Giolito and Pepiot traded scoreless frames in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th before Tampa Bay scratched out a run in the top 5th, courtesy of Díaz, who singled up the middle to score José Caballero. In the bottom of the 6th, the Sox added a pivotal insurance run when Story crushed a Pepiot offering over the Green Monster for a solo shot, giving Boston a 3–1 lead. After six innings pitched, Giolito was pulled in favor of reliever Garrett Whitlock, who struck out three Rays across two innings; in the top 9th, Boston entered a save situation, but with Chapman having pitched in three straight games, the Red Sox opted to rest Chapman in favor of Greg Weissert, who earned his first save of the season with a one-two-three inning. Giolito improved to 2–1 while Pepiot fell to 3–6. Having won three of their last four, Boston would look to take the deciding game of the series on Wednesday with Walker Buehler toeing the rubber.[227][228][229] Walker Buehler faced Rays starter Zack Littell in the rubber contest of this three-game series. Buehler twirled one of his finest outings of the season, giving up three runs on three hits but striking out seven Rays while lasting seven innings to give many members of Boston's bullpen some much-needed rest. The Sox, meanwhile, tagged Littell for four runs on eight hits across six frames. The Red Sox got the offense going in the bottom half of the 1st, when Duran blasted a pitch over the center field wall for a solo home run. In the top 2nd, Tampa Bay tied the score courtesy of a Josh Lowe force out that allowed Mangum to scurry home. But Boston answered back in the bottom 2nd, restoring their lead with another solo bomb, this one off the lumber of rookie Marcelo Mayer, who took Littell deep for his second career home run and first at Fenway. The 3rd inning was scoreless, but in the 4th Mayer pounced on Littell again for a second long ball to put the Sox up 3–1. Both home runs landed in the same area of the stands beyond right field. The home run derby-esque air of this contest continued with Yandy Díaz, who tied the game at 3–3 with a 2-run shot to left off of Buehler in the 5th. The BoSox went ahead for good, however, on a third Boston solo shot, this one to center field in the bottom 5th courtesy of Abraham Toro, who continued his hot streak. After pitching seven innings, Buehler left the mound and Justin Wilson worked the 8th with Weissert. Chapman was called upon in a save situation, and a rather perilous one given Boston's poor luck with one-run leads. However, the Sox closer fanned two of three batters he faced to rack up his twelfth save of 2025, giving Boston a much-needed second consecutive series win and victories in four of their last five games, important momentum heading into a weekend series where the Sox would redo battle with the Yankees, this team at Fenway. Garrett Crochet was scheduled to start the Friday opener after a Thursday off day.[230][231][232] Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (15–14 runs) June 13–15, vs. New York Yankees and Devers trade Fan favorite and franchise slugger Rafael Devers provided a home run in Sunday's victory against the Yankees, but the 2018 World Series champion was traded to the San Francisco Giants just hours after the game. The Red Sox entered a weekend series against at their bitter rival Yankees having taken two of three from New York the previous weekend in the Bronx. Winners of four of their last five, they were determined to keep the positive momentum going and rack up more victories against their enemies. Ace Garrett Crochet took the hill in the Friday night opener alongside the Yanks' Ryan Yarbrough. Yarbrough pitched 4+2⁄3 innings and gave up one run on four hits with three strikeouts, and it was a bullpen game from then on – albeit an effective one – for the Bronx Bombers. Yarbrough's lone earned run came in the bottom of the 2nd inning, when Ceddanne Rafaela singled up the middle to score Trevor Story from second base, giving Boston a 1–0 advantage they would hold for six innings. Crochet, meanwhile, had one of the best games of his career – and certainly the longest outing of his career – by twirling eight masterful scoreless frames while fanning seven Yankee hitters. Crochet also struck out superstar slugger Aaron Judge thrice, continuing his mastery over Judge from his Saturday outing in the previous weekend's series. Unfortunately, Judge would have something to say about Crochet's success – after manager Alex Cora elected to keep Crochet in the game in the pursuit of a complete game shutout, Crochet entered the top 9th and induced a ground ball out from Ben Rice before staring down Judge again. Crochet worked Judge to a 3–2 count before Judge drilled a Crochet offering to deep left center field for a solo home run, tying the score at 1–1 and silencing the Fenway faithful. Cora summarily pulled Crochet in favor of Aroldis Chapman, who cleaned up the inning, and the Red Sox then had a scoreless bottom 9th to force extras. Crochet's final scoreline was 8+1⁄3 innings, one earned run on four hits, seven strikeouts and one walk – still a sterling evening by any measure, especially against the Yankees offense. However, Crochet would not be able to earn a win in the contest, as the decisions now fell to the relievers as the game entered the 10th inning. In the top 10th, Garrett Whitlock appeared in relief and faced the Yanks with Anthony Volpe as their designated runner on second base. Volpe attempted to steal third but catcher Carlos Narváez caught Whitlock's pitch to Jasson Domínguez and then threw to third beautifully, his throw reaching Marcelo Mayer in time for the tag. Dominguez was subsequently called out on strikes, and Whitlock then induced a DJ LeMahieu groundout. In the bottom of the 10th, Narváez struck gold again, this time with his bat. As the first hitter of the frame, he lined a Tim Hill pitch deep to left center field, scoring ghost runner David Hamilton from second, giving Boston the 2–1 walk-off victory, rescuing Crochet's splendid performance (though Whitlock was credited with the win), and giving the Red Sox their first three-game winning streak since April 26–29. The Sox would look to extend the streak to four in the middle game on Saturday, with Hunter Dobbins set for a rematch with the Yankees' Carlos Rodón.[233][234][235] The nationally televised middle game of the series was a rematch between Dobbins and Rodón who had faced each other just six days prior in the Bronx. Dobbins had a fine outing, going six innings and giving up just two hits and one walk while striking out five Yankee hitters. Rodón went five innings and gave up all of Boston's runs (four, though one was unearned), while surrendering seven hits and walking two while fanning four. Boston jumped on Rodón early, taking a 1–0 lead in the top 1st when Narváez hit the ball to Volpe at shortstop, who committed a throwing error allowing Narváez to reach base and Rob Refsnyder to score. After two scoreless innings, the Sox added on when Story continued his hot hitting with an RBI double to center that brought home Narváez. In the 5th, Romy González doubled to right center, scoring Kristian Campbell. The Sox kept the offense going with a Marcelo Mayer RBI sacrifice fly in the bottom 6th that enabled Story to score, giving Boston a 4–0 advantage. However, once Dobbins and Rodón were both out of the game, fortunes seemed to be reversing in New York's favor: Yerry De Los Santos came in relief for the Yanks and pitched the remainder of the game while giving up no hits in three innings, whereas the Yankees bats found life against the Boston pen. In the bottom of the 7th, New York got to Sox reliever Luis Guerrero for two runs: a Jasson Domínguez RBI single which scored Paul Goldschmidt, and an Austin Wells RBI single that scored Jazz Chisholm Jr.. Still down two, the Yankees were shut down in the 8th, but resurfaced in the 9th when Alex Cora opted to pitch Greg Weissert in the closer role instead of Chapman. Weissert immediately surrendered a double to Goldschmidt and then allowed him to advance to third on a groundout. Volpe then scored Goldschmidt on another groundout, putting the score at 4–3, and though Boston had the Yankees down to their final out, Domínguez cracked a double to deep left field to put the tying run 180 feet from home plate. Fortunately, Weissert induced a pop fly to center fielder Rafaela, which mercifully marked the game's final out as the Red Sox pulled a pivotal victory out by the skin of their teeth, ensuring a series win and granting them their fourth consecutive triumph. The win also put the Sox back at .500 for the first time since May 24. The Red Sox would look to sweep the Yankees, and take five of six from them in their two June series, with a win on Sunday afternoon with Brayan Bello scheduled to face Max Fried.[236][237][238] Bello faced Fried on Sunday afternoon in what would turn out to be a very bittersweet contest for the Red Sox. Bello reminded fans who were enamored with Crochet that not so long ago he was the Sox' flashy new pitcher, and did so by way of a seven-inning outing in which he gave up just three hits while striking out eight Yankee hitters. The bullpen was also sterling, with Brennan Bernardino and Garrett Whitlock combining to pitch the remaining two innings, allowing just two hits; Whitlock recorded his first save of the season, as the Sox held New York scoreless to give up just four runs from New York all weekend. The Sox, too, had a light day an offense, but with the pitching in such good shape, they didn't require much. Story got things going with yet another 1st inning RBI for Boston, placing a Fried pitch in shallow left field to score Romy González. While Fried was efficient in innings two through four, he gave up a two-out jack to Rafael Devers in the bottom 5th, which bounced off the top of the Green Monster. This solo long ball gave Boston a 2–0 advantage and all the offense Boston would need, but little did anyone in the stands know that it would prove to be Devers' presumptive final home run in a Red Sox uniform. Bello struck out all three batters he faced in the 6th and ended his outing with a strikeout in the seventh, but as the bullpen cruised to victory, giving the Red Sox a three-game sweep of their mortal rivals, the good vibes would soon be upended. Boston's win put them at two games above .500 and put their June record at 9–4, sending their win streak to five games.[239][240][241] At 6:59 p.m., Jeff Passan sent out a post on X that announced Devers had been traded to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for pitchers Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison and two minor-leaguer players. The trade was later confirmed by the Red Sox.[242] While Devers had made headlines early in the season for uncharacteristically poor plate appearances and internal drama regarding what position he should regularly play, Devers had returned to his usual All-Star numbers in May and June, and the front office disagreements appeared to have subsided. Now, however, the Sox would head out to Seattle to begin a 9-game West Coast road trip (which ironically would include a three—game set against the Giants at Devers' new stomping grounds in San Francisco) dealing with two very different emotions: the high of having played perhaps their best weekend of baseball of the entire season, against their division rivals no less, and the low of having traded away a face-of-the-franchise dominant hitter, the last remaining player who was on the Sox' World Series-winning roster in 2018. With how they respond to the trade potentially deciding the direction of their season, the Sox would enter the post-Devers era on Monday, with Lucas Giolito set to start against the Mariners' Logan Gilbert. Red Sox won the series, 3–0 (8–4 runs) June 16–18, at Seattle Mariners One day after the stunning trade of Rafael Devers, it would have been sensible to expect the Red Sox to show some shakiness entering game one of the post-Devers era. However, the team – and especially its pitching staff – proved surprisingly competent, opening a three-game set against the Mariners in the Emerald City with a 2–0 win that pushed the Sox to two games over .500 (38–36) and stretched their win streak to a season-high six games. Lucas Giolito easily had his best outing to date in 2025, striking out ten Seattle hitters and allowing just three hits and one walk across six innings pitched. Seattle starter Logan Gilbert racked up ten strikeouts of his own while also surrendering just three hits, but the Red Sox made their offense count for two earned runs against Gilbert, all the offense they would require in another low-scoring victory. The Red Sox scoring began early and in a rather poetic fashion, as Boston took a 1–0 lead in the top 1st off of a solo home run to center field from highly anticipated rookie Roman Anthony. The blast was Anthony's first in the major leagues – in 2017, when Devers hit his first career long ball, it too came at T-Mobile Park in Seattle. In the top of the 3rd, Abraham Toro reached on an RBI infield single that drove in Jarren Duran to give Boston a 2–0 advantage. The Mariners loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom 3rd, but Giolito worked his way out of the jam by striking out Seattle sluggers J. P. Crawford, Julio Rodríguez, and Cal Raleigh in succession. In the 7th, the Sox turned to reliever Justin Wilson, who induced a pop fly out from Dominic Canzone and struck out Ben Williamson to end the inning after Seattle had had two men on base with one out. Greg Weissert worked the 8th for Boston, and again the Mariners got the tying run on base, this time with no outs, but Weissert induced a Rodríguez lineout, struck out Raleigh, and retired Jorge Polanco to again stifle a Seattle scoring threat. Closer Aroldis Chapman struck out all three batters he faced in the bottom 9th to shut the door on the Mariners and grab his 13th save of the season. All told, Giolito and the bullpen struck out a total of fifteen Seattle hitters. With the Sox having responded well in the wake of the Devers trade, the team would look to extend their win streak to seven on Tuesday in the middle game of the series; Walker Buehler was scheduled to take the mound for Boston against the Mariners' Bryan Woo.[243][244][245] The Red Sox' six-game winning streak had included several low-scoring victories, including back-to-back 2–0 wins Sunday and Monday, and it was clear that heavy pitching and light hitting wouldn’t be a sustainable strategy. This proved true in the middle game of the series as Buehler gave up eight runs and the Seattle pitching staff held Boston to just two hits in an 8–0 defeat, dashing any hopes of Boston extending their win streak to seven. Buehler lasted only 3+1⁄3 innings and finished with a blemished scoreline of eight runs (all earned) on eight hits, four walks and just two strikeouts. The Mariners got to Buehler in the bottom of the 2nd, when they stitched together a five-run inning. The M's began with a Rowdy Tellez single and a Tellez steal of second base followed by a fly out that preceded a Williamson walk. Cole Young then doubled deep to right field to drive in Tellez. Buehler then walked Crawford and Rodríguez in succession to load the bases, and Cal Raleigh turned on a Buehler offering and sent it into the right field seats for a grand slam, at a stroke putting Seattle up 5–0. Buehler induced a Jorge Polanco ground out to get out of the inning, and while he seemed to recover in the bottom of the 3rd, in the bottom 4th he got the hook as Seattle cobbled together three more runs across the first third of the frame. Specifically, Young led off the inning with a right field single, advanced to third on a Crawford single, and then both Crawford and Young scored on a Raleigh double to right. Zack Kelly came on in relief for the Sox at this point, but Raleigh promptly stole third and scored on a sac fly to Polanco – the eighth and final run of the night for the Mariners was also charged to Buehler. In the meantime, Bryan Woo was pitching a seven-inning gem for Seattle, allowing just one hit and fanning six Red Sox hitters while only walking two. Casey Legumina and closer Andrés Muñoz shut Boston down in the 8th and 9th innings, respectively. Marcelo Mayer began the 5th with a single to right, and Nate Eaton, just up from AAA Worcester, recorded a leadoff knock in the 9th, but those were the only hits the Sox would collect all night long, as Devers' absence (he gained his first hit and RBI as a Giant in San Francisco's win over Cleveland) loomed large on this evening. Buehler to a record of 5–5 while Woo improved to 6–4. The Sox, still just a half-game out of a playoff spot (the final berth being held by the Mariners) would look to win the series on Wednesday afternoon with a matchup of two aces – Boston's Garrett Crochet against Seattle's Luis Castillo.[246][247][248] In the Wednesday afternoon rubber game, Garrett Crochet continued his impressive June with another sterling outing to put the Sox in winning position. Crochet delivered six innings of work, and while he scattered six hits, he only gave up one run, he also twirled eight strikeouts and didn't surrender any walks. Luis Castillo also went six frames, striking out five, but gave up three earned runs on just three hits and two walks, as the Red Sox continued to make their offensive opportunities count. Marcelo Mayer put Boston on the scoreboard first, with a solo bomb in the top of the 2nd inning, his 4th home run of the season. The Mariners responded in kind in the bottom half of the inning when Randy Arozarena scored from third base on a Crochet wild pitch with Donovan Solano at bat, but that was all the offense Seattle would get on this day. Mayer factored into the Sox' next big play, a 2-run homer from Trevor Story in the top 4th. The dinger to center field was Story's 10th of the year and gave him 12 RBIs in his last eleven games. Roman Anthony walked and stole second base in the 6th inning, his first career swiped bag, and though it came to nothing, it was enough to see Castillo pulled at the end of the 6th. The Mariner bullpen held the Red Sox hitless in the final three innings, but the Boston bullpen was just as strong, surrendering only a walk through three pitchers across three innings. In a somewhat interesting wrinkle, manager Alex Cora opted to put in usual closer Aroldis Chapman in the 8th, having Greg Weissert pitch the 9th in the closer role, but the shakeup didn't alter the pitchers' effectiveness, and Weissert converted his third save of the season to give Boston a 3–1 victory and its seventh win in eight games. The team now would get a day off on Thursday before meeting up with recently departed Sox slugger Devers in San Francisco, as the Giants would host the Sox for a weekend series. Hunter Dobbins was scheduled to start on Friday at Oracle Park against San Francisco's Hayden Birdsong.[249][250][251] Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (5–9 runs) June 20–22, at San Francisco Giants The Red Sox found themselves in a bit of an awkward spot as they invaded Oracle Park for a three-game series – just five days removed from the team's stunning trade of Rafael Devers, they would already face their ex-teammate on his new home turf. Devers and the Giants would contend with Boston's Hunter Dobbins while San Francisco rolled out Hayden Birdsong; however, neither starter would earn a decision in a dramatic, back-and-forth contest. San Francisco seemed to have the Sox' number early, tagging Dobbins for a Wilmer Flores knock that scored Mike Yastrzemski in the bottom 1st (Flores reached on a David Hamilton fielding error) and for a Christian Koss RBI groundout and a Yastrzemski RBI single in the bottom 2nd, giving the Giants a 3–0 advantage through two innings. Hamilton redeemed his earlier error in the top 3rd with a 2-run home run to center that brought home Ceddanne Rafaela. In the top 4th, Boston tied the game at 3–3 when Rafaela singled in Wilyer Abreu. Koss struck again for the Giants in the bottom half of the frame, however, delivering another timely RBI ground out, this one scoring Willy Adames, to restore San Francisco to a 4–3 lead. Dobbins was pulled after four innings, having given up four earned runs and four hits while walking five and striking out only one Giant hitter. However, the Red Sox would soon drive Birdsong out of the game as well. In the top 5th, rookie Roman Anthony continued his hot streak with a single to center field that allowed Jarren Duran to cross the plate. Abraham Toro then reached on an error thanks to a Koss fielding error, enabling Anthony to scamper home. Now up 5–4, the Sox tapped Brennan Bernardino to take the hill in relief in the bottom 5th, and Heliot Ramos helped the Giants even the game yet again, scoring on a Wilmer Flores single in which he was ultimately tagged out at second base. In the top of the 6th, the Sox pulled ahead again, as Rafaela cracked his seventh home run of the season, a solo shot to center field that gave Boston a 6–5 lead. The Sox bullpen held the Giants scoreless in the bottom 6th and added an insurance run in the top 7th when Abreu singled home Toro. Trailing 7–5, San Francisco was held off the board in the 7th before creating perhaps the tensest moment of the game in the bottom 8th. Still down a pair and facing the Sox' Garrett Whitlock, the Giants got two men on base in between two outs before Weissert walked Dominic Smith, bringing Yastrzemski to bat. The grandson of Red Sox legend Carl, Mike Yastrzemski worked Weissert to a full count before striking out swinging, leaving the tying run on second base. After being set down quickly in the top 9th, the Sox rolled out Aroldis Chapman in the bottom 9th, and he earned his 14th save of the season by striking out two, including Devers, before inducing a pop out to end the contest. Devers went 0-for-5, leaving three men on base, in his first game against his former team. Meanwhile, Rafaela had one of the best outings of his career, going 3-for-4 with 3 hits, 2 RBIs, and 2 runs, while falling just a triple short of a cycle. Bernardino was credited both the win for the Sox, while Giants reliever Sean Hjelle was saddled with the loss. The Sox would look to win the series in the middle game on Saturday afternoon while pitting Brayan Bello against the Giants' Landen Roupp.[252][253][254] The Sox and Giants had a low-scoring affair in the middle game of the series on Saturday afternoon, with Bello facing Roupp. Roupp in particular handcuffed Boston's bats with no runs on just three hits and three walks along with seven strikeouts in a six-inning outing; Bello also went six, only allowing four hits but giving up three runs, albeit only one of them earned. San Francisco got the scoring started early when, with the count full, he turned on a Bello cutter and sent it exactly 400 feet into the center field stands for a 1–0 Giants lead, his 13th home run of the season. In the bottom 3rd, Andrew Knizner reached base on a fielding error by the Sox' Hamilton, his second error in as many days. Later in the inning, with Knizner still on base, Bello battled Rafael Devers, coming off an 0-for-5 performance in his first game against his former team on Friday night. Bello offered Devers a strike to start the at-bat, but his second pitch – a four-seam fastball – was smoked to the opposite field and over the left field fence for a 2-run jack, Devers' 16th home run of the year and first in the majors to not come in a Boston uniform. This home run would prove to be the difference maker in the final score. Once Roupp left the game after six frames, Boston was similarly puzzled by relievers Randy Rodríguez and Tyler Rogers, each of whom twirled scoreless and hitless innings in the 7th and 8th, respectively. Down 3–0 and facing a shutout at the hands of closer Camilo Doval, the Red Sox did manage to start a rally. Wilyer Abreu continued to perform well in his return from the injured list, scoring Anthony and advancing Story to third base on an RBI single to right field. Nate Eaton then pinch ran for Abreu and stole second base. With the Sox down to their final two outs, Marcelo Mayer put the ball in play for a ground out, but Knizner made a fielding error that allowed Story to scamper home, shaving the Sox deficit to 3–2, and also let Eaton reach third base, putting the game-tying run 90 feet away as Romy González came to the plate to pinch-hit for Connor Wong. Unfortunately for Boston, Doval induced an easy ground ball that ended the game and got Doval out of the jam, his twelfth save of 2025. Roupp got the win while Bello was saddled with the loss. With Boston's offense having been too little, too late in this one, they would enter yet another rubber game on Sunday afternoon with the pitching matchup slated to be Lucas Giolito against Giants veteran Robbie Ray.[255][256][257] Ray and Giolito stared each other down in the rubber game of the series with Boston looking to win their fifth consecutive series, but San Francisco would cruise to a 9–5 victory, giving the Sox their first losing streak since June 2–3. Giolito went six innings and allowed four runs (two earned) on four hits with five strikeouts, while Ray went five innings and struck out seven, but allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits. The Sox pounced on Ray early in the top 1st when Anthony walked, advanced to second on a Carlos Narváez single, and scored on a Giants error after left fielder Heliot Ramos lost the ball in the sun. However, Story then struck out to end the inning, stranding a pair of baserunners. Down 1–0, the Giants got on the board in the bottom 3rd when Ramos redeemed himself with a 2-RBI single that drove home Patrick Bailey and Casey Schmitt. In the bottom 5th, down 2–1 after three scoreless frames on offense, the Sox jumped on Ray again, courtesy of home runs from both Rob Refsnyder and Romy González – their fifth and second long balls of the year respectively. Refsnyder's blast was a 2-run jack, coming with Nate Eaton on base, and so the three-run inning vaulted the Sox back into the lead by two runs, 4–2. In the bottom of the 5th, however, things would start to go south for the Red Sox. Giolito gave up solo homers to both Bailey and Yastrzemski, almost immediately surrendering Boston's lead. Ceddanne Rafaela continued his hit streak with a solo bomb to left in the top 6th, temporarily restoring the Sox' edge with a 5–4 score, but Boston’s scoring was now done for the afternoon, and the Red Sox bullpen would not succeed in keeping San Francisco at bay. The Giants subsequently broke the game open in the bottom 7th in a four-run inning, highlights of which included a Tyler Fitzgerald RBI sac bunt, Schmitt scoring from third base when Yastrzemski reached on an error by González, and a 2-RBI Ramos double that scored Yastrzemski and ex-Sox Rafael Devers. In the bottom 8th, Willy Adames punctuated the victory with a crack to left field off Zack Kelly to give San Francisco another insurance run. Randy Rodríguez set the Sox down in the top 9th to shut the door on a 9–5 Giants win. Having gotten a fair day of hitting, but needing better relief pitching and more responsible fielding, Boston would head down to Orange County to finish their road trip with a three-game set against the Los Angeles Angels, who took two of three from the Sox at Fenway earlier in the month. Walker Buehler was slated to take the mound in Monday's game one against Angels hurler Jack Kochanowicz.[258][259][260] Red Sox lost the series, 1–2 (14–17 runs) When the Red Sox come to town, stadiums like Oracle Park in San Francisco (left) and Angel Stadium in Anaheim (right) tend to see large numbers of Boston fans thanks to California's large population of expatriate New Englanders. However, performances like the club's five-game losing streak aren't what these well-traveled Sox faithful come out to see. June 23–25, at Los Angeles Angels The Red Sox slid into Anaheim for the final series of their nine-game road trip and lost their third consecutive game by a score of 9–5. Although Boston kept the Angels off the scoreboard from innings 2 through 7, Los Angeles bookended their scoring with two big, back-breaking frames that showcased the Sox' pitching woes in both starting and relieving. Walker Buehler's inconsistency continued with a four-inning outing in which he surrendered five earned runs on just three hits, but allowed seven walks. Jack Kochanowicz, the Angels' starter, went five innings and allowed four runs on six hits, striking out just one Boston batter – but the Angels' bullpen would pick up the slack by striking out a combined nine Sox, especially in key offensive situations. The Red Sox appeared to get off to a good start with a three-run top of the 1st which included a Wilyer Abreu 2-RBI infield hit (Roman Anthony, Abraham Toro scored) and a Ceddanne Rafaela RBI single (Trevor Story scored). In the bottom of the 1st, though, the Angels flexed their offensive muscles with a 5-run frame, one that felt eerily reminiscent of a 6-run 1st inning that the Angels had cobbled together at Fenway on June 2. Zach Neto began the offense with a solo home run to center field, and Jo Adell hit an RBI single to score Mike Trout. With the bases loaded, Luis Rengifo tied the game by drawing one of Buehler's many walks, as Taylor Ward jogged home. Christian Moore then walked in Adell to give L.A. their first lead of the game, 4–3. Having batted around, Neto came to the dish with the bases still juiced and was hit by a pitch, giving the Angels a 5–3 lead as LaMonte Wade Jr. took home plate. In the top of the 4th, Connor Wong hit into an RBI sacrifice fly that gave Rafaela enough time to score, giving the Sox one of their runs back, and Boston tied the game at 5–5 in the top 6th when Trevor Story turned on a Ryan Zeferjahn pitch and smoked it over the left field fence for his 12th home run of the season. Perhaps the most consequential - and demoralizing – inning for the Red Sox, however, came in the 7th, when Boston shook up Angels reliever Brock Burke. Wong began the inning with a single to left, and David Hamilton reached on a bloop into the shallow infield to advance Wong to second. Jarren Duran then laid down a shrewdly placed sacrifice bunt to advance the runners, allowing the go-ahead run to hold court just 90 feet away with only one out. At this point, however, Burke got the hook and was relieved by Reid Detmers. Romy González pinch-hit for Toro and was intentionally walked, bringing rookie sensation Anthony to the plate. Detmers, however, was locked in, and he struck out both Anthony and Story swinging, making them look silly as they appeared to be aiming for the fences. Having left the bases loaded, a discouraged Sox club made it through the bottom 7th but couldn’t generate offense in the top 8th, and the Angels then broke the game completely open in the bottom 8th with a 4-run frame against Sox reliever Garrett Whitlock. The Angels took the lead on a Moore sac fly that scored Wade Jr.; with the bases loaded yet again for Los Angeles, Taylor Ward drew a walk to score Rengifo; and Travis d'Arnaud capped the inning with a 2-RBI single to left field that scored both Trout and Neto. The Sox appeared to potentially catch a break in the bottom 9th when talented closer (and ex-Sox) Kenley Jansen left the game in some discomfort after just four pitches. However, Hector Neris picked up the 2–2 count to Connor Wong and worked it into a ground out, and then struck out Hamilton and Duran swinging to mercifully end the game. Boston would try to flush this loss and get back in the win column Tuesday with ace Garrett Crochet set to face the Angels' Tyler Anderson.[261][262][263] Still reeling from their 9–5 loss in the opener, the Red Sox looked to rebound as Crochet took the mound in the middle game of the series determined to get the Sox a victory. Crochet did certainly put Boston on his back with a sterling outing, hurling seven innings of scoreless ball, surrendering just three hits and three walks while striking out ten Angel batters. Tyler Anderson had a nice performance as well, striking out five Red Sox and only giving up one run and two hits, but he was limited to 4+2⁄3 innings. On offense, the Sox bats continued to struggle providing Crochet with run support, though they did take a 1–0 lead in the top of the 3rd inning when Nate Eaton hit a sacrifice fly that scored Marcelo Mayer. However, Boston struck out 9 times and left a total of seven men on base. Once Crochet left the game after seven frames, Greg Weissert came on in the bottom of the 8th and gave up a one-out, solo home run from Christian Moore, who turned on an 0–1 Weissert fastball and launched it 387 feet into the left field seats. In the top 9th, the Red Sox appeared to get off to a good start against L.A. closer Kenley Jansen, as Romy González reached first on a Neto fielding error and then swiped second base. Carlos Narváez flied out, but Duran worked a walk to put runners on first and second with one out. Jansen got out of the jam, however, by inducing a Story pop out and a Rafaela fly out. Having missed a great chance to push a run across, it was up to Aroldis Chapman to force extra innings, which he did by striking out Ward, Logan O'Hoppe, and Scott Kingery. In the top of the 10th, Detmers took over on the mound for the Angels while Rafaela was placed on second base as the extra inning ghost runner. Mayer promptly smoked a Detmers pitch up the metal to give the Red Sox a 2–1 advantage, but Hamilton grounded into a double play, and after an Abreu single, Roman Anthony struck out looking to end the inning. Justin Wilson took over to pitch the bottom 10th in a crucial save situation, but the win was not to be on this night. With Kingery on second base as the ghost runner, Wilson struck out LaMonte Wade Jr. but then gave up a rocket of a line drive to Christian Moore, who had provided the Angels' lone run earlier in the game. The ball bounced off the wall and skipped past Rafaela in right, and it appeared as though Moore had not only scored Wade Jr. but had eked out a triple, sprinting all the way to third base. However, upon further review, it was determined the baseball actually bounced off the top of the right field wall over the yellow line before bouncing back onto the field, and the umpiring crew ruled it a home run, meaning Moore got to cross the plate as the winning run. Moore's second shot of the game marked a heartbreaking loss for Boston as their losing streak expanded to four games, and as their extra-inning record on the road dropped to 0–6. The Sox' number of one-run losses also crept up to an inexcusable nineteen on the year, behind only the Chicago White Sox. Boston would again have to trash this loss quickly and look to salvage the Angels series with a victory in the final game on Wednesday; Richard Fitts was set to start against the Angels' Yusei Kikuchi.[264][265][266] Fitts was given a short leash in the finale of the Red Sox' series in Anaheim, and though the Alabama product struck out six Angels batters, he also let in two runs on four hits and was pulled after just four innings. Kikuchi, meanwhile, was absolutely dealing for the Angels, as the Sox' offensive woes continued, their batters handcuffed by a total of twelve Kikuchi strikeouts. The Japanese import allowed only two runs on three hits. As with so many other games this season, Boston provided false hope by getting off to a good offensive start in the 1st inning – Duran reached on a Kingery fielding error, González singled to right field to advance Duran to third, and Story cashed in with a single to left off Kikuchi to push both runners across, handing the Sox an early 2–0 lead. Fitts kept the Angels scoreless through three innings, but in the fourth the starter gave up back-to-back long balls – both solo shots – that resulted in a tie game. Firstly, Adell – a real thorn in Boston's side this series (four hits and 3 RBI) – made contact with a Fitts slider and deposited it 433 feet into the left field seats. Not one batter later, Fitts faced Travis d'Arnaud, who rocketed the first pitch of the at-bat over the wall in right center. In the bottom 5th, with the score still tied, and Luis Guerrero on the bump for Boston, Adell and d'Arnaud struck again, this time by virtue of an Adell RBI single that scored Moore (he of two home runs in the Tuesday night game), and d'Arnaud single to left that allowed Trout to scamper home. In the bottom 6th, Trout closed the afternoon's scoring with an RBI single of his own, a blooper to right field on which Luis Rengifo jogged to the plate for a 5–2 Angels advantage. With Kikuchi pulled from the game, reliever Ryan Zeferjahn entered and pulled off a two-inning save, his second of the season, allowing only a Roman Anthony walk in the top 8th and putting down the Sox in order in the top 9th.[267][268][269] Heavily disappointed after a 5-game losing streak turned their West Coast road trip on its head after a promising start, the now 40–42 Red Sox (two games below .500) would get on a plane back to Massachusetts and avail themselves of a day of rest on Thursday before opening a three-game weekend set against the Toronto Blue Jays. The scheduled starters were Lucas Giolito for Boston and Chris Bassitt for the visitors from north of the border. The Friday night game would mark the first for the Red Sox at Fenway since the trade of Rafael Devers. Red Sox lost the series, 0–3 (9–17 runs) June 27–29, vs Toronto Blue Jays The Red Sox entered a weekend series with the Blue Jays reeling from a five-game losing streak to end their West Coast road swing, and they returned to Fenway Park without the services of Rafael Devers. Brayan Bello made the start for the Sox against the Toronto, with the Jays sending to the mound José Berríos, a pitcher with a history of inflicting damage on Boston bats. For Berríos, Friday night would turn out to be no different, as the Puerto Rican allowed just four hits and yielded no runs across seven innings of work while striking out eight Red Sox hitters. Bello lasted six innings but only struck out while allowing three runs on eight hits and a trio of walks. Marcelo Mayer was added to the bereavement list ahead of the game, and his absence left another hole in the batting order, one filled by AAA Worcester call-up Nick Sogard, who went 0-for-3. Then again, there would be little use pointing fingers – between Berríos's masterclass and two strong relief innings from the Toronto pen, this game would be a shutout from the Jays, with the Sox only producing six baserunners in total. Toronto began their scoring right away, with George Springer singling home Vladimir Guerrero Jr.. Bo Bichette singled up the middle in the 2nd to score Ernie Clement, and Clement also went up the middle in the 3rd to let Springer scamper home for a 3–0 deal. Bello kept the Jays off the scoresheet in innings 4 through 6, but in the top of the 7th, with the embattled Boston bullpen having taken the reins, the Jays expanded their lead to 5–0: Alejandro Kirk doubled to left with two men aboard to bring home Addison Barger while advancing Guerrero Jr. to third base. After intentionally walking Clement, reliever Brennan Bernardino promptly walked Andrés Giménez with the bases juiced, enabling Guerrero to take home. In the top of the 8th, Toronto summarily broke the game open with a 4-run frame: Springer singled with the bases loaded to force home Barger; Myles Straw hit the ball deep enough for a sacrifice fly to score Guerrero Jr.; and Giménez blasted a 2-RBI single up the middle as Springer and Kirk each scurried home. With Berríos out of the game, Nick Sandlin and Paxton Schultz worked the 8th and 9th, respectively, and shut down the Sox for good (Sandlin allowed only one walk and no hits; Schultz had a one-two-three 9th.[270][271][272] With a 9–0 loss in the books and their losing streak now stretched to a season-high six contests, the Red Sox would look to break out of their slump on Saturday afternoon with Lucas Giolito set to face the Blue Jays' Chris Bassitt. Having scored just 16 runs over the course of their six-game losing streak, the Red Sox entered a Saturday matchup with the Blue Jays aiming to get the bats cracking – and gave the Fenway faithful an early fireworks display in the process, pushing across in one game almost all the runs they had mustered in their previous six, earning a 15–1 win to mercifully reinhabit the win column. Giolito also had a fine performance, continuing to improve from his early struggles by hurling seven innings of one-run ball while allowing six hits and one walk and fanning five Toronto hitters. On the pitching side, there was another feel-good story for Boston: reliever Chris Murphy made his 2025 debut and pitched two scoreless innings in his first major league appearance since 2023; Murphy had missed the entire 2024 campaign rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. But it was the bats that made the money for the Sox on this day, starting with Wilyer Abreu, who got things going in the bottom 1st with a 3-run home run into the right field seats, bringing Carlos Narváez and Abraham Toro home with him. Abreu struck again against Blue Jays starter Chris Bassitt just an inning later, his RBI double to right scoring Roman Anthony. Trevor Story then bloop-singled to right to bring home Toro. In the top 3rd, Toronto squeaked across what would prove to be their only run – a Barger RBI double – but the Sox answered again in the bottom 3rd, loading the bases before Bassitt walked Toro to plate run number six. Narváez then scored Jarren Duran on a sacrifice fly, and Anthony scored from third on a Kirk fielding error. Up 9–0 with three runs in each of their first three turns at bat, the Sox settled down briefly in the 4th and 5th before delivering another three runs in the 6th, as Nick Sogard singled in Story and Ceddanne Rafaela crushed a pitch over the Monster for his 9th home run of the season, scoring himself and Sogard for a 12–1 Boston advantage. Romy González got in on the fun in the 7th with a 2-run jack of his own with Narváez on base, and Toro gave the Sox their final bow in the 8th with a sac fly to score Duran, completing the eventual 15–1 final score. Giolito improved to 4–1 on the season as Bassitt fell to 7–4.[273][274][275] With a chance to capitalize on this offensive explosion and take the series. Embattled Walker Buehler would get a chance at redemption on Sunday against the Jays' Eric Lauer.[276] Boston entered the rubber game of their weekend series looking to keep their bats hot and give struggling pitcher Walker Buehler some run support, and while the Sox scattered seven hits across 4+1⁄3 innings from the Blue Jays' Eric Lauer, tagging him for three earned runs, Buehler barely managed to tread water against Toronto, coughing up four earned runs on four hits and three walks through just four innings of work, striking out four. Buehler toiled from the beginning, giving up solo bombs on consecutive pitches: first, Addison Barger took a Buehler slider and deposited it 404 feet into the right field seats; one pitch later, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. jumped on a cutter and dumped it 387 feet away, also in right. Briefly, it appeared that the Red Sox had it in them to fight back and make this a contentious game, as in the bottom 2nd Carlos Narváez hit a solo shot of his own, taking Lauer deep with a 337-foot right field jack, and Ceddanne Rafaela doubled to deep left center to score Trevor Story, tying the game. The top of the 4th was where the game would turn in Toronto's favor, as Buehler found himself in a jam he couldn't recover from. Although the inning began encouragingly when Guerrero Jr.'s would-be line drive landed in the glove of Rafaela, who raced to make a beautifully athletic full-extension diving catch for the first out, and George Springer then grounded out for the second out, a Nathan Lukes infield single kept the frame alive. Buehler than walked Ernie Clement and allowed an Andrés Gímenez single to right field, advancing Clement all the way to third base and scoring Lukes. With Jonatan Clase at bat, Gímenez stole second base before putting Clase on first with another walk. With the bases loaded and nowhere to put Tyler Heineman, Buehler walked Heineman, forcing home the Jays' fourth run of the afternoon. Buehler mercifully prevented further damage by picking off Heineman at first base. The Jays weren't done with Boston's pitching, however, as Lukes tagged reliever Zack Kelly for an RBI single to make it a 5–2 contest. Romy González doubled home Eric Sogard in the bottom 5th to get the Red Sox back within a pair, but Toronto's bullpen only gave up a single hit and struck out five Sox batters, culminating in a Jeff Hoffman save when the Blue Jays closer struck out the side in the bottom 9th.[277][278][279] Still in need of more consistent visits to the win column to gain ground in the Wild Card race, the Sox would finish out June by starting a three-game series against the red-hot Cincinnati Reds – ace Garrett Crochet was scheduled to toe the rubber against Cincy's Chase Burns.[280] Red Sox lost the series, 1–2 (18–15 runs) June 30, vs Cincinnati Reds Wilyer Abreu sent Fenway into a frenzy on June 30, the opener of the Red Sox' series against the Cincinnati Reds, by hustling for an inside-the-park home run and then blasting a grand slam, only the sixth time in major league history that such endeavors had been achieved by the same player in the same game.[281][282] The Red Sox opened a three-game interleague series against the Cincinnati Reds and ex-Sox World Series-winning manager Terry Francona with ace Garrett Crochet on the mound pitching opposite the Reds' Chase Burns. Although Crochet didn't have his best performance, allowing four runs on seven hits in six innings pitched, Crochet was bailed out by Boston's offense, particularly that of Wilyer Abreu, who had a massive game at the dish. The Sox also started out fast with a 7-run inning in the bottom of the 1st. Abraham Toro set things in motion with an RBI single to left to score Jarren Duran, and Carlos Narváez continued to be one of the Red Sox' best offensive contributors with a double to deep center to score rookie Roman Anthony. Trevor Story then took a struggling Burns deep for his 12th home run of the season, a 3-run shot with Narváez and Toro aboard that gave Boston a 5–0 advantage. David Hamilton singled in Marcelo Mayer, and, with Burns already out of the game, having not lasted beyond one-third of one inning, Anthony singled to right to allow Ceddanne Rafaela to jog home. After the Cincinnati bullpen – deployed in the first – got out of the jam, Boston's bats quieted and Cincinnati eventually began to press. The Reds got a 3-run frame in the top 4th (an Austin Hays 2-RBI triple and a Spencer Steer RBI ground out) and pushed home a run in the top 5th (a Matt McLain RBI single) to narrow the game to a 7–4 score with plenty of racetrack left. However, in the bottom 5th, Wilyer Abreu's memorable night began. Abreu led off the inning by turning on a Joe La Sorsa fastball and launching it toward the center field gap in the deepest part of Fenway Park, near the 420' sign. Abreu briefly admired the ball, thinking it was out of the park, but the ball took an awkward bounce off the wall and Abreu was forced to run – and run he did. As the errant baseball eluded Cincinnati outfielders, Abreu not only reached third base but was waved home, sliding home before any Reds fielder could even manage a throw to home. With this incredible inside-the-park home run in the books, Boston now led 8–4. The inside-the-parker counted as Abreu's 16th home run of the season. In the top 6th, the Reds got the Abreu run back with a Hays solo home run, and Tyler Stephenson walked to put the potential tying run in the on-deck circle. Crochet got out of the jam, however, to finish his evening. In the bottom 6th, Boston nabbed an insurance run when Jarren Duran cracked a solo homer to right field, giving the Sox a 9–5 lead. In the bottom 8th, Abreu stepped to the plate with the bases loaded, Rafaela having doubled and Jarren Duran and Toro having walked. Not intent on leaving the bases juiced, Abreu demolished a Connor Phillips fastball 408 feet into the bleachers to blow the game open with his first career grand slam, in the process making history by becoming just the sixth player in major league history to hit an inside-the-park home run and a grand slam in the same game. Abreu also became the first Red Sox player to hit an inside-the-park home run and a conventional home run (of any kind) in 21 years (Pokey Reese in 2004). Cincinnati eked out one more run in the top 9th, but the Sox otherwise put this game away without incident, a 13–6 victory.[283][284][285] Led by Abreu's hot bat and the calendar turning to July, the Sox would look to make up ground in the wild card race with an opportunity to win the Reds series on Tuesday with Richard Fitts set to start, facing Cincinnati's Brady Singer. Series won 1–0, continued into following month

July

July game summaries

July 1–2, vs. Cincinnati Reds Opening the month of July looking to turn their season around after ending a mediocre June with an explosion of offensive power, the Red Sox continued their Cincinnati Reds series with the middle game scheduled for Tuesday, July 1. Spot starter Richard Fitts was scheduled to go up against Reds starter (and ex-Royals ace) Brady Singer. Fitts got off to a nice start in the top 1st, walking TJ Friedl but then retiring the next three batters he faced. The Red Sox again got their offense cracking in the bottom of the 1st, as Jarren Duran doubled and raced home to score when struggling rookie Roman Anthony got off the schneid with an RBI double of his own. An Abraham Toro fly out advanced Anthony to third base, and Anthony scored on a Carlos Narváez RBI single, giving Boston a 2–0 advantage. The 2nd inning was scoreless, but Cincinnati halved the lead in the top 2nd via a Matt McLain RBI ground out that enabled Will Benson to score.[286] Thunderstorms had been circling around Fenway Park since the game began, and after the third inning concluded, with the score 2–1 in favor of Boston, the game was officially suspended as the city settled in for an expected long night of rain. The Red Sox announced on social media that the game would resume in the top of the 4th inning at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon, with the series finale to follow in the evening.[287] The Red Sox and Reds awoke to an overcast and muggy, but most importantly dry, day on Wednesday and the suspended game proceeded as scheduled. Brayan Bello, originally scheduled to start the evening contest for Boston, was tapped to take over for Fitts.[288] Spencer Steer jumped on Bello early in the resumed game, his 2-run home run to left field with Gavin Lux aboard instantly turning a 2–1 Boston lead into a 3–2 Cincinnati advantage. Bello settled down in subsequent innings, however, and he turned a flawless outing, while not a "traditional" start, of five innings and just two earned runs on one hit (Steer's bomb) and one walk with three strikeouts. The fact that Bello "started" with the game already in the fourth meant that his five-inning performance would build a bridge straight to closer Aroldis Chapman – if the Sox could retake the lead. In the bottom of the 6th, the Sox tied the game at 3–3 when Narváez lifted a sacrifice fly ball deep enough to score baserunner Abraham Toro. In the bottom 8th, Boston added insurance with a 2-run inning, as Wilyer Abreu provided an RBI single to score Nate Eaton and Trevor Story blasted an RBI double to deep center field. While Story was tagged out at third base trying to stretch the double into a triple, he still managed to score Abreu, putting Boston up 5–3. And when Chapman came on, he was his usual unflappable self, setting down the Reds in order to secure the victory and earn his 15th save of the year.[289][290][291] In the evening, the Sox needed a new starting pitcher to take Bello's place after he twirled a masterclass in the resumption of the Tuesday game. Alex Cora opted to utilize the bullpen's rest in the afternoon to his advantage and cobbled together a bullpen game, with Brennan Bernardino getting the official "start", though he only hurled 1+2⁄3 innings. Cincinnati went with a conventional starting pitcher in Nick Martinez, who posted a line of four earned runs on nine hits and just two strikeouts across 6+2⁄3 innings. Boston got on the board in the bottom of the 2nd when Romy González hit a sacrifice fly deep enough to enable Ceddanne Rafaela to scamper home. Martinez then mostly handcuffed the Boston bats until the 6th, when Story singled to center field and then scored when Wilyer Abreu turned on a Martinez changeup and sent it 388 feet into the right field seats for a 2-run round-tripper, his team leading 17th home run. The long ball gave the Sox a 3–0 lead, but big things were in store for Cincinnati in the 7th. With Greg Weissert pitching, the Reds loaded the bases on a Tyler Stephenson single, a Rece Hinds fielder's choice which enabled Stephenson to advance to second base on a Toro fielding error, and a Gavin Lux walk. With nowhere to put young Reds star Christian Encarnacion-Strand, the first baseman came to the plate and absolutely hammered a Weissert fastball, depositing it over the Green Monster for a 439-foot grand slam. At once putting Cincinnati up 4–3, the bomb was Encarnacion-Strand's sixth of the year and his first career grand slam. The misery wasn’t over for Weissert, however, who remained in the game as TJ Friedl doubled and was brought home to score on an RBI single from Elly de la Cruz. Only then did Jordan Hicks relieve Weissert, ending the inning on his first batter faced. Down 5–3, Boston briefly came back to life in the bottom 7th with a González RBI double that scored Marcelo Mayer that put the Sox back within a run. But Hicks had struggles of his own in the top of the 8th, immediately loading the bases of his own accord and allowing Santiago Espinal to single to right field to force home Hinds, putting Cincy up 6–4. Friedl then hit into a force out at shortstop, but Friedl reached base and a Story fielding error enabled Lux and Encarnacion-Strand to both score, breaking the game open with an 8–4 score as boos rained down from the Fenway faithful. Hicks, one of the pitchers the Sox received from San Francisco as part of a package in the June 15 Rafael Devers trade, was tagged for three runs on three hits while recording just two outs; Cooper Criswell relieved Hicks and mercifully pitched the remainder of the game without incident, but the Red Sox similarly were shut down at the plate in the bottom 8th and bottom 9th, handing the Reds the victory to salvage the series.[292][293][294] Having started the day on a positive note, the Sox would enter their Thursday off day with a bad taste in their mouth as they prepared to travel to D.C. for a Fourth of July faceoff against the Washington Nationals. The holiday contest would, as is tradition on the Fourth in the nation’s capital, begin at 11 a.m., and would open up a weekend series against the Nats. Lucas Giolito was expected to get the start for Boston on Independence Day opposite Washington's Michael Soroka. Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (22–17 runs) July 4–6, at Washington Nationals On the Fourth of July, the Red Sox found themselves in the nation's capital facing the Nationals and a traditional 11 a.m. start for the holiday in D.C. On this day, however, it was the Nationals who would appear groggy and the Red Sox who would look wide awake and unshaken by the early start. Lucas Giolito went for the Sox against Michael Soroka, and had an excellent outing, giving up just one run on four hits through 7+2⁄3 innings and fanning seven Washington hitters. Soroka, meanwhile, would give up seven runs on nine hits in just four innings of work as the Red Sox' offense came alive, their bats providing (no pun intended) fireworks. After a scoreless 1st, Boston got on the board with a Ceddanne Rafaela RBI double and a Jarren Duran RBI single in the top of the 2nd, giving the Sox a 2–0 lead. Giolito and Soroka dueled each other through the 3rd and 4th innings, keeping the score the same, until Soroka began to melt in the midst of an offensive onslaught from the Red Sox in the top 5th. The inning began with Soroka allowing a double from rookie Roman Anthony and walking Abraham Toro. Carlos Narváez then singled to advance both runners and load the bases. Still having not recorded an out, Soroka then walked Wilyer Abreu, scoring Anthony. Trevor Story then singled to center field, advancing Abreu to third while allowing both Narváez and Toro to jog home, putting Boston up 5–0. Soroka was summarily relieved by Zach Brzykcy, who immediately gave up a single to Marcelo Mayer, keeping the line moving as Story advanced to second and Abreu scored for a 6–0 Boston advantage. Brzykcy then got the first two outs of the inning, but couldn't escape more damage from the Sox as Duran laced a 2-RBI double to deep center field, scoring both Mayer and Story and putting Boston up 8–0. Yet more run-scoring was in the works when Anthony, batting for the second time in the inning, drew a walk and Toro singled to drive in Duran, putting Boston up 9–0 and completing a 7-run frame for the Sox, breaking this game wide open. The Nationals avoided the shutout when Luis García Jr. scored CJ Abrams on a sacrifice fly, but the Sox piled on more in the 8th when Story hit a 2-run bomb to left with Abreu on base to take an 11–1 lead. Daylen Lile's RBI double in the bottom 9th put the final score at 11–2 in favor of the Red Sox, but the most that could be said for the Lile hit was that it helped Washington avoid losing by ten runs. Having started this weekend series off right with a big win on the holiday (the 9,999th in franchise history), the Red Sox would hope to bring these hot bats into Saturday with Walker Buehler, still looking to turn things around, scheduled to start against the Nationals' Mitchell Parker.[295][296][297] The Red Sox cruised into Saturday's middle game of the series looking to get back to the .500 mark while also notching the 10,000th win in the history of their vaunted franchise. Two critical things happened to help the Sox achieve this goal: Walker Buehler got off the schneid with a quality start, and the Sox gave him run support to work with. Buehler, he of the 6.45 ERA headed into this game, pitched five innings and scattered eight Washington hits, but only allowed three runs (two earned). The ex-Dodger only struck out two batters but also surrendered no walks. The Boston bats, meanwhile, got going in defense of Buehler early. In the top of the 1st, Romy González hit an RBI double to drive in baserunner Nate Eaton and Rob Refsnyder smoked a double of his own to deep left center to drive home González, giving Buehler a two-run lead before he even took the mound. In the top of the 3rd, the Boston bats really got going with another round of holiday weekend fireworks, producing a 7-run inning for the second consecutive game. The runs scored thusly: Anthony singled to right field to score González; Duran sent the ball deep to right center and eked out a triple, scoring Story and Refsnyder; pitcher Mitchell Parker committed a fielding error that allowed Abraham Toro to reach base and Duran to score; Ceddanne Rafaela turned on a Parker pitch and sent it over the left field fence for a 2-run home run, his tenth blast of the season; and González singled to right field, scoring Eaton. Now up 9–0, the Sox found themselves wholly in command of the game after just three turns at bat. The Nationals had a few attempts to rough up offense against the embattled Buehler (a García RBI groundout that scored Abrams in the bottom 3rd; a Keibert Ruiz RBI fielder's choice in the 4th that enabled Nathaniel Lowe to scamper home; a Josh Bell RBI single in the 6th that also scored Lowe), but Washington never seemed able to frustrate Buehler enough to hang a crooked number on the board, and Boston's bullpen strung together an enviable afternoon from relievers Greg Weissert, Brennan Bernardino, and Jorge Alcala as they combined to allow just one baserunner across four innings of work. With a 9–3 win and their 10,000th victory in their pockets, the Red Sox would look to break out the brooms and get over .500 with a win in the Sunday finale. Burgeoning ace Garrett Crochet was set to toe the rubber opposite a Washington starter set to make his major league debut, Japanese hurler Shinnosuke Ogasawara.[298][299][300] The series finale between Boston and Washington was a much closer affair than the first two contests. Although Boston jumped all over the rookie pitcher Ogasawara in his major league debut, the Nationals would seize opportunities to make the game close. The Red Sox got a fine outing from Crochet, though his performance was a little subpar compared to what Sox fans had come to expect from the ace – he only pitched five innings, on the low end when contrasted with most of his 2025 outings, and the Mississippi native was tagged for nine hits, though the Nats' propensity to leave runners on base meant that Crochet was only tagged for two runs, and he struck out seven hitters. Ogasawara's debut scoreline consisted of four earned runs on seven hits with two strikeouts in 2+2⁄3 innings. Ogasawara showed jitters early, allowing a 4-run top 1st from the Sox, who got an RBI single from Roman Anthony, an RBI double from Abraham Toro, and Trevor Story's 14th home run of the season - a slider that Story dumped 429 feet into the left field seats, continuing an 8-game hitting streak. In the bottom 3rd, Washington cut the Sox' lead in half by tagging Crochet for a Paul DeJong RBI double that scored Amed Rosario and a Brady House RBI single that scored DeJong, putting Boston's lead at 4–2. After a scoreless 4th, 5th, and 6th, the Sox picked up an insurance run when Ceddanne Rafaela jogged home on a Romy González sac fly. In the bottom half of the inning, however, Greg Weissert walked Luis García Jr. with the bases loaded to force home the Nationals' fourth run of the game. Their lead again cut to two, Boston got their insurance run back in the top 9th when Rafaela launched a solo home run to center field off of reliever Andrew Chafin. Jordan Hicks jogged out to the mound for Boston in the bottom 9th, working closer duty, and though he allowed a run with two outs (Daylen Lile singled to right field to score House from first), the ex-Giant recovered to retire CJ Abrams and seal a 6–4 Boston victory, securing a sweep of the Sox' trip to the nation's capital. Riding a three-game win streak and having won five of their last six contests, Boston would look to make the most of their last homestand before the All-Star Break, which would start with a three-game visit from baseball's worst team, the Colorado Rockies. Richard Fitts was slated to get the start for the Red Sox at Fenway on Monday opposite the Rockies' Austin Gomber.[301][302][303] Red Sox won the series, 3–0 (25–11 runs) July 7–9, vs. Colorado Rockies The Red Sox returned home looking to extend their hot streak, and the schedule gave them just the perfect opponent against which to do so: MLB's worst team in the Rockies. Boston put Richard Fitts on the mound against Colorado and faced the Rockies’ Austin Gomber. Fitts lasted 5+2⁄3 innings while giving up three runs (two earned) on just five hits and one walk while striking out six Colorado hitters. Gomber, meanwhile, gave up five runs (four earned) on seven hits and a walk while fanning five Red Sox in 4+2⁄3 innings of work. Colorado got on the board first, scoring in the top 2nd when Brenton Doyle's RBI single drove in Thairo Estrada. Down 1–0, the Sox responded quickly in the bottom 2nd with Wilyer Abreu doubling to score Trevor Story and Abraham Toro hustling to second for a double on a hit to shallow right that scored Carlos Narváez and Abreu. Now up 3–1, Fitts settled in and held the Rockies scoreless in the top 3rd, 4th, and 5th, while Gomber also kept Boston off the board in the 3rd and 4th. In the bottom of the 5th, rookie Roman Anthony came to the plate and tagged Gomber for his second career major league home run (and his first at Fenway), a 418-foot blast to center field that followed a Romy González triple, giving the Sox a 5–1 advantage. In the top 6th, Colorado pushed across two runs (a Michael Toglia RBI fielder's choice; a Ryan McMahon RBI single) to pull back within a pair. However, the Sox put the game away late against the Colorado bullpen with two-run frames in both the 7th (a Jarren Duran RBI single and a Narváez RBI single) and 8th (solo home runs from both Ceddanne Rafaela – who ripped a fastball 407 feet over the Green Monster – and González, who annihilated a curveball and dumped it 454 feet, beyond right center field). Boston got a two-hit outing from their bullpen to shut down Colorado in the late innings and secure a 9–3 victory, their fourth consecutive win and sixth in their last seven games, putting them two games above .500.[304][305][306] Looking to feast further on the Rockies (who with the defeat amassed their 70th loss in just 91 games), Boston would send Brayan Bello to the hill on Tuesday to start the middle game of the series opposite Colorado's Kyle Freeland. The offense started off slow on both sides, with no runs being scored between the two teams through the first five innings of play. However, in the bottom of the 6th, with Romy González on second and Roman Anthony on first, Trevor Story hit a blooper into right field to score González and move Anthony to third, and with a fielder's choice, Story himself would find himself on second in scoring position. Colorado would turn to their bullpen to try and exit the inning, but it wouldn't be successful, as Juan Mejía would give up a two RBI double to Cedanne Rafaela. The next batter, Jarren Duran, would drive in Rafaela to quickly give the Red Sox a 4–0 lead. Although the Rockies got out of the inning without further damage, Bello would continue to pitch excellently against the weak Colorado lineup, facing only three batters in the top of the 7th despite leading off the inning by hitting Mickey Moniak. In the bottom of the 7th, Boston would continue it's offensive surge. After Marcelo Mayer singled with one out, González would triple to score him. The next two batters, Anthony and Rob Refsnyder, would single and walk, respectively, and Story would cap it off with a three-run home run for his fourth RBI of the game. After another Rockies pitching change, Zach Agnos would strike out Rafaela before giving up a solo home run to Duran, who hammered the ball 456 feet for the longest home run at Fenway Park this season thus far. Bello would carry a no-hitter into the 8th inning, however, after a quick first out, Rockies outfielder Brenton Doyle would end the no-hit bid with a single. Bello would be unphased however, as he would retire the next two batters. After a 1-2-3 bottom of the 8th, Bello entered the 9th inning looking to earn his first ever complete game and shutout of his career. Also at 87 pitches, he was in contention for the Maddux. Unfortunately for Bello, the shutout and Maddux bid would end after letting up a leadoff single to Tyler Freeman and then a two-run home run to Hunter Goodman. Bello would then retire three of the next four batters, earning his first career complete game, amassing ten strikeouts while giving up five hits and only walking one. The 10–2 win gave the Red Sox their fifth consecutive victory, and their seventh in their past eight contests. Boston would look for the sweep against the hapless Rox on Wednesday night with Lucas Giolito looking to continue his recent success pitching opposite the Rockies' Antonio Senzatela.[307][308][309] The Red Sox looked to complete their second straight series sweep going into the series finale against the Rockies, and they were able to attempt to do so with Masataka Yoshida making his long-awaited return, starting at designated hitter for his season debut. The Red Sox seemed poised to continue their recent success in the first inning in the series finale, as Jarren Duran led off the Red Sox by reaching third base on a double and an error, and Roman Anthony would get hit by a pitch, leaving runners on the corners with no outs. Unfortunately, however, a Trevor Story strikeout and a Wilyer Abreu double play would quickly put an end to a promising inning. Giolito would continue his recent pitching success, going 1-2-3 in the second, and he was rewarded with run support when Carlos Narváez led off the bottom of the 2nd with his eighth home run of the season to put Boston up 1–0. The following at-bat, Yoshida earned his first hit of the season in his first at-bat, although the Red Sox would get three straight outs thereafter. After a quiet 3rd inning, the Rockies threatened to score when Tyler Freeman attempted to score from first on a Michael Toglia double, however, a relay shot down the opportunity at home plate, ending the inning. After a Narváez double in the bottom of the 4th, Yoshida earned his first RBI of the season on his second hit of the game, and the season. Giolito continued to hold the Rockies scoreless, and the Red Sox continued to add to their lead with a 2-run Abreu home run in the bottom of the 5th. In the bottom of the 6th, David Hamilton decided to join the hit party with an RBI single to make it 5–0. Giolito's night ended after the 6th, ending his line with six scoreless innings and six strikeouts. Newcomer Jorge Alcalá continued his success in a Red Sox uniform, putting down the Rockies in 1-2-3 fashion in the top of 7th. In the top of the 8th, Isaiah Campbell, who had been called up from the Worcester Red Sox the day prior, gave up a two-run home run to Kyle Farmer to break the shutout. However, he got out of the inning afterwards, and the Red Sox bats did their thing again in the bottom of the 8th, with Romy González hitting a two-run home run and Duran hitting a three-run home run to open the game up to 10–2. González's hit made it so that every starter in the Red Sox lineup earned a hit on the night. Campbell stayed out for the ninth and finished out the game, giving Boston their second straight series sweep, their sixth consecutive win, and eighth in the past nine games. Boston would welcome the Tampa Bay Rays to Fenway the following night, hoping to make gains on them in the AL East race.[310][311][312] Red Sox won the series, 3–0 (29–7 runs) July 10–13, vs. Tampa Bay Rays After three consecutive series against National League opponents, Tampa Bay came to Fenway at an opportune time for the Red Sox – Boston would look to extend their win streak to seven or more while also swiping valuable games from a division rival. The Sox sent Walker Buehler to the hill to start opposite the Rays’ Taj Bradley. However, neither starter would earn a decision in this contest. Buehler kept the Rays off the board in the 1st and 2nd innings, and Boston broke a scoreless tie in the bottom 3rd when Ceddanne Rafaela singled to center and then ran all the way home on a Roman Anthony RBI single to give the Sox a 1–0 advantage. The Rays would respond right away, however, shaking up Buehler in the top 4th. Josh Lowe drew a walk from Buehler and Ha-Seong Kim worked a 3–2 count into a 2-run home run, turning on a Buehler slider and depositing it 389 feet over the Green Monster to give Tampa Bay the lead with one swing of the bat. After a scoreless 5th, the Rays added to their lead in the top 6th when Junior Caminero swatted at a first-pitch cut fastball from Buehler and raked it 384 feet, also into the Monster seats. After six innings pitched, Buehler was pulled, his final scoreline coming out to three earned runs on five hits with three walks and just a pair of strikeouts. While it was an improvement over some of Buehler's outings earlier in the year, it still wasn't enough to put him in line for a win with Boston trailing 3–1. Fortunately, after being set down again in the bottom 6th, the Red Sox' bats came alive on the other side of the seventh-inning stretch with a 3-run frame. The inning began with Rays reliever Bryan Baker having freshly replaced Bradley. Baker immediately walked Trevor Story, who then proceeded to steal second base, and Romy González. With two men on, Marcelo Mayer doubled up the middle to advance González from first to third and score Story, pulling the Sox within a run. Still with no outs, Ceddanne Rafaela provided the hit of the night for the Sox, his single to center field enough to enable González to scamper home to tie the game and Mayer to score from second to provide the go-ahead run, giving Boston the lead back at 4–3. Baker then induced three consecutive outs to end the inning, but the damage had been done. In the top of the 8th, Garrett Whitlock hurled a critical 1-2-3 inning, and though the bottom 8th yielded nothing in the way of insurance for Boston, Aroldis Chapman came on in the 9th and struck out the last two batters he faced to earn his 16th save of the season. While Boston had engineered this winning streak on the strength of heavy hitting and high-scoring games against scuffling nonleague opponents, the Sox could now say they had earned their seventh consecutive victory by shutting down a fellow AL East rival in a one-run game. The Sox would send Hunter Dobbins to the mound on Friday night to face the Rays' Drew Rasmussen, hoping to make a figure eight out of this win streak. The series-opening win against Tampa Bay also put the Sox at a season-best five games above the .500 mark.[313][314][315] On Friday, Boston entered the second game of their series against the Rays by sending Hunter Dobbins to the mound opposite Tampa's Drew Rasmussen. Rasmussen only pitched two innings while Dobbins left after just 1+2⁄3 frames nursing an injury suffered while covering first base. This game would come down to the bullpens. Junior Caminero got on the board first, tagging Dobbins for an RBI single to left that scored Yandy Diaz, giving the Rays a 1–0 lead after a half-inning. In the bottom 2nd, Ceddanne Rafaela answered with an RBI single that scored Wilyer Abreu while advancing Abraham Toro to second base. In the top 3rd, however, the Rays got their lead back by loading the bases and then taking advantage of a Toro fielding error that allowed José Caballero to reach, forcing home Jonathan Aranda. Jake Mangum and Taylor Walls then scored on back-to-back passed balls from Sox reliever Brennan Bernardino, and just like that, the Rays cradled a 4–1 lead. The Sox responded, however, with a big inning in the bottom of the 4th, Marcelo Mayer's RBI double scored Abreu and Toro's RBI ground out on a fielder's choice enabled Trevor Story to scamper home, pulling Boston within a run. Headed into the 5th, both teams' bullpens settled in for a battle of wills: four Sox relievers combined to allow just two Rays hits in the final four innings of work. In the bottom of the 9th, still trailing by one run, Boston came to bat with Tampa needing three outs from Pete Fairbanks to snap Boston's seven-game win streak. Fairbanks induced a quick ground ball from Mayer, but then the Sox opted to play rookie sensation Roman Anthony as a pinch-hitter for Toro. Anthony was patient and drew a walk, suddenly putting the winning run at home plate in Rafaela. After taking a Fairbanks ball and fouling off two straight fastballs to fall into a 1-2 count, Rafaela said night-night to Fairbanks by annihilating an 86-mph slider and sending it in a high, arcing curve over the Green Monster for a come-from-behind walk-off 2-run home run that sent Fenway Park into absolute bedlam. The 409-foot explosion to left sealed a stunning 5–4 win and extended the Red Sox' win streak to eight straight games, and secured at least a split for Boston in a critical series against a division opponent. Friday night's game also marked a significant milestone in terms of the return of Alex Bregman to the lineup; although he failed to show up on the scoresheet, he went 1-for-4, striking out once. Now, owners of their franchise's first eight-game win streak since a stretch in April and May 2023, Boston would look to extend their streak to nine on Saturday in game three, with Garrett Crochet schedule to start alongside Tampa Bay's Shane Baz.[316][317][318] After Friday night's electrifying walk-off victory, the Red Sox floated into Saturday's game looking to power their way to a nine-game win streak behind their best starter in Crochet. However, the Mississippi native would need a masterful outing as Tampa Bay's Shane Baz wasn't about to roll over, either, shutting down the Sox for just one run on five hits in 6+1⁄3 innings. Crochet and Baz dueled each other for three and a half innings until the Sox pushed a run across in the bottom 4th, when Roman Anthony doubled off of Baz and was able to score on an RBI single from Carlos Narváez. However, unlike some other recent games in which the Sox piled on once drawing blood, Boston was shut down by Baz and reliever Edwin Uceta shut down Boston for the remainder of the contest, leaving the 1–0 Sox advantage to be protected by the pitching staff. Fortunately for the Boston bullpen, the term "pitching staff" on this day would consist entirely of Crochet, who was in the midst of twirling a phenomenal game. So dominant was Crochet that Alex Cora opted not to turn to closer Aroldis Chapman, leaving Crochet in for the top of the 9th. While all three Rays batters made contact in the 9th, Boston's defense bailed out Crochet with two ground outs and a line out, enabling Crochet to retire the side in order and lock up a 1–0 Sox victory and his first career complete game shutout. Crochet's final line: zero runs and just three hits and zero walks while striking out nine Tampa Bay hitters. Now riding a nine-game winning streak, their first since April 2021, Boston would look to sweep the Rays series and push their streak to double digits with a win in the series and first-half finale on Sunday afternoon with the Rays' Ryan Pepiot set to face a resurgent Brayan Bello.[319][320][321] Bello came out dealing on Sunday afternoon, looking to guide the Sox to a four-game sweep of the Rays. Bello twirled another magnificent outing, allowing just one run on six hits and no walks while striking out five Tampa Bay hitters in 6+1⁄3 innings of action. Pepiot, meanwhile, was strong early, but would fold in the sixth before being removed with a scoreline of four earned runs on seven hits and a walk, while striking out three Red Sox batters. Boston got on the board first courtesy of a Junior Caminero fielding error that enabled Marcelo Mayer to score from third base. The Rays answered in the top 4th with Josh Lowe's sacrifice fly that scored Jake Mangum, but this was all the run-scoring offense Tampa would be good for on this day. Boston broke the tie in the bottom of the 6th when Trevor Story laced an RBI single to left field that scored Roman Anthony. Ceddanne Rafaela then continued his hot streak with another electrifying hit, this one a bomb that ricocheted off the top of the Green Monster, enough to be declared a home run, a 2-run jack that also brought home Story and gave the Red Sox a 4–1 lead. Justin Wilson and Garrett Whitlock combined to allows just two baserunners, building a solid bridge from Bello to All-Star Game-bound closer Aroldis Chapman, who struck out all three batters he faced to lock up his 17th save of the season and send the Sox into the All-Star Break cradling a 10-game winning streak, their first since July 2018. Boston would look to extend their streak further within double-digit territory when beginning a series against the Chicago Cubs on Friday.[322][323][324] Red Sox won the series, 4–0 (14–8 runs) July 14–17: All-Star Break in Atlanta, Georgia Aroldis Chapman, Garrett Crochet, and Alex Bregman were all named to the American League All-Star Team for the Boston Red Sox. However, only Chapman would wind up rostered after Crochet and Bregman both opted out of the festivities: Crochet because he had pitched a full nine innings the preceding Saturday, and participating in the All-Star Game on Tuesday would have meant pitching on short rest; and Bregman because he had so recently returned from a long injury absence. Despite not suiting up for the game, Crochet and Bregman traveled to Atlanta along with Chapman. Chapman's role in the game would prove to be critical – having erased a 6–0 deficit to tie the game 6–6, the American League All-Stars turned to the Red Sox' Chapman to pitch the bottom of the 9th, and he shone by setting the National League down in order with a 1-2-3 inning, which included striking out the San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis, Jr. For the first time ever, a tied All-Star Game after nine innings was neither declared over (as in 2002) nor sent to extra innings. Instead, a home run derby-style swing-off was declared the tiebreaker, with three hitters from each league participating. The National League won the swing-off 4–3 to take the game as a whole; the Philadelphia Phillies' Kyle Schwarber, a former Red Sox slugger, hit three home runs in the swing-off to lead the NL to victory.[325][326][327] July 18–20, at Chicago Cubs The Red Sox came out of the All-Star Break looking to continue their ten-game winning streak, but it wouldn't be easy, especially with a gauntlet of interleague series against National League blue-bloods – the NL Central-leading Cubs, NL East-leading Phillies, and NL West-leading Dodgers – on the schedule. Boston began this crucial stretch of their schedule by arriving at historic Wrigley Field for a Friday matinee to open a weekend series. Lucas Giolito got the nod on the hill for the Red Sox opposite Chicago's Colin Rea. Rea, though only lasting five innings, was solid, holding Boston to just one run on four hits and four walks while striking out five. Giolito, meanwhile, went 5+1⁄3 innings and gave up four earned runs on just five hits while allowing two walks and striking out six. Troubles began for Giolito as soon as he took the mound in the bottom 1st, as the righthander looked like he had yet to wake up and smell the second-half coffee, at pains to properly locate his pitches. Giolito walked Michael Busch and Kyle Tucker, then promptly gave up a Seiya Suzuki 3-run bomb to left center field. Giolito then gave up a double to Pete Crow-Armstrong after Alex Bregman lost a pop-up in the harsh midday sun. Fortunately, Giolito retired the next three batters in order, but trailing 3–0, the damage was already done. The Sox got a run back in the top of the 3rd when Jarren Duran drew a walk, advanced from first to third on a Bregman single, and then scored on a Roman Anthony. Unfortunately, Carlos Narváez then struck out to end the inning, stranding runners on second and third. The Red Sox would further frustrate their fans by letting another precious opportunity slip through their fingers in the top 5th. Abraham Toro began the inning by lacing a single to right field. Duran then walked to push Toro to second base. Alex Bregman then hit into what should have been a routine line out, but Toro made a break for third base and couldn't return to second nearly fast enough after the first out, being retired for a double play. The gaffe turned out what could have been two runners on with one out into a situation where only one runner was on with two outs, and Narváez promptly hit into a force out to end the inning, leaving the Sox scoreless in a frame where they might otherwise have been able to tie the game. In the bottom of the 6th, Giolito gave up an Ian Happ double to deep right field before being replaced by reliever Greg Weissert, who subsequently walked Dansby Swanson and gave up a Nico Hoerner double to score Happ, giving the Cubs a key insurance run. Up 4–1, the Cubs cobbled together a solid collection of relievers over the final four innings of the game, as Boston only gained three more hits after Rea left after five. Closer Daniel Palencia come on to protect Chicago's 3-run lead in the top 9th, and despite giving up a leadoff single to Marcelo Mayer, Palencia induced a ground ball double play and then a Toro fly out to end the game, securing a 4–1 Cubs win and shutting the door on the Sox' 10-game winning streak. The loss was only the second of the month for Boston, and their first since July 2. Off to a slow start after the four-day All-Star break, the Red Sox would look to even at a game apiece in a nationally televised Saturday evening contest at The Friendly Confines. Brayan Bello was scheduled to face Chicago's Shota Imanaga.[328][329][330] On the first pitch of the second game, Rob Refsnyder doubled against Shota Imanaga, providing what seemed to be a promising start for the Red Sox. However, Imanaga would retire the next three batters, and the Red Sox would strand Refsnyder at third base. To open the bottom of the first, Brayan Bello's first pitch of the game was sent into the Wrigley bleachers by Michael Busch to give the Cubs, and Kyle Tucker would homer the next at bat as well, giving the Cubs an early 2–0 lead. The Red Sox would once again strand a runner in scoring position in the top of the 2nd, this time Masataka Yoshida at second. The Cubs would add some offense in the bottom of the 2nd on a Vidal Bruján sacrifice fly. Both offenses would stay quiet in the game thereafter, with the Red Sox going three up, three down in every inning but the 4th until the 7th inning, where they managed to threaten the Cubs with runners at the corners, but with two outs. Catcher Connor Wong hoped to drive at least one of them in, but instead flew out on the first pitch of the at bat, continuing a season long struggle for him with runners in scoring position. Bello exited the game in the 7th, entering Chris Murphy, who managed to get the first batter out, but then let up a pinch hit home run to Matt Shaw, making the score 4–0 Cubs. After getting out of the inning, the Red Sox would once again go 1-2-3 in the top of the 8th, before Pete Crow-Armstrong and Ian Happ would hit back-to-back home runs to extend the Cubs lead to 6–0, and marking the second time in the game that the Cubs hit back-to-back home runs, and the fourth and fifth solo home run of the game for Chicago. The Red Sox would be unable to provide a rally in the 9th, ending the game, and hoping to turn the page the next game to end the series on a good note, as Garrett Crochet would go up against Cade Horton.[331][332][333] Hoping to leave Chicago without getting swept, the Red Sox got off to a better start than they had in the previous two games, keeping Chicago scoreless in the first inning, although they weren't able to provide any offense of their own either. They were unable to get anything going in the top of the 2nd, but the Cubs looked to be threatening after a Pete Crow-Armstrong double to lead off the bottom of the inning. However, the Red Sox caught a break after Crow-Armstrong tried to steal third base, and was caught in a rundown, eventually being tagged out by Crochet in a situation where Crochet seemingly blocked the bag. Despite arguments from both Crow-Armstrong and Cubs manager Craig Counsell, no interference was called. This proved crucial, as Ian Happ singled in the next at-bat, scoring Dansby Swanson to give the Cubs a 1–0 lead that could have been 2–0. Happ would then be caught stealing to end the inning. The Red Sox offense would continue to struggle in the early games of the second half, as they would be held scoreless by Morton. In the bottom of the 5th, it looked like the Cubs would be adding on to their lead when Crochet walked both Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki with two outs, loading the bases. However, Carson Kelly would ground out, getting Crochet and the Red Sox out of the inning unscathed. In the top of the 7th, Trevor Story would lead off the inning with a walk, and Wilyer Abreu would finally give the Red Sox a lead in the series with a two-run blast into the Wrigley bleachers, giving them a 2–1 lead. Garrett Whitlock would hold down the fort in the 7th, and all of a sudden, the Red Sox offense showed signs of life. A Jarren Duran walk and a Roman Anthony single turned into two baserunners with one out in the top of the 8th. With Masataka Yoshida due up, Alex Cora turned to Alex Bregman to pinch hit, even though Bregman was scheduled to take the game off to rest due to his hamstring injury. Instead, Bregman showed the Red Sox why they signed him, blasting a three-run pinch hit home run, and blowing the game open, 5–1 Red Sox. Just to put a cherry on top, Abreu would hit his second home run of the game (and 20th of the season) later in the inning, making it 6–1. In the bottom of the 8th, Jordan Hicks would make quick work of the heart of the Cubs lineup, and Jorge Alcalá continued his Boston success by doing the same to close out the game. The victory pushed the Red Sox to 11–3 in the month of July and gave them wins in 12 of their last 15 games as they traveled to the City of Brotherly Love to take on the Philadelphia Phillies, with Walker Buehler facing Zack Wheeler to open the series.[334][335][336] Red Sox lost the series, 1–2 (7–11 runs) July 21–23, at Philadelphia Phillies The Red Sox came into Philadelphia hoping to continue their momentum from the previous series finale, and that they did. In the first at-bat of the game, Jarren Duran hit a home run against Phillies ace Zack Wheeler and Boston jumped out to a very early 1–0 lead. Walker Buehler hoped to get back on track after a series of struggles, and despite a Bryce Harper double, got out of the inning unscathed. Both Wheeler and Buehler traded scoreless innings in the 2nd and 3rd, with Buehler getting two double plays over the next two innings, and Wheeler getting out of the innings despite the Red Sox having runners in scoring position in both. In the bottom of the 4th, however, Buehler would give up his first run, as Harper scored on a single from Nick Castellanos to tie the game, 1–1. After a passed ball moved Castellanos to second, he would then score on a J. T. Realmuto single, and all of a sudden, the Phillies led 2–1. Buehler would then strike out Brandon Walsh and let Otto Kemp fly out to get out of the inning without further damage. After a 1-2-3 top of the 5th, Marcelo Mayer would open the bottom of the 5th by robbing Max Kepler of at least a single with a stretching catch at second base. The next inning, the Red Sox would once again threaten Wheeler, after an Alex Bregman single and Roman Anthony double would put runners at second and third with one out for Trevor Story. This time, however, Boston managed to come through, and Story drove in Bregman to tie the game at 2–2. After a Wilyer Abreu strikeout, Story would steal second to once again put runners at second and third, this time for Ceddanne Rafaela. However, Rafaela would strikeout to hold the game at 2–2. A quick 1-2-3 6th put Buehler in a position to out-pitch Wheeler, an unexpected result. Wheeler would get replaced by Tanner Banks, who would let up a Abraham Toro single but got out of the inning scoreless. Buehler would once again pitch a 1-2-3 inning to finish his line at 7 innings pitched, a pleasant result. After Orion Kerkering replaced Banks for the Phillies, the Red Sox could not get any offense going, and Aroldis Chapman would make a rare appearance in the 8th inning for the Red Sox, facing four batters and striking out Harper to end in the inning. Neither team could score in the 9th, sending the game to extra innings. The Red Sox would manage to get the go-ahead run at third base against Max Lazar, but Anthony would strikeout to end the inning before they could score. Jordan Hicks entered the game for Boston, trying to send the game to the 11th, and walking Kemp to start the inning. After a wild pitch moved Marsh to third base and Kemp to second, Hicks opted to intentionally walk Kepler, loading the bases with no outs. In the at-bat against Edmundo Sosa, Hicks threw a pitch that was check-swung, and initially called a ball. However, after Philadelphia asked for a review of the pitch, it was determined that Sosa's bat had made contact with the glove of Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez, meaning that catcher interference had taken place. As such, Sosa was rewarded a base, as with the bases loaded, the winning run was scored, ending the game, 3–2 in favor of Philadelphia. It was the first time since July 1, 1971, that a walk-off had occurred on catcher interference, and it gave the Red Sox their third loss in the last four games since the All-Star Game.[337][338][339] For the second game of the series, the Red Sox sent out Richard Fitts, who was starting his first game since earning his first career win against the Colorado Rockies prior to the All-Star Break. For the Phillies, it was Cristopher Sánchez, who got a quick first inning. Unfortunately for Fitts and the Red Sox, they did not receive the same luxury. A leadoff single from Trea Turner set the tone, and he was moved over to third on a Bryce Harper single, putting runners on the corners with only one out. Nick Castellanos would then hit another single to push Harper to third, and score Turner to give the Phillies an early 1–0 lead. After a J. T. Realmuto strikeout, Fitts seemed poised to get out of the inning without further damage. However, Harper attempted one of the most exciting plays in baseball, attempting a steal of home, but a balk was initially called on the play, scoring Harper regardless while also moving Castellanos to third. After an umpire review, it was determined that Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez had committed catcher interference, his second in not just two games, but in back-to-back innings, given that a Narváez catcher interference had served as the game-winning walkoff play for Philadelphia the night before. With the interference call, not only did Harper score and Castellanos move to third, as had initially happened, but now, Brandon Marsh was awarded first base, giving Philadelphia runners on the corners once again. Fitts, however, would get out of the inning after an Otto Kemp flyout. Coming off an eventful 1st inning, the Red Sox hoped to turn the tide, but went down in order. Meanwhile, the Phillies built off the craziness that had previously happened, and Max Kepler led off with a home run, making it 3–0 Phillies. Once again, Fitts seemed like he would get out of the inning without further damage after two quick outs, but old friend Kyle Schwarber had other plans, blasting a home run to extend the Phillies lead to 4–0. Although the Red Sox would once again fail to get a baserunner in the third, Rob Refsnyder looked to give his team a spark, blasting a lead-off home run in the 4th to cut the lead to 4–1, but that was all the offense the Red Sox would get in the inning. In the bottom of the 4th, Brennan Bernardino replaced Fitts, and despite having runners on second and first, would hold the lead to 4–1. Bernardino would hold down the fort for 1.2 innings, letting up a lone hit and keeping the Phillies scoreless. Unfortunately, on the other side of the mound, Sánchez was making quick innings of the Red Sox offense, striking out the side in the 6th. Likewise, Chris Murphy would keep the Phillies scoreless for two innings after Bernardino, but the Red Sox could not get any offense going, managing only two hits after the 6th inning, and never getting a runner past first. Greg Weissert would pitch a scoreless 8th, and Sánchez would get his 11th and 12th strikeouts of the game in the top of the ninth, pitching a complete game against the Boston offense, as the Phillies won, 4–1. The loss sent the Red Sox to 1–5 after the All-Star Break, and for the second series in a row, the Red Sox were going into the final game hoping to avoid a sweep, sending Lucas Giolito against Jesús Luzardo.[340][341][342] Looking to salvage a game in the series, the Red Sox did not start the game off in a way that would help them do so. After a quick top of the 1st against Jesús Luzardo, Trea Turner singled, followed by Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper back-to-back home runs as the Phillies jumped to a early 3–0 lead against Lucas Giolito. The Red Sox seemed poised to repeat their trend of lacking offense, going three-up, three-down in the first three innings. Meanwhile, in the bottom of the 3rd, Nick Castellanos hit the third home run of the game for the Phillies to extend their lead to 4–0. After finally getting a baserunner in the 4th on a Rob Refsnyder walk, the Red Sox once again couldn't muster any momentum, staying scoreless. On the other hand, the Phillies continued to see the ball well against Giolito, as Bryson Stott hit yet another home run in the bottom of the 5th, making it 5–0 Phillies. However, a Masataka Yoshida leadoff double in the 6th would hope to set the tone for Boston. It was followed by a Cedanne Rafaela walk, putting two men on with no outs, but Wilyer Abreu and Carlos Narváez got out quickly to put Luzardo one out away from keeping it scoreless. Marcelo Mayer would walk to load the bases, and everything pointed to the Red Sox not being able to salvage a run in the inning when Rob Refsnyder got a high pop-up in foul ground, seemingly ending the inning. However, J.T. Realmuto could not find the ball, and it dropped, giving Refsnyder and the Red Sox a second chance. They would not let this chance go to waste, as Refsnyder walked to score Yoshida and keep the bases loaded, making it 5–1 Phillies. Then, Jarren Duran would walk, scoring Rafaela. The next at bat, Romy González decided he had enough and cleared the bases with a grand slam, and suddenly it was 6–5 Red Sox. With the heart of the Phillies lineup approaching, the Red Sox turned to Justin Wilson, who was able to retire Schwarber, Harper, and Castellanos out, in order. Meanwhile, in the top of the 7th, Boston would threaten to extend their lead, as Narváez led off with a double, followed by a walk by Roman Anthony, and after a force play, the Red Sox had runners on the corners with two outs for González, who would strikeout to end the inning. With Jordan Hicks in the game, the Phillies had a scoring threat of their own, with Trea Turner on second with two outs, and Schwarber at the plate. The Red Sox would turn to their All-Star closer Aroldis Chapman, and he would manage to get Schwarber to fly out to Rafaela, ending the inning. Chapman stayed on for the 8th after the Red Sox couldn't get any insurance, and would get two quick outs. However, Realmuto had to redeem himself for his blunder earlier, and he blasted a home run off Chapman to tie the game at 6–6. Neither team could earn the victory in the 9th, sending the game to extra innings for the second time in the series. Max Lazar started out extra innings for the Phillies, and let up a Trevor Story double that scored Duran, the ghost runner. The Red Sox couldn't score Story, and Garrett Whitlock would try to preserve the lead and earn the save. Quickly, however, Schwarber had a hit of his own that scored the ghost runner, tying the game 7–7. However, he was pinch ran for by Weston Wilson, who was caught stealing and ended the inning. In the top of the 11th, Narváez decided he wanted redemption of his own for his errors earlier in the series, and he eked out a home run that just snuck over the wall, making it 9–7 Red Sox. Jorge Alcalá would attempt the save for the Red Sox, but would give up a RBI single to Johan Rojas after two outs, entering Brennan Bernardino, who would get the one-out save, giving the Red Sox the victory. The victory gave the Red Sox their second victory post All-Star Game, and for the second series in a row, avoided the sweep. After an off-day, the Red Sox will travel back home to face the Los Angeles Dodgers with Brayan Bello facing Emmet Sheehan.[343][344][345] Red Sox lost the series, 1–2 (12–15 runs) July 25–27, vs. Los Angeles Dodgers The Red Sox returned to Fenway to take on the defending World Series Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers. The first game of the Series ended in a 5–2 loss for the Sox.[346][347][348] The Red Sox evened the series with a 4─2 victory on Saturday as Garrett Crochet faced Dodger legend Clayton Kershaw. Boston rallied to take a 4–2 lead and Crochet struck out ten Dodger hitters after giving up home runs to Shohei Ohtani and Teoscar Hernandez in the first inning. A Jarren Duran triple in the 2nd brought home two runs before Abraham Toro's sac fly brought home Duran. In the 5th, Roman Anthony's 13th double of the season scored Alex Bregman to give the Sox some insurance, and Aroldis Chapman closed the game by striking out ex-Sox slugger Mookie Betts to earn his 18th save.[349][350][351] The Red Sox clinched the series with a 4–3 victory. Walker Buehler ran into trouble early against his old team, loading the bases and walking in the tying run in the top 3rd to squander a 1–0 Boston lead. Michael Conforto homered to right in the 4th before a Betts RBI single put Los Angeles ahead 3–1. In the 5th, however Roman Anthony hustled all the way to third base for an RBI triple that scored Toro, and Bregman sent Fenway Park into a frenzy with a 2-run home run–his first at Fenway since returning from injury–to put the Sox up by one. With Aroldis Chapman in some discomforts, the Sox turned to Jordan Hicks in the bottom of the 9th, and Hicks struck out Freddie Freeman, induced a ground ball from Andy Pages, and worked around a walk to induce a Tommy Edman ground out for his second save of the season, giving the Red Sox a 2–1 series victory against the defending World Series champions.[352][353][354] Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (10–10 runs) July 28–30, at Minnesota Twins The Red Sox entered their series in Minnesota shaken up after severe weather forced their turbulent charter flight, which gave some players motion sickness to divert to Detroit and the team arrived in Minneapolis later than expected. Still, the Red Sox refused to use the flight or a late rain delay as an excuse for a rough 5–4 walkoff loss. Richard Fitts had a decent but abbreviated outing, only lasting four innings and giving up two runs on four hits and three walks while striking out two. A 2-run home run from DaShawn Keirsey gave the Twins a 2–0 lead in the bottom 3rd. The Sox struck back to take the lead in the 5th as Alex Bregman continued his return to form with a 3-run long ball to center field that came with Roman Anthony and Abraham Toro on base, Bregman's 14th home run of 2025. In the bottom 6th, however, Minnesota tied the game on an RBI fly out from ex-Sox catcher Christian Vázquez, scoring Royce Lewis from third. In the top of the 9th with the game tied, Roman Anthony's RBI single up the middle drove home baserunner David Hamilton to give the Sox a 4–3 advantage, but the game soon thereafter entered a rain delay that would end up lasting 90 minutes. Jordan Hicks summarily entered the game looking to shut down Minnesota for good; instead, the results were disastrous as Hicks gave up a Keirsey single and hit both Willi Castro and Mickey Gasper to load the bases before Brooks Lee's RBI single brought home both the thing and winning runs to walk off a 5–4 Minnesota victory, adding yet another painful loss to the Sox' array of one-run defeats this season. The Sox would look to bounce back on Tuesday with a resurgent Lucas Giolito on the mound.[355][356][357] The Sox looked to bounce back from a dispiriting start to the series with Giolito on the mound against the Twins' Pierson Ohl, who was making his major league debut. Giolito continued to produce solid outings with a six-inning performance against the Twins in which he allowed just one earned run on five hits and fanned five Minnesota batters while only allowing two walks. Ohl, meanwhile, was roughed up by the Sox early and only lasted three innings, giving up four earned runs on five hits. Roman Anthony got a big Boston inning going in the top of the 3rd with an RBI single to center the scored Ceddanne Rafaela. Bregman then laced his 20th double to score Anthony with the aid of a fielding error by Willi Castro. Trevor Story then launched an Ohl pitch over the center field fence for his 16th home run of the year, a 2-run long ball that gave Boston a 4–0 lead. In the top 5th, Jarren Duran added on with a solo shot to center to make it a 5–0 advantage. Brooks Lee, Monday night's hero for Minnesota, struck again with a single to left field, advancing to second base on a Rafaela fielding error. Harrison Bader scored on the play, putting the Twins on the board, 5–1. In the top of the 6th, Rafaela redeemed himself with an RBI sac fly to center that brought home Carlos Narváez. Lee made it a 6–3 game in the 7th when he pounced on a pitch and sent it into the center field seats for a 2-run blast. In the top 9th, the Sox appeared to regain insurance with a 2-run frame that included RBI doubles from Story and Wilyer Abreu. However, in the bottom 9th, an increasingly stubborn Lee refused to roll over, hammering his second homer of the game, another 2-run blast that made it 8–5 Boston. Reliever Jorge Alcala was pulled in favor of Aroldis Chapman; with just one out left, the team had been hoping to give the closer a day of rest. Chapman succeeded in ending any further rallies from the Twins and earned his 19th save of the year. Having evened the series, the Red Sox would look to take the rubber game on Wednesday afternoon.[358][359][360] Masataka Yoshida (seen in 2019) had 3 RBI and his first home run of the season in Boston's 13–1 shellacking of Minnesota on July 31, as he continued his return to form after returning from injury. Brayan Bello made the start in the Wednesday afternoon getaway game in Minneapolis, played in hazy conditions due to smoke plumes coming into the Twin Cities from Canadian wildfires. The Red Sox appeared to be breathing just fine, however, as they would put forth one of their more enviable offensive performances of this season on this day. Bello went seven innings, giving up just one run on five hits and striking out four Twins hitters. Chris Murphy shut down Minnesota in the final two innings to give the rest of the bullpen a day off. On the other side of the field, the Twins used six pitchers and were hard pressed to find one who could contain a rolling Boston offense – only one Minnesota hurler didn't give up an earned run in this game, and starter Zebby Matthews was charged with the loss (five earned runs on four hits in 4+1⁄3 innings). Boston showed signs of life offensively in the 2nd (Trevor Story solo home run, his 17th of the year) and 3rd (Abraham Toro's sac fly that scored Connor Wong), but their onslaught didn't begin in earnest until the 5th, when the Sox posted a 4-run frame. With Anthony and Wong on base, Jarren Duran's single to center brought both of them how, putting Boston up 4–1 and ending Matthews' day. After Story and Romy González both walked, Masataka Yoshida laced a 2-RBI single to right to score both runners, giving the Red Sox a 6–1 advantage. An inning later, in the top 6th with Anthony on base, Duran demolished a cut fastball from reliever Noah Davis and sent it 416 feet into the right center field seats. The Sox could have called it an afternoon there with a seven-run lead and strong pitching to protect it, but Boston piled on in the top of the 9th with a feel-good five-run inning that included two home runs. The inning began with Griffin Jax on the mound, who wouldn't be able to record a single out. Abreu's single to right field brought home Duran. With Abreu and David Hamilton on base, González, facing position player Kody Clemens (son of ex-Sox and Yankees hurler Roger), launched a two-run bomb to center field. Yoshida then put an exclamation point on the afternoon by definitively announcing his return to the lineup with his first home run of 2025, a solo jack to right field that made it a 13–1 ballgame in Boston's favor. Minnesota's only run had come way back in the bottom 2nd – Matt Wallner's solo home run would wind up being the only blemish on Bello's scorecard. Having taken two of three on this quick roadie, the Red Sox would return to wait the Thursday trade deadline and possible changes to the makeup of their roster. On Friday, the always-intimidating Houston Astros would await to begin August with a three-game weekend series at Fenway Park.[361][362][363] Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (25–11 runs) July 31: Trade deadline Dustin May was the primary acquisition for the Red Sox at the trade deadline; the ex-Los Angeles Dodger starter could help fortify the back end of Boston’s rotation. The Red Sox and chief of baseball operations Craig Breslow were quieter than expected ahead of and on Trade Deadline day, making only two moves, both to support the pitching staff, but they avoided selling or standing completely pat. The Sox also did not need to get rid of any players on the major league roster to acquire their two pieces. Seven minutes before midnight on July 30, Jeff Passan of ESPN announced that the Sox had dealt prospect Blaze Jordan to the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for relief pitcher (and former starter) Steven Matz. The next day, at 5:48 pm, twelve minutes before the trade deadline was to officially close, Passan again was the first to announce a Sox trade, as Boston made another deal with frequent trade partners the Los Angeles Dodgers, with L.A. sending starting pitcher Dustin May to the Red Sox. Headed out to L.A. in the deal would be prospects Zach Ehrhard and James Tibbs III, who had been acquired in the Rafael Devers trade with the Giants on June 15.[364][365][366]

August

August 1–3, vs. Houston Astros

In the Friday night opener, Boston rookie sensation Roman Anthony ended a duel of pitching staffs in the tenth inning with his first career walk-off hit, a single to deep center field with runners on second and third that scored Wilyer Abreu. The low-scoring thriller in which spot starter Cooper Criswell overcame an early Astros home run by Christian Walker to hurl seven innings of one-run, seven-hit ball with four strikeouts resulted in a 2–1 victory for the Red Sox (who had tied the game in the 7th on Abreu's RBI sacrifice fly). The Sox improved to 60–51 in their first game after the trade deadline, climbing to nine games above .500, their best mark of the season thus far.^{[367][368][369]}

In Saturday’s contest, Walker Buehler faced Houston's Colton Gordon. Buehler twirled 4+1⁄3 innings and gave up three earned runs on nine hits, walking three Astros and failing to record a strikeout, but Boston's offense would bail him out as Gordon had the worse outing of the two (six earned runs on seven hits despite six strikeouts in four innings). For the second straight game, Houston got on the board first via a Christian Walker home run in the top of the 1st, but the Astros' advantage was short-lived, as Romy González belted a solo homer of his own to center field off of Gordon in the bottom half of the inning, making it 1–1 after one. After a scoreless second, Boston hung three runs on Houston in the 3rd (a Rob Refsnyder RBI single, scoring González; Trevor Story's 18th home run of the season, a 2-run bomb over the Monster with Refsnyder on base) and two runs on the visitors from H-Town in the 4th (Abraham Toro's homer to left came with Ceddanne Rafaela on base). Down 6–2, Houston added a run in the top 5th when Yainer Diaz singled home Carlos Correa, but Story put the game on ice in the 7th with an RBI double to score Refsnyder. Working with a four-run lead, Aroldis Chapman still earned a save – his 20th – by shutting down the Astros lineup in the 9th. After Buehler exited, Boston used six relievers, one of whom was Steven Matz, traded for on the night for July 31 deadline and who made his first appearance in a Red Sox uniform. Matz faced four batters and walked one and struck out one in one inning pitched. The 7–3 win put Boston ten games above .500, and the Sox would look to close out the series with a sweep on Sunday afternoon.^{[370][371][372]}

Sunday's matchup featured a showdown between Sox starter Lucas Giolito and Houston hurler Framber Valdez. Giolito was as advertised, giving up just one run and three hits with four strikeouts and one walk. Giolito worked eight solid innings, making this start the deepest Giolito had pitched in a game so far this season. Valdez, by contrast, went six innings but gave up six runs (five earned) on seven hits, striking out three and walking one. Correa opened the scoring with a 4th inning solo blast to center field that put Houston up 1–0, but Boston responded with a prolific six-run inning that would prove to be all the offense they needed on this afternoon. The frame began with Story singling home Roman Anthony to tie the game. Ceddanne Rafaela then laced a line drive that scored baserunner Romy González, and with Abraham Toro at the plate and Rafaela on first, Valdez committed a balk, allowing both runners to move 90 feet and enabling Story to jog home. Later in the inning, Wilyer Abreu brought out the sacrifice bunt to score Rafaela. Catcher Connor Wong's sacrifice fly then brought home Toro. Lastly, Abreu scored from third with two outs on a Rob Refsnyder ground out. Chris Murphy pitched the 9th with the Sox up five runs, giving Aroldis Chapman a day off. The Red Sox' victory put them 11 games above .500 and gave them their first sweep of the Astros since 2013. Boston would take a five-game win streak into the back half of their homestand, a three-game series against Kansas City beginning Monday; Brayan Bello was slated to start opposite Bailey Falter.^{[373][374][375]}

Red Sox won the series 3–0 (15–5 runs)

August 4–6, vs. Kansas City Royals

The Red Sox extended their winning streak to six games in the opener of their series against the Royals with an 8–5 victory over Kansas City at Fenway Park. Brayan Bello had a strong six-inning outing for the Sox, allowing only one run (zero earned runs) on six hits and a walk while fanning five Royal batters. Bailey Falter, meanwhile, struggled mightily on the mound for Kansas City, charged with seven earned runs on eight hits with two walks and just two strikeouts, being pulled after only four innings. Boston drew blood first and rattled Falter early with a five-run inning in the bottom of the 1st. Romy González and Alex Bregman hit back to back singles and Wilyer Abreu worked a walk to load the bases before Falter recorded a single out. Rob Refsnyder then singled to center for a 2-RBI hit that brought home Gonzàlez and Bregman. Falter got two quick outs, but couldn’t get out of the inning prior to a 3-run home run to center field that gave Boston a 5–0 lead. The Sox tacked on another run in the 3rd via a Ceddanne Rafaela RBI single, the Royals got on the board in the top 4th with an Adam Frazier sac fly, and the Sox restored their 6-run cushion with a Bregman RBI single that scored Abraham Toro, putting Boston up 7–1. After a scoreless 5th and 6th, Abreu singled home González in the bottom 7th to give the Red Sox an 8–1 advantage. These insurance runs would prove critical, however, as Kansas City was readying an attack of its own. In the 8th, the Royals roughed up the Sox bullpen with a 4-run frame. With Jorge Alcala pitching, Vinnie Pasquantino and Maikel Garcia hit back-to-back solo bombs. Mike Yastrzemski, visiting his grandfather Carl's home ballpark after a trade deadline deal involving the Giants, continued to contribute for his new team, doubling to shallow left field and advancing to third base on an Abreu fielding error. Justin Wilson replaced Alcala, but also struggled to put out the flames, as Frazier singled home the younger "Yaz" to put the Royals within four runs. Nick Loftin's subsequent single brought home Frazier, putting Kansas City within three, still with just one out. Fortunately, Wilson struck out Randal Grichuk before being replaced by Garrett Whitlock, who gave up a single to Bobby Witt Jr. but got the inning-ending out when Abreu successfully unleashed a rocket of a throw to catcher Connor Wong, who tagged Loftin out at home. In the top of the 9th, still up three runs, the Red Sox toted out closer Aroldis Chapman, who struck out one in his 21st save of the season.^{[376][377][378]}

Tuesday was Garrett Crochet's turn on the mound for Boston, and the Red Sox' ace had another sterling performance, twirling seven innings of two-run, four-hit ball while striking out eight Kansas City hitters and only walking one. Crochet countered starter Ryan Bergert for Kansas City; Bergert, an ex-San Diego Padre making his first start with the Royals, gave up two runs on two hits while striking out two and walking two across 5+2⁄3 innings. Boston yet again scored first, as Jarren Duran's RBI double brought home González and gave the Red Sox a 1–0 advantage in the bottom 3rd. In the 4th, Crochet let an earned run go by in the form of a Maikel Garcia RBI double that scored Witt Jr., who had tripled. In the bottom of the 6th, Bregman's walk and Abreu's double put runners on second and third with two outs for Trevor Story, who singled home both runners to give the Sox a 3–1 lead. Kansas City closed to within a run in the top of the 7th, as Grichuk doubled to score Garcia, but Boston broke the game open for good with a 3-run bottom 7th as Abreu laced a 2-RBI single to score two baserunners (Duran and David Hamilton), and Story's bloop single scored Bregman. Up 6–2, the Sox pulled Crochet and put the lead in the hands of relievers Greg Weissert and Jordan Hicks, who pitched the 8th and 9th, respectively. Weissert hurled a hitless 8th and Hicks shut the door with a one-hit 9th, as the Red Sox extended their winning streak to seven games, with Dustin May set to make his Red Sox debut in the series finale on Wednesday.^{[379][380][381]}

Dustin May took the mound for his Sox debut looking to help the Red Sox to an eighth straight victory as well as a sweep of the Royals and of their six-game homestand. May was countered by Kansas City's starter, ex-Red Sox pitcher Michael Wacha. It would be unfair to call May's start disastrous, but it wasn't dazzling either, as the recently acquired former Dodger went just 3+2⁄3 innings while giving up three earned runs on six hits while walking one and striking out four. Wacha, meanwhile, went six frames and surrendered two earned runs on five hits while fanning three and walking none. Boston struck first, with Romy González's double to center in the bottom 1st scoring Jarren Duran and Trevor Story. After two scoreless innings, however May would begin to be rattled by the Royals in the top of the 3rd, as Bobby Witt Jr. singled home Mike Yastrzemski to tie the game. In the 4th, Kyle Isbel's 2-RBI single up the middle scored both John Rave and Jonathan India, and India himself broke the game open in the top of the 7th against reliever Jordan Hicks with a 3-run home run that cleared the Green Monster with Salvador Perez and Adam Frazier on base, putting the Royals up 6–2. K.C. got an extra insurance run in the top of the 8th when Vinnie Pasquantino singled home Tyler Tolbert for a 7–2 advantage. Story's line drive single in the bottom half of the inning scored Wong to pull the Sox within four runs, but Carlos Estévez shut down Boston in the 9th for a 7–3 Royals win. Licking their wounds, the Red Sox would board a long cross-country flight to San Diego to face the Padres in a weekend series, where they would endeavor to get back in the win column Friday night with Walker Buehler set to face another ex-Sox starter in Nick Pivetta.^{[382][383][384]}

Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (17–14 runs)

August 8–10, at San Diego Padres

The Red Sox won the opener of their series against the Padres on Friday night, 10–2, as Walker Buehler picked up his seventh win of the season (six scoreless innings pitched while surrendering just four hits and striking out four) and Masataka Yoshida and Connor Wong each provided 3 RBIs. Wong's 3-RBI double to deep left field was his first hit of the season with runners in scoring position. Yoshida crushed his second home run of the season and Wilyer Abreu blasted his team-leading 21st as the Sox went nuclear on former Boston starter Nick Pivetta, who gave up five earned runs on five hits and three walks across six innings.^{[385][386][387]}

The Sox' Lucas Giolito struggled in the middle game on Saturday, giving up four earned runs on five hits and six walks while only striking out one in 4+2⁄3 innings of work. Boston kept up with San Diego's offense, and tied the game in the top of the ninth off a Roman Anthony RBI double to force extra innings – but Boston's poor performances on the road in extra innings surfaced again, as Garrett Whitlock gave up a walk-off hit to Ramon Laureano that scored ex-Sox slugger Xander Bogaerts as the Padres won 5–4 in walk-off fashion in ten frames. The loss was Boston's league-high eleventh walk-off defeat.^{[388][389][390]}

In the Sunday finale, Brayan Bello's poor day on the mound for the Red Sox compounded a fine outing from Padres starter Dylan Cease and the San Diego bullpen. Bello struck out seven but allowed five earned runs on just six hits in 5+2⁄3 innings of work, while Cease went six innings and allowed just two runs on four hits while striking out seven. Luis Arráez jumped on Bello to open the scoring in the bottom 3rd with a 2-RBI double, and Fernando Tatis Jr. provided a 2-RBI single in the 5th. Bogaerts made his former team pay yet again with an RBI single in the 6th, and then, with the bases loaded, Bogaerts scored on Bello's walk to Jake Cronenworth. It was the 7th before Boston cooked up any offense, when Romy González's RBI fielder's choice coupled with a Bogaerts error scored two runs in Trevor Story and Jarren Duran. Still down 5–2, though, San Diego got an insurance run in the bottom half of the inning when Ryan O'Hearn's sac fly scored Tatis Jr., wrapping up the scoring in what proved to be a 6–2 victory as San Diego took the series with back-to-back wins on Saturday and Sunday.^{[391][392][393]}

Red Sox lost the series, 1–2 (16–13 runs)

August 11–13, at Houston Astros

Monday's opener against the Astros in Houston marked Alex Bregman's return to the Space City, and although Bregman got a nice hand and warm welcome from Astros fans, the third baseman quieted the home crowd with a 2-run home run in his first at-bat, a bomb to the left field "Crawford Boxes" that also scored Roman Anthony. However, the game was about to go south for the Red Sox in a major way. With ace Garrett Crochet pitching, nobody could have suspected that the Mississippi native was about to put in his first truly poor performance since joining Boston. Crochet lasted a season-low four innings after giving up five earned runs on seven hits. While Crochet kept the Astros at bay through two innings, Houston jumped all over him in the 3rd, with Carlos Correa's RBI single scoring Cam Smith while advancing Jeremy Peña. Correa and Peña then both scored on a Christian Walker double, allowing the Astros to take a 3–2 lead. In the 4th, Chas McCormick tagged Crochet for a 2-run homer to left, and in the 5th, with Crochet out of the game, Jordan Hicks ran into just as much trouble when Ramón Urías provided his own 2-run big fly. Down 7–2, things looked bleak for the Sox, but there was plenty of baseball left, and to their credit, Boston would nearly make a comeback. The Sox got a big 7th inning from Abraham Toro, Masataka Yoshida, and Roman Anthony – Toro hit a solo homer to center to get the Sox back on the scoreboard; Yoshida's double scored Ceddanne Rafaela to pull the Sox within three; and Anthony's third jack of the season with Connor Wong on base also scored two runs. Now trailing only 7–6, the Sox looked to tie the game but were unable to get past relievers Enyel De Los Santos and Bennett Sousa, who collected his fourth save. The 7–6 loss extended the Sox' winless streak to three and pushed their record down to 65–55, just ten games above .500.^{[394][395][396]}

Fortunately, the Red Sox responded in a big way in the middle game of the series as Dustin May took the mound for the second time in a Boston uniform. May had invited skepticism among fans after a skittish Red Sox debut, but May was on point against the Astros, twirling six scoreless innings and giving up five hits while fanning eight Houston hitters. Meanwhile, Boston's offense would go nuclear on this day, especially in the later innings. While they didn't score until the 3rd, when Story was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, forcing home Carlos Narváez, the Sox would soon make their hitting power very clear to starter Spencer Arrighetti and a parade of Houston relievers, none of whom could quite figure out how to stifle the Sox and which eventually included position player Chas McCormick. Yoshida's sac fly later in the 3rd scored Anthony, and while the Sox remained with just the 2–0 advantage over the next two frames, Boston's offensive explosion began in earnest in the 6th, when Narváez and Bregman each homered, Narváez providing a 3-run jack with Rafaela and Yoshida on base, and Bregman blasting a 2-run homer with Anthony on the basepaths. The five-run inning put Boston up 7–0, but they weren't close to finished. Wilyer Abreu's double in the 7th brought home both Yoshida and Story for a 9–0 lead, and in the 8th, Anthony's leadoff solo homer made it double digits for the Sox. Toro's RBI single and Abreu's 2-RBI double made it a 12–0 contest as the inning continued, and the Sox kept their foot on the gas pedal in the 9th with a Story RBI single that also loaded the bases and a Yoshida RBI force out that enabled Bregman to scamper home, giving Boston an insurmountable 14–0 advantage. Houston did break up the shutout in the bottom 9th by pushing one run across, but otherwise it was sunshine and rainbows for the Red Sox as they evened the series with a much-needed breakout victory, climbing back to 11 games over .500 and setting up a rubber match Wednesday Walker Buehler and Hunter Brown.^{[397][398][399]}

The Astros won the rubber game 4–1 behind a 2-run first inning and home runs from Peña and Diaz. Rafaela provided the only Sox RBI with a 2nd-inning single. Walker Buehler pitched six innings and gave up four runs, all earned, on four hits and four walks. Hunter Brown scattered six hits in 6+2⁄3 innings, but Boston couldn't make them count after their 13-run outburst the previous day. The Red Sox headed home having gone 2–4 on their six-game road trip, losing two games each to the Padres and Astros. Fortunately for Boston, after a stretch of premier opponents, the as-yet mediocre Miami Marlins would come into town over the weekend.^[400][401]

Red Sox lost the series, 1–2 (21–12 runs)

August 15–17, vs. Miami Marlins

Boston opened its series with the Marlins by sending Lucas Giolito to the mound opposite Miami's Sandy Alcantara, and the matchup quickly became a pitcher's duel. Giolito went 6+1⁄3 innings and gave up just one run on seven hits while striking out five Miami hitters. Alcantara, meanwhile, twirled seven frames, gave up just one run on two hits, and struck out seven Red Sox. With the starting pitchers on the mound, the only Marlins run had been a Kyle Stowers RBI double in the 3rd, which was answered by an Alex Bregman RBI double in the 6th. After Giolito left the contest, Boston's bullpen held up with Justin Wilson, Garrett Whitlock, and Aroldis Chapman combining to allow no runs, just two hits, and no walks. The Red Sox took advantage of shakiness in the bottom of the 9th from Marlins reliever Josh Simpson, who began the inning by walking Roman Anthony and Bregman before hitting Jarren Duran with a pitch, enabling the Sox to load the bases without a single hit. Simpson was himself relieved by Calvin Faucher. Faucher faced Trevor Story, who immediately laced a single to right field that enabled Anthony to scamper home for the walk-off game-winning run. The 2–1 victory marked the fifth time in 2025 that Boston had won in walk-off fashion while wearing their "Fenway Greens" City Connect uniforms.^[402][403]

In the middle game on Saturday, Brayan Bello got the nod to pitch opposite Miami's Cal Quantrill. The Sox got on the board right away with a 2-RBI single from Masataka Yoshida in the bottom 1st that got buried deep in right field and brought home both Story and Anthony. In the 3rd, Duran doubled home Anthony before Trevor Story's 3-run jack over the Monster with both Duran and Bregman on base gave the Sox a 6–0 lead. Bregman kept the parade of runs going in the bottom 4th, singling home Ceddanne Rafaela for a 7–0 advantage. The Marlins would rally to make this game close, however – Troy Johnston's first major league home run for Miami off the schneid in the 5th, and Agustín Ramírez's solo blast to right in the 7th made it 7–2. The Fish really pressed, however, in the top of the 9th, facing a shaky Isaiah Campbell. Campbell gave up three runs on four hits in just 2⁄3 of an inning – more specifically, Campbell surrendered an RBI single to Heriberto Hernández, an RBI triple to Eric Wagaman and a single to Derek Hill that scored Wagaman from third base. With the Marlins having cut the Red Sox' lead to just two runs, manager Alex Cora thought it necessary to call upon Chapman with the game now in a save situation. Chapman induced a ground out from the first and only batter he faced to end the game, earn his 22nd save, and seal a 7–5 Red Sox victory, but Campbell's poor performance would come back to haunt the Sox in the Sunday finale.^[404][405]

Sunday saw ace Garrett Crochet take the mound on a steamy Sunday afternoon at Fenway Park. The Marlins sent out starter Janson Junk to try to salvage the finale of the series. Junk had a solid outing, giving up just three runs on six hits with six strikeouts in seven innings pitched. Crochet, however, gave up just one run on theee hits, also through seven, and set down eight Miami batters on strikers, and there was no beating a starting pitching performance of that caliber – or so it would seem. While Miami had struck first with Wagaman homering to center field in the 3rd, Abreu hit a two-run blast in the 4th that looked like a routine deep fly ball out until Marlins right fielder Dane Myers bobbled the ball at the last second and dropped it over the bullpen wall, and it was called a home run. Holding a 2–1 lead on this lucky break, Boston got an insurance run in the 7th when Abraham Toro scored Abreu from third base on a critical RBI sac fly. However, once Crochet left the game, things began to unravel for the Red Sox. It began when Garrett Whitlock allowed an RBI bloop single to left from Liam Hicks which scored Xavier Edwards, making it a 3–2 Boston advantage. While the Sox still held the lead going into the top of the 9th, thanks to Isaiah Campbell's troubled outing late in Saturday's game, closer Aroldis Chapman had made appearances on two straight days, and the Sox were ill at ease at the prospect of sending him out in a third straight contest. Therefore, the Sox charged Greg Weissert with notching the final three outs, and Weissert summarily gave up a solo home run to Myers, who avenged his misplay on the Abreu home run by tying the game with his own long ball. Weissert induced a ground ball to Troy Johnston but allowed a single from Wagaman, at which point Weissert was relieved in favor of Steven Matz. Matz compounded the issue by giving up a poorly placed sinker to Jakob Marsee, who stroked the pitch 394 feet over the right field fence for a 2-run home run, putting Miami up 5–3. Matz summarily retired the next two batters to stop the bleeding, but the damage had been done. Anthony Bender came on to close for Miami, and while Alex Bregman led off with a single and Ceddanne Rafaela walked, bringing the walk-off winning run to the plate in the form of Carlos Narváez, Bender struck out Narváez to end the game and steal a victory from the Red Sox, ending their chances at a series sweep. Boston fell to 11 games above .500 and were now tied with Seattle for the first Wild Card berth, as the New York Yankees lurked just half a game behind both teams. Boston would look to get back in the win column opening a quick two-game series on Monday against Baltimore, with Dustin May set to counter the Orioles’ Trevor Rogers.^[406][407]

Red Sox won the series, 2–1 (12–11 runs)

August 18–19, vs. Baltimore Orioles

In the Monday opener, Baltimore prevailed by a score of 6–3 as Trevor Rogers outpitched Dustin May. Rogers' line of just one run on four hits in seven innings pitched included eight punchouts of Red Sox batters. May went six innings and gave up two runs on eight hits with two walks while striking out five Orioles. While it was a very decent outing for May, Boston relievers Jovani Moran and Jordan Hicks each gave up two runs of their own. Gunnar Henderson had a 3rd inning solo home run and a 7th inning RBI triple, while Samuel Basallo scored on a Dylan Beavers single in the 4th and then provided a 2-RBI single in the 9th. All of Boston's three runs came off the bat of Jarren Duran, who got the Sox on the board in the bottom 7th with an RBI sac fly before hitting a 2-RBI double in the bottom of the 9th. Duran’s offense proved to be too little, too late for the Sox on this day, however, and the Orioles handed the Sox their second straight loss.^[408][409]

Colton Cowser of the Baltimore Orioles (left) was deemed an "impact arm" by the Red Sox' coaching staff, and so they didn't send Nate Eaton (right) home from third base in a potential sacrifice fly situation in the 11th inning on Tuesday, August 19. Cowser's throw to home plate wound up being off-target, meaning Eaton would have likely scored the tying run had he been sent home. The Red Sox ultimately lost this game 4–3 in 11 innings, with the Cowser-Eaton situation just another of many blunders committed by Boston in their third straight defeat.

On Tuesday, in the finale of this quick two-game series, Tomoyuki Sugano of the Orioles faced the Sox' Walker Buehler, though neither starter would factor in the decision. The Sox scored first when, in the 3rd, Sugano tried three times unsuccessfully to pick off a runner, which, per an MLB rule instituted in 2023, resulted in a balk that allowed Connor Wong to score from third base. The Orioles took the lead, however, with a three-run 5th. Ryan Mountcastle had an RBI single, Colton Cowser hit an RBI double that scored Luis Vázquez, and Mountcastle scored from third base on a wild pitch. In the 8th, Boston loaded the bases with no outs, but couldn't take advantage, as Duran, Trevor Story, and Masataka Yoshida all struck out swinging in order. The 9th began on a better note for Boston, as the Sox would tie the score at 3–3 thanks to a Nathaniel Lowe 2-run home run with Romy González on base (it was Lowe's first homer in a Red Sox uniform after being acquired off waivers from Washington the previous weekend). After Lowe's home run, Abraham Toro and Connor Wong struck out, but then Roman Anthony, Alex Bregman, and Duran all walked in succession, as Oriole reliever Yaramil Hiraldo couldn't find the strike zone. With the winning run 90 feet away, however, Story hit into a force out to end the inning and force extras. The O's were kept off the board in the top of the 10th by Aroldis Chapman, but in the bottom half of the inning the Red Sox wasted yet another golden opportunity. With Story as the ghost runner on second base, Yennier Cano hit Ceddanne Rafaela, putting runners on second and third. Two batters later, with one out and runners on second and third, the winning run again just 90 feet away, Toro hit into an inning-ending double play. In the 11th, Boston's inability to cash in with runners on base came back to haunt them as Baltimore took a 4–3 lead. In the bottom half of the inning, now trailing by a run, the Red Sox fought back as Wong hit a critical sac fly deep enough to advance pinch runner Nate Eaton from second to third base. The most controversial moment of the game came on the next at-bat, as Roman Anthony, batting with one out and the tying run on third base in the form of Eaton, hit a fly ball that was just deep enough to potentially score Eaton. However, the ball was caught by Colton Cowser, a Baltimore center fielder that the Red Sox coaching staff had identified before the game as an "impact arm", and Eaton began briefly to run home before being called back to remain on third. Cowser's throw to home plate was subsequently off-line, meaning the Sox' lack of risk-taking in a desperate situation wasted an opportunity to Eaton to score with ease. Bregman's pop-up in the next at-bat ended the game, and Baltimore escaped Fenway Park with a win after the Red Sox left 13 men on base. Boston's slump crept up to a three-game losing streak and their 68–59 record was now just nine games above .500. The Sox would look to right the ship by facing the redoubtable rival New York Yankees in the Bronx for a four-game series beginning Thursday. Boston had taken five of six games from the Yankees in June, and would look to replicate that success against a club with just one win more than them.^[410][411]

Red Sox lost the series, 0–2 (6–10 runs)

August 21–24, at New York Yankees

Neither Red Sox starter Lucas Giolito nor Yankees starter Luis Gil lasted more than five innings in a back-and-forth Thursday opener at Yankee Stadium that saw Boston pull away from a close contest late to win 6–3. The Sox benefited from three Yankee errors in the 2nd inning alone, as Masataka Yoshida reached on an error by Gil before Ceddanne Rafaela was able to reach first on a force out at second base and then scamper to second himself on a Jazz Chisholm Jr. throwing error. Rafaela then stole third base and then jogged home for the first run of the game on an error by Cohasset native Ben Rice. Rice atoned quickly for his error by taking Giolito deep for his 20th home run of the season in the bottom half of the inning, tying the game at 1–1. Paul Goldschmidt's RBI single scored Chisholm Jr. as New York took a 2–1 lead in the 4th, but the Red Sox quickly answered with more help from their new acquisition Nathaniel Lowe, who hit a sacrifice fly deep enough to score Roman Anthony, retying the contest. The Yankees pulled ahead for a 3–2 lead in the bottom of the 5th when Chisholm Jr.'s RBI single brought home Aaron Judge. In the top 6th, however, Anthony’s RBI bloop single to center was enough to score David Hamilton, bringing home the tying run. After Lowe doubled to deep right field in the top 7th, scoring Trevor Story and giving the Sox the lead, Anthony punctuated his performance in style in the 9th with a no-doubt home run off of Yankee reliever Yerry De Los Santos. Anthony's 2-run bomb came with Hamilton on base and gave Boston a 6–3 advantage, which Aroldis Chapman used to record theee straight outs in the bottom 9th for his 23rd save. The win broke a three-game Red Sox losing streak and got the team off on the right foot with three games still left in the Bronx.

Season standings

American League East

• v
• t
• e

AL East

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Toronto Blue Jays	76	54	.585	—	42‍–‍21	34‍–‍33
Boston Red Sox	71	59	.546	5	41‍–‍25	30‍–‍34
New York Yankees	69	60	.535	6½	37‍–‍28	32‍–‍32
Tampa Bay Rays	62	67	.481	13½	33‍–‍33	29‍–‍34
Baltimore Orioles	59	70	.457	16½	30‍–‍33	29‍–‍37

American League Wild Card

• v
• t
• e

Division leaders

Team	W	L	Pct.
Detroit Tigers	78	53	.595
Toronto Blue Jays	76	54	.585
Houston Astros	72	58	.554

• v
• t
• e

Wild Card teams
(Top 3 teams qualify for postseason)

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB
Boston Red Sox	71	59	.546	+2
New York Yankees	69	60	.535	+½
Seattle Mariners	69	61	.531	—
Kansas City Royals	66	64	.508	3
Cleveland Guardians	64	64	.500	4
Texas Rangers	65	66	.496	4½
Tampa Bay Rays	62	67	.481	6½
Los Angeles Angels	61	68	.473	7½
Baltimore Orioles	59	70	.457	9½
Minnesota Twins	59	70	.457	9½
Athletics	60	71	.458	9½
Chicago White Sox	46	83	.357	22½

Red Sox team leaders

Batting[412]
Batting average†	Trevor Story	.261
RBIs		82
Home runs	Wilyer Abreu	22
Games played	Jarren Duran	127
Hits		131
Stolen bases	Trevor Story	22
Runs scored		73
Pitching[413]
ERA‡	Garrett Crochet	2.38
WHIP‡		1.06
Strikeouts		207
Innings pitched		166+1⁄3
Games started		26
Wins		14
Saves	Aroldis Chapman	24
Games pitched	Greg Weissert	59

Updated through August 23, 2025.
† Minimum 3.1 plate appearances per team games played
   AVG qualified batters: Duran, Rafaela, Story
‡ Minimum 1 inning pitched per team games played
   ERA & WHIP qualified pitchers: Bello, Crochet

Record vs. opponents

Record vs. American League

2025 American League record v t e Source: MLB Standings Grid – 2025
Team	ATH	BAL	BOS	CWS	CLE	DET	HOU	KC	LAA	MIN	NYY	SEA	TB	TEX	TOR	NL
Athletics	—	4–2	0–0	5–1	2–4	1–2	6–4	3–0	2–8	4–3	2–4	5–5	3–3	5–5	2–5	15–24
Baltimore	2–4	—	5–4	3–0	3–4	1–5	2–2	2–4	5–1	0–6	3–3	5–1	5–5	2–4	6–4	15–21
Boston	0–0	4–5	—	4–3	2–1	0–3	4–2	4–2	1–5	3–3	6–1	3–3	8–2	3–4	3–7	24–18
Chicago	1–5	0–3	3–4	—	2–8	3–7	3–3	2–8	3–3	2–4	0–0	1–5	2–1	2–4	3–3	18–24
Cleveland	4–2	4–3	1–2	8–2	—	3–4	4–2	5–4	3–3	6–3	3–3	0–3	0–0	0–0	3–3	20–28
Detroit	2–1	5–1	3–0	7–3	4–3	—	4–2	5–2	5–2	8–5	2–1	2–4	3–3	2–4	3–4	21–18
Houston	4–6	2–2	2–4	3–3	2–4	2–4	—	3–3	4–2	5–1	2–1	5–5	3–4	3–4	3–0	27–15
Kansas City	0–3	4–2	2–4	8–2	4–5	2–5	3–3	—	0–0	5–5	0–6	2–2	3–3	6-1	2–1	25–20
Los Angeles	8–2	1–5	5–1	3–3	3–3	2–5	2–4	0–0	—	0–3	3–4	4–5	3–3	4–6	2–4	21–18
Minnesota	3–4	6–0	3–3	4–2	3–6	5–8	1–5	5–5	3–0	—	1–2	3–4	3–3	1–2	1–2	16–23
New York	4–2	3–3	1–6	0–0	3–3	1–2	1–2	6–0	4–3	2–1	—	5–1	9–4	4–2	3–7	23–22
Seattle	5–5	1–5	3–3	5–1	3–0	4–2	5–5	2–2	5–4	4–3	1–5	—	3–0	10–3	2–4	15–18
Tampa Bay	3–3	5–5	2–8	1–2	0–0	3–3	4–3	3–3	3–3	3–3	4–9	0–3	—	3–3	5–1	22–18
Texas	5–5	4–2	4–3	4–2	0–0	4–2	4–3	1-6	6–4	2–1	2–4	3–10	3–3	—	2–4	19–17
Toronto	5–2	4–6	7–3	3–3	3–3	4–3	0–3	1–2	4–2	2–1	7–3	4–2	1–5	4–2	—	25–14

Updated with the results of all games through August 21, 2025.

Record vs. National League

2025 American League record vs. National League v t e Source: MLB Standings
Team	AZ	ATL	CHC	CIN	COL	LAD	MIA	MIL	NYM	PHI	PIT	SD	SF	STL	WSH
Athletics	1–2	2–1	0–3	0–0	2–1	1–2	2–1	1–2	1–2	1–2	0–0	1–2	1–5	0–0	2–1
Baltimore	1–2	3–0	1–2	1–2	2–1	0–0	1–2	1–2	2–1	1–2	0–0	0–0	0–0	1–2	1–5
Boston	0–0	3–3	1–2	2–1	3–0	2–1	2–1	0–3	2–1	1–2	0–0	1–2	1–2	3–0	3–0
Chicago	1–2	1–2	1–5	2–1	2–1	0–3	2–1	1–2	1–2	2–1	3–0	0–0	2–1	0–3	0–0
Cleveland	1–2	0–3	0–3	1–5	2–1	1–2	2–1	2–1	3–0	1–2	3–0	0–3	2–1	0–3	2–1
Detroit	3–0	0–0	2–1	1–2	3–0	0–3	0–0	1–2	0–0	1–2	2–4	2–1	3–0	2–1	1–2
Houston	3–0	0–0	2–1	2–1	2–1	3–0	2–1	1–2	2–1	3–0	2–1	2–1	0–3	1–2	2–1
Kansas City	2–1	2–1	2–1	1–2	3–0	1–2	1–2	1–2	1–2	0–0	3–0	1–2	2–1	3–3	2–1
Los Angeles	2–1	2–1	0–0	1–2	0–0	6–0	1–2	0–0	0–3	2–1	1–2	1–2	2–1	2–1	1–2
Minnesota	0–0	0–3	2–1	1–2	1–2	1–2	1–2	2–4	2–1	0–0	2–1	0–0	3–0	0–3	1–2
New York	1–2	2–1	1–2	1–2	2–1	1–2	0–3	3–0	3–3	1–2	2–1	2–1	1–2	3–0	0–0
Seattle	0–3	0–0	2–1	2–1	0–0	0–0	2–1	1–2	1–2	0–3	3–0	3–0	0–3	0–0	1–2
Tampa Bay	2–1	2–1	0–0	0–3	2–1	1–2	3–3	2–1	3–0	0–3	2–1	3–0	2–1	0–0	0–0
Texas	1–2	3–0	1–2	2–1	3–0	1–2	0–0	0–0	0–0	0–3	2–1	1–2	1–2	2–1	2–1
Toronto	2–1	2–1	2–1	0–0	3–0	1–2	0–0	0–0	0–3	2–4	1–2	3–0	3–0	3–0	3–0

Updated with the results of all games through August 20, 2025.

Upcoming games

Note: all times local to Boston (ET)

#	Date	Day	Opponent	Time
131	August 24	Sunday	at Yankees	7:10 p.m.†
132	August 25	Monday	at Orioles	6:35 p.m.
133	August 26	Tuesday	at Orioles	6:35 p.m.
134	August 27	Wednesday	at Orioles	6:35 p.m.
135	August 28	Thursday	at Orioles	1:05 p.m.
136	August 29	Friday	vs. Pirates	7:10 p.m.
137	August 30	Saturday	vs. Pirates	4:10 p.m.
138	August 31	Sunday	vs. Pirates	1:35 p.m.
139	September 1	Monday	vs. Guardians	1:35 p.m.
140	September 2	Tuesday	vs. Guardians	6:45 p.m.
141	September 3	Wednesday	vs. Guardians	6:45 p.m.
–	September 4	Thursday	no game
142	September 5	Friday	at Diamondbacks	9:40 p.m.
143	September 6	Saturday	at Diamondbacks	8:10 p.m.
144	September 7	Sunday	at Diamondbacks	4:10 p.m

† – Game televised nationally via Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN

Game log

Red Sox Win

Red Sox Loss

Game Postponed

Home Game

2025 Boston Red Sox Season Game Log: 71–59 (Home: 41–25; Away: 30–34)
March/April: 17–15 (Home: 8–6; Away: 9–9) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Box/ Streak 1 March 27 @ Rangers 5–2 Chapman (1–0) Jackson (0–1) Slaten (1) Globe Life Field 37,587 1–0 W1 2 March 28 @ Rangers 1–4 Leiter (1–0) Houck (0–1) Jackson (1) Globe Life Field 26,766 1–1 L1 3 March 29 @ Rangers 3–4 Milner (1–0) Buehler (0–1) Martin (1) Globe Life Field 32,251 1–2 L2 4 March 30 @ Rangers 2–3 Armstrong (1–0) Fitts (0–1) Jackson (2) Globe Life Field 29,137 1–3 L3 5 March 31 @ Orioles 5–8 Domínguez (1–0) Newcomb (0–1) — Camden Yards 45,002 1–4 L4 6 April 2 @ Orioles 3–0 Crochet (1–0) Eflin (1–1) Chapman (1) Camden Yards 18,146 2–4 W1 7 April 3 @ Orioles 8–4 Kelly (1–0) Morton (0–2) — Camden Yards 16,656 3–4 W2 8 April 4 Cardinals 13–9 Buehler (1–1) Fedde (1–1) Chapman (2) Fenway Park 36,462 4–4 W3 – April 5 Cardinals Postponed due to rain. Makeup date April 6.[414] 9 April 6 (1) Cardinals 5–4 (10) Chapman (2–0) Fernandez (0–1) — Fenway Park 31,495 5–4 W4 10 April 6 (2) Cardinals 18–7 Dobbins (1–0) Mikolas (0–1) Criswell (1) Fenway Park 28,276 6–4 W5 11 April 7 Blue Jays 2–6 Berríos (1–1) Fitts (0–2) — Fenway Park 25,788 6–5 L1 12 April 8 Blue Jays 1–6 Lucas (2–0) Crochet (1–1) — Fenway Park 25,575 6–6 L2 13 April 9 Blue Jays 1–2 (11) Hoffman (1–0) Winckowski (0–1) Sandlin (1) Fenway Park 29,441 6–7 L3 14 April 10 Blue Jays 4–3 (10) Bernardino (1–0) Sandlin (0–2) — Fenway Park 25,128 7–7 W1 15 April 11 @ White Sox 1–11 Martin (1–1) Newcomb (0–2) — Rate Field 13,432 7–8 L1 16 April 12 @ White Sox 2–3 Gilbert (1–0) Chapman (2–1) — Rate Field 30,423 7–9 L2 17 April 13 @ White Sox 3–1 Crochet (2–1) Smith (0–1) Chapman (3) Rate Field 18,840 8–9 W1 18 April 14 @ Rays 1–16 Baz (2–0) Houck (0–2) — George M. Steinbrenner Field 10,046 8–10 L1 19 April 15 @ Rays 7–4 Buehler (2–1) Pepiot (1–2) Chapman (4) George M. Steinbrenner Field 10,046 9–10 W1 20 April 16 @ Rays 1–0 Weissert (1–0) Littell (0–4) Slaten (2) George M. Steinbrenner Field 10,046 10–10 W2 21 April 18 White Sox 10–3 Dobbins (2–0) Pérez (1–1) — Fenway Park 35,620 11–10 W3 22 April 19 White Sox 4–3 (10) Whitlock (1–0) Vasil (0–1) — Fenway Park 36,559 12–10 W4 23 April 20 White Sox 4–8 Eisert (1–0) Kelly (1–1) — Fenway Park 32,632 12–11 L1 24 April 21 White Sox 4–2 Buehler (3–1) Cannon (0–3) Slaten (3) Fenway Park 34,721 13–11 W1 25 April 22 Mariners 8–3 Bello (1–0) Miller (1–3) — Fenway Park 33,027 14–11 W2 26 April 23 Mariners 5–8 Hancock (1–1) Newcomb (0–3) Muñoz (8) Fenway Park 31,904 14–12 L1 27 April 24 Mariners 3–4 Woo (3–1) Crochet (2–2) Muñoz (9) Fenway Park 35,655 14–13 L2 ― April 25 @ Guardians Postponed due to rain. Makeup date April 26.[415] 28 April 26 (1) @ Guardians 4–5 Herrin (3–0) Bernardino (1–1) Smith (3) Progressive Field 17,367 14–14 L3 29 April 26 (2) @ Guardians 7–3 Buehler (4–1) Nikhazy (0–1) — Progressive Field 24,316 15–14 W1 30 April 27 @ Guardians 13–3 Bello (2–0) Allen (1–2) — Progressive Field 24,621 16–14 W2 31 April 29 @ Blue Jays 10–2 Crochet (3–2) Francis (2–4) — Rogers Centre 28,045 17–14 W3 32 April 30 @ Blue Jays 6–7 (10) Hoffman (3–0) Slaten (0–1) — Rogers Centre 26,498 17–15 L1
May: 11–17 (Home: 8–8; Away: 3–9) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Box/ Streak 33 May 1 @ Blue Jays 2–4 Fluharty (2–0) Slaten (0–2) García (2) Rogers Centre 24,198 17–16 L2 34 May 2 Twins 6–1 Wilson (1–0) Varland (1–3) — Fenway Park 35,914 18–16 W1 35 May 3 Twins 3–4 Ober (4–1) Dobbins (2–1) Durán (3) Fenway Park 36,250 18–17 L1 36 May 4 Twins 4–5 Varland (2–3) Slaten (0–3) Durán (4) Fenway Park 33,539 18–18 L2 37 May 6 Rangers 1–6 Eovaldi (3–2) Giolito (0–1) — Fenway Park 29,858 18–19 L3 38 May 7 Rangers 6–4 Bernardino (2–1) Webb (2–2) Chapman (5) Fenway Park 31,437 19–19 W1 39 May 8 Rangers 5–0 Slaten (1–3) Leiter (2–2) — Fenway Park 27,800 20–19 W2 40 May 9 @ Royals 1–2 (12) Cruz (1–0) Newcomb (0–4) — Kauffman Stadium 30,348 20–20 L1 41 May 10 @ Royals 10–1 Crochet (4–2) Ragans (2–2) — Kauffman Stadium 29,460 21–20 W1 42 May 11 @ Royals 3–1 Giolito (1–1) Lugo (3–4) Chapman (6) Kauffman Stadium 25,785 22–20 W2 43 May 12 @ Tigers 2–14 Jobe (3–0) Houck (0–3) — Comerica Park 20,136 22–21 L1 44 May 13 @ Tigers 9–10 (11) Brieske (1–1) Weissert (1–1) — Comerica Park 20,115 22–22 L2 45 May 14 @ Tigers 5–6 Vest (3–0) Chapman (2–2) — Comerica Park 21,013 22–23 L3 46 May 16 Braves 2–4 Sale (2–3) Crochet (4–3) Iglesias (8) Fenway Park 34,648 22–24 L4 47 May 17 Braves 7–6 Chapman (3–2) Johnson (1–1) — Fenway Park 34,594 23–24 W1 48 May 18 Braves 4–10 Schwellenbach (3–3) Bello (2–1) — Fenway Park 35,012 23–25 L1 49 May 19 Mets 3–1 Wilson (2–0) Senga (4–3) Chapman (7) Fenway Park 33,548 24–25 W1 50 May 20 Mets 2–0 Whitlock (2–0) Holmes (5–3) Chapman (8) Fenway Park 33,208 25–25 W2 51 May 21 Mets 1–5 Brazobán (3–0) Hendriks (0–1) — Fenway Park 31,661 25–26 L1 ― May 22 Orioles Postponed due to rain. Makeup date May 23.[416] 52 May 23 (1) Orioles 19–5 Whitlock (3–0) Domínguez (2–1) — Fenway Park 31,150 26–26 W1 ― May 23 (2) Orioles Postponed due to rain. Makeup date May 24.[417] 53 May 24 (1) Orioles 6–5 (10) Weissert (2–1) Soto (0–2) — Fenway Park 30,958 27–26 W2 54 May 24 (2) Orioles 1–2 Kittredge (1–0) Bernardino (2–2) Domínguez (1) Fenway Park 34,604 27–27 L1 55 May 25 Orioles 1–5 Kremer (4–5) Buehler (4–2) — Fenway Park 36,824 27–28 L2 56 May 26 @ Brewers 2–3 Hall (1–0) Crochet (4–4) Megill (10) American Family Field 40,181 27–29 L3 57 May 27 @ Brewers 1–5 (10) Zastryzny (1–0) Hendriks (0–2) — American Family Field 26,489 27–30 L4 58 May 28 @ Brewers 5–6 (10) Alexander (3–5) Slaten (1–4) — American Family Field 24,603 27–31 L5 59 May 30 @ Braves 5–1 Whitlock (4–0) Holmes (3–4) — Truist Park 39,842 28–31 W1 60 May 31 @ Braves 0–5 Schwellenbach (4–4) Buehler (4–3) — Truist Park 41,444 28–32 L1
June: 14–12 (Home: 8–5; Away: 6–7) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Box/ Streak 61 June 1 @ Braves 3–1 Crochet (5–4) Elder (2–3) Chapman (9) Truist Park 38,279 29–32 W1 62 June 2 Angels 6–7 Zeferjahn (3–1) Fitts (0–3) Jansen (12) Fenway Park 31,688 29–33 L1 63 June 3 Angels 3–4 (10) Jansen (1–2) Kelly (1–2) Detmers (1) Fenway Park 33,003 29–34 L2 64 June 4 Angels 11–9 Criswell (1–0) Burke (4–1) — Fenway Park 33,073 30–34 W1 65 June 6 @ Yankees 6–9 Warren (4–3) Buehler (4–4) Williams (7) Yankee Stadium 46,783 30–35 L1 66 June 7 @ Yankees 10–7 Crochet (6–4) Yarbrough (3–1) Chapman (10) Yankee Stadium 47,020 31–35 W1 67 June 8 @ Yankees 11–7 Dobbins (3–1) Rodón (8–4) Chapman (11) Yankee Stadium 45,140 32–35 W2 68 June 9 Rays 8–10 (11) Seymour (1–0) Kelly (1–3) — Fenway Park 31,422 32–36 L1 69 June 10 Rays 3–1 Giolito (2–1) Pepiot (3–6) Weissert (1) Fenway Park 31,917 33–36 W1 70 June 11 Rays 4–3 Buehler (5–4) Littell (6–6) Chapman (12) Fenway Park 36,003 34–36 W2 71 June 13 Yankees 2–1 (10) Whitlock (5–0) Hill (3–2) — Fenway Park 36,622 35–36 W3 72 June 14 Yankees 4–3 Dobbins (4–1) Rodón (8–5) Weissert (2) Fenway Park 36,414 36–36 W4 73 June 15 Yankees 2–0 Bello (3–1) Fried (9–2) Whitlock (1) Fenway Park 36,475 37–36 W5 74 June 16 @ Mariners 2–0 Giolito (3–1) Gilbert (1–2) Chapman (13) T-Mobile Park 24,490 38–36 W6 75 June 17 @ Mariners 0–8 Woo (6–4) Buehler (5–5) — T-Mobile Park 26,974 38–37 L1 76 June 18 @ Mariners 3–1 Crochet (7–4) Castillo (4–5) Weissert (3) T-Mobile Park 32,200 39–37 W1 77 June 20 @ Giants 7–5 Bernardino (3–2) Hjelle (1–1) Chapman (14) Oracle Park 40,169 40–37 W2 78 June 21 @ Giants 2–3 Roupp (5–5) Bello (3–2) Doval (12) Oracle Park 39,027 40–38 L1 79 June 22 @ Giants 5–9 Miller (4–0) Weissert (2–2) — Oracle Park 40,350 40–39 L2 80 June 23 @ Angels 5–9 Bachman (1–0) Whitlock (5–1) — Angel Stadium 30,137 40–40 L3 81 June 24 @ Angels 2–3 (10) Detmers (3–2) Wilson (2–1) — Angel Stadium 33,115 40–41 L4 82 June 25 @ Angels 2–5 Kikuchi (3–6) Guerrero (0–1) Zeferjahn (2) Angel Stadium 28,301 40–42 L5 83 June 27 Blue Jays 0–9 Berríos (4–3) Bello (3–3) — Fenway Park 35,719 40–43 L6 84 June 28 Blue Jays 15–1 Giolito (4–1) Bassitt (7–4) — Fenway Park 34,927 41–43 W1 85 June 29 Blue Jays 3–5 Rodríguez (2–0) Buehler (5–6) Hoffman (18) Fenway Park 35,214 41–44 L1 86 June 30 Reds 13–6 Crochet (8–4) Burns (0–1) — Fenway Park 35,691 42–44 W1
July: 17–7 (Home: 10–2; Away: 7–5) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Box/ Streak 87 July 1[c] Reds 5–3 Bello (4–3) Richardson (0–3) Chapman (15) Fenway Park 32,355 43–44 W2 88 July 2 Reds 4–8 Martinez (6–8) Weissert (2–3) — Fenway Park 35,845 43–45 L1 89 July 4 @ Nationals 11–2 Giolito (5–1) Soroka (3–6) — Nationals Park 37,355 44–45 W1 90 July 5 @ Nationals 10–3 Buehler (6–6) Parker (5–9) — Nationals Park 34,319 45–45 W2 91 July 6 @ Nationals 6–4 Crochet (9–4) Ogasawara (0–1) Hicks (1) Nationals Park 26,771 46–45 W3 92 July 7 Rockies 9–3 Fitts (1–3) Gomber (0–2) — Fenway Park 32,441 47–45 W4 93 July 8 Rockies 10–2 Bello (5–3) Freeland (1–10) — Fenway Park 30,169 48–45 W5 94 July 9 Rockies 10–2 Giolito (6–1) Senzatela (3–13) — Fenway Park 31,691 49–45 W6 95 July 10 Rays 4–3 Murphy (1–0) Baker (3–3) Chapman (16) Fenway Park 31,884 50–45 W7 96 July 11 Rays 5–4 Murphy (2–0) Fairbanks (4–3) — Fenway Park 34,452 51–45 W8 97 July 12 Rays 1–0 Crochet (10–4) Baz (8–5) — Fenway Park 36,453 52–45 W9 98 July 13 Rays 4–1 Bello (6–3) Pepiot (6–7) Chapman (17) Fenway Park 36,497 53–45 W10 ASG July 15 All-Star Game AL 6 – 6 NL* – – – Truist Park 41,702 — ASG *No extra innings were played; the National League was declared the winner after winning a home run swing-off 4–3. The Red Sox were represented by Aroldis Chapman, Garrett Crochet, and Alex Bregman. Only Chapman played. 99 July 18 @ Cubs 1–4 Rea (8–3) Giolito (6–2) Palencia (13) Wrigley Field 41,011 53–46 L1 100 July 19 @ Cubs 0–6 Imanaga (7–3) Bello (6–4) — Wrigley Field 40,703 53–47 L2 101 July 20 @ Cubs 6–1 Crochet (11–4) Pressly (2–3) — Wrigley Field 40,433 54–47 W1 102 July 21 @ Phillies 2–3 (10) Lazar (1–0) Hicks (1–6) — Citizens Bank Park 42,843 54–48 L1 103 July 22 @ Phillies 1–4 Sánchez (9–2) Fitts (1–4) — Citizens Bank Park 43,409 54–49 L2 104 July 23 @ Phillies 9–8 (11) Weissert (3–3) Johnson (1–1) Bernardino (1) Citizens Bank Park 42,601 55–49 W1 105 July 25 Dodgers 2–5 Sheehan (2–1) Bello (6–5) Casparius (1) Fenway Park 36,369 55–50 L1 106 July 26 Dodgers 4–2 Crochet (12–4) Kershaw (4–2) Chapman (17) Fenway Park 36,687 56–50 W1 107 July 27 Dodgers 4–3 Bernardino (4–2) May (6–7) Hicks (2) Fenway Park 35,465 57–50 W2 108 July 28 @ Twins 4–5 Durán (6–4) Hicks (1–7) — Target Field 24,443 57–51 L1 109 July 29 @ Twins 8–5 Giolito (7–2) Ohl (0–1) Chapman (19) Target Field 27,460 58–51 W1 110 July 30 @ Twins 13–1 Bello (7–5) Matthews (2–3) — Target Field 29,146 59–51 W2
August: 12–8 (Home: 7–4; Away: 5–4) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Box/ Streak 111 August 1 Astros 2–1 (10) Weissert (4–3) Sousa (5–1) — Fenway Park 36,881 60–51 W3 112 August 2 Astros 7–3 Wilson (3–1) Gordon (4–4) Chapman (20) Fenway Park 36,215 61–51 W4 113 August 3 Astros 6–1 Giolito (8–2) Valdez (11–5) — Fenway Park 36,081 62–51 W5 114 August 4 Royals 8–5 Bello (8–5) Falter (7–6) Chapman (21) Fenway Park 37,585 63–51 W6 115 August 5 Royals 6–2 Crochet (13–4) Bergert (1–1) — Fenway Park 37,013 64–51 W7 116 August 6 Royals 3–7 Wacha (6–9) May (6–8) — Fenway Park 37,012 64–52 L1 117 August 8 @ Padres 10–2 Buehler (7–6) Pivetta (11–4) — Petco Park 44,061 65–52 W1 118 August 9 @ Padres 4–5 (10) Adam (7–3) Whitlock (5–2) — Petco Park 42,389 65–53 L1 119 August 10 @ Padres 2–6 Cease (5–10) Bello (8–6) — Petco Park 43,323 65–54 L2 120 August 11 @ Astros 6–7 Javier (1–0) Crochet (13–5) Sousa (4) Daikin Park 39,330 65–55 L3 121 August 12 @ Astros 14–1 May (7–8) Arrighetti (1–3) — Daikin Park 34,396 66–55 W1 122 August 13 @ Astros 1–4 Brown (10–5) Buehler (7–7) Abreu (1) Daikin Park 31,048 66–56 L1 123 August 15 Marlins 2–1 Chapman (4–2) Simpson (2–2) — Fenway Park 36,854 67–56 W1 124 August 16 Marlins 7–5 Bello (9–6) Quantrill (4–10) Chapman (22) Fenway Park 36,192 68–56 W2 125 August 17 Marlins 3–5 Phillips (2–1) Weissert (4–4) Bender (4) Fenway Park 35,931 68–57 L1 126 August 18 Orioles 3–6 Rogers (6–2) May (7–9) — Fenway Park 36,961 68–58 L2 127 August 19 Orioles 3–4 (11) Canó (2–6) Whitlock (5–3) Martin (2) Fenway Park 37,435 68–59 L3 128 August 21 @ Yankees 6–3 Weissert (5–4) Weaver (3–4) Chapman (23) Yankee Stadium 47,036 69–59 W1 129 August 22 @ Yankees 1–0 Bello (10–6) Leiter Jr. (5–7) Chapman (24) Yankee Stadium 46,064 70–59 W2 130 August 23 @ Yankees 12–1 Crochet (14–5) Warren (7–6) — Yankee Stadium 45,512 71–59 W3 131 August 24 @ Yankees – — Yankee Stadium – 132 August 25 @ Orioles – — Camden Yards – 133 August 26 @ Orioles – — Camden Yards – 134 August 27 @ Orioles – — Camden Yards – 135 August 28 @ Orioles – — Camden Yards – 136 August 29 Pirates – — Fenway Park – 137 August 30 Pirates – — Fenway Park – 138 August 31 Pirates – — Fenway Park –
September: 0–0 (Home: 0–0; Away: 0–0) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Stadium Attendance Record Box/ Streak 139 September 1 Guardians – — Fenway Park – 140 September 2 Guardians – — Fenway Park – 141 September 3 Guardians – — Fenway Park – 142 September 5 @ Diamondbacks – — Chase Field – 143 September 6 @ Diamondbacks – — Chase Field – 144 September 7 @ Diamondbacks – — Chase Field – 145 September 8 @ Athletics – — Sutter Health Park – 146 September 9 @ Athletics – — Sutter Health Park – 147 September 10 @ Athletics – — Sutter Health Park – 148 September 12 Yankees – — Fenway Park – 149 September 13 Yankees – — Fenway Park – 150 September 14 Yankees – — Fenway Park – 151 September 16 Athletics – — Fenway Park – 152 September 17 Athletics – — Fenway Park – 153 September 18 Athletics – — Fenway Park – 154 September 19 @ Rays – — George M. Steinbrenner Field – 155 September 20 @ Rays – — George M. Steinbrenner Field – 156 September 21 @ Rays – — George M. Steinbrenner Field – 157 September 23 @ Blue Jays – — Rogers Centre – 158 September 24 @ Blue Jays – — Rogers Centre – 159 September 25 @ Blue Jays – — Rogers Centre – 160 September 26 Tigers – — Fenway Park – 161 September 27 Tigers – — Fenway Park – 162 September 28 Tigers – — Fenway Park –

Grand slams

No.	Date	Red Sox batter	H/A	Pitcher	Opposing team	Ref.
1	May 18	Rafael Devers	H	Spencer Schwellenbach	Atlanta Braves	[421]
2	May 23			Emmanuel Rivera†	Baltimore Orioles	[422]
3	June 30	Wilyer Abreu		Connor Phillips	Cincinnati Reds	[423]
4	July 23	Romy González	A	Jesús Luzardo	Philadelphia Phillies	[424]

† Normally a position player

Ejections

No.	Date	Red Sox personnel	H/A	Opposing team	Ref.
1	May 20	Walker Buehler	H	New York Mets	[425]
2		Alex Cora
3	June 9			Tampa Bay Rays	[426]
4	June 22	Jarren Duran	A	San Francisco Giants	[427]
5		Alex Cora
6	June 23			Los Angeles Angels	[428]
7	August 13			Houston Astros	[429]

Source:^[430]

Current roster

Boston Red Sox roster v t e
Active roster				Inactive roster		Coaches / other
Pitchers Starting rotation 66 Brayan Bello 35 Garrett Crochet 54 Lucas Giolito 85 Dustin May Bullpen 83 Brennan Bernardino  0 Walker Buehler 80 Richard Fitts 46 Jordan Hicks 41 Steven Matz 57 Greg Weissert 22 Garrett Whitlock 32 Justin Wilson Closer(s) 44 Aroldis Chapman		Catchers 75 Carlos Narváez 12 Connor Wong Infielders  2 Alex Bregman 40 Nate Eaton 23 Romy González 17 David Hamilton 37 Nathaniel Lowe 10 Trevor Story Outfielders 19 Roman Anthony 16 Jarren Duran 51 Jhostynxon Garcia  3 Ceddanne Rafaela  7 Masataka Yoshida		Pitchers 48 Isaiah Campbell 64 Cooper Criswell -- Kyle Harrison 76 Zack Kelly 47 Jovani Morán 72 Chris Murphy 93 Luis Perales Infielders 28 Kristian Campbell  5 Vaughn Grissom 39 Marcelo Mayer 20 Nick Sogard Outfielders 52 Wilyer Abreu 30 Rob Refsnyder		Manager 13 Alex Cora Coaches 53 Andrew Bailey (pitching) 62 Peter Fatse (hitting) 58 José Flores (first base/infield) 86 Parker Guinn (bullpen catcher/catching instructor) 59 Chris Holt (bullpen) 84 Kyle Hudson (third base/outfield) 88 Dillon Lawson (assistant hitting) 90 Charlie Madden (bullpen catcher) 85 Ben Rosenthal (assistant hitting) 33 Jason Varitek (game planning/run prevention) 60 Ramón Vázquez (bench) 60-day injured list 36 Triston Casas 50 Kutter Crawford 73 Hunter Dobbins 99 Luis Guerrero 31 Liam Hendriks 89 Tanner Houck 43 Patrick Sandoval 63 Justin Slaten 25 Josh Winckowski 26 active, 13 inactive 7-, 10-, or 15-day injured list # Personal leave Roster and coaches updated August 21, 2025 Transactions • Depth chart → All MLB rosters

Transactions

April transactions

April April 1: The team announced that they signed Garrett Crochet to a six-year extension worth $170 million.[431] April 2: The team announced that they signed Kristian Campbell to an eight-year contract extension worth $60 million.[432] April 7: The team traded pitcher Quinn Priester to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for minor-league outfielder Yophery Rodriguez, a Competitive Balance Round selection in the 2025 MLB draft, and a player to be named later (or cash considerations).[433] April 8: The team would complete multiple transactions. The team placed catcher Connor Wong on the 10-day IL, designated pitcher Robert Stock for assignment. The team recalled catcher Blake Sabol and pitcher Josh Winckowski from Worcester.[434] April 10: The team agreed to a minor-league deal with catcher Yasmani Grandal.[435] The team also released pitcher Matt Moore from his minor-league contract.[436] The team sent pitcher Liam Hendricks on a rehab assignment to Worcester and pitcher Robert Stock outright to Worcester.[437] April 13: The team placed pitcher Richard Fitts on the 15-day IL and selected the contract of pitcher Michael Fulmer from Worcester.[438] April 15: The team sent pitcher Lucas Giolito on a rehab assignment to Portland.[439] April 16: The team sent pitchers Liam Hendriks and Brayan Bello on rehab assignments to Portland, recalled second baseman Nick Sogard from Worcester, signed free agent pitcher Angel Lopez to a minor-league contract, and placed third baseman Alex Bregman on the paternity list.[440] April 18: The team optioned Nick Sogard to Worcester recalled Hunter Dobbins from Worcester, activated Alex Bregman from the paternity list, and designated Michael Fulmer for assignment.[441] April 19: The team activated pitcher Liam Hendriks from the 15-day injured list and optioned pitcher Hunter Dobbins to Worcester.[442] April 20: Pitcher Michael Fulmer elects free agency.[443] April 22: The team activated pitcher Brayan Bello from the 15-day injured list and optioned pitcher Zack Kelly to Worcester.[444] April 24: The team optioned pitcher Josh Wincowski to Worcester and recalled pitcher Luis Guerrero from Worcester.[445] April 25: The team sent pitcher Lucas Giolito on a rehab assignment to Worcester.[446] April 26: The team recalled pitcher Cooper Criswell from Worcester.[447] April 27: The team sent catcher Connor Wong on a rehab assignment to Worcester and optioned pitcher Cooper Criswell to Worcester.[448] April 30: The team placed pitcher Brennan Bernardino on the bereavement list, activated pitcher Lucas Giolito from the 15-day injured list, and signed free agent pitcher Jay Allmer to a minor league contract.[449]

May transactions

May May 2: The team activated catcher Connor Wong from the 10-day injured list and recalled pitcher Hunter Dobbins from Worcester; the team optioned catcher Blake Sabol to Worcester, and placed pitcher Walker Buehler on the 15-day injured list retroactive to April 29, 2025.[450] May 3: The team activated pitcher Brennan Bernardino from the bereavement list, selected the contract of third baseman Abraham Toro from Worcester, optioned pitcher Luis Guerrero to Worcester, and placed Triston Casas on the 10-day injured list.[451] May 5: The team acquired pitcher John Holobetz from the Brewers as the player to be named later from the April 7 trade of Quinn Priester to the Brewers.[452] May 10: The team placed Romy González on the 10-day injured list retroactive to May 8; recalled Nick Sogard from Worcester.[453] May 14: The team placed Tanner Houck on the 15-day injured list and recalled Cooper Criswell from Worcester.[454] May 15: The team optioned Cooper Criswell to Worcester and transferred Kutter Crawford from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list.[455] May 16: The team selected the contract of Nick Burdi.[456] May 20: The team activated Walker Buehler from the 15-day injured list and optioned Nick Burdi to Worcester.[457] May 22: The Red Sox acquired Ryan Noda from the Angels in exchange for cash considerations and optioned him to Worcester; Masataka Yoshida was transferred to the 60-day injured list.[458] The team also sent Richard Fitts on a rehab assignment to Portland and signed free agent pitcher P. J. Labriola to a minor league contract.[459] May 24: The team moved Triston Casas to the 60-day injured list, placed Alex Bregman on the 10-day disabled list, and added Marcelo Mayer to the active roster.[460] Additionally, the team designated Sean Newcomb for assignment and recalled Luis Guerrero from Worcester.[461] May 25: The team optioned Cooper Criswell and Luis Guerrero to Worcester; recalled Zack Kelly from Worcester.[462] May 27: The team traded Sean Newcomb to the Athletics in exchange for cash considerations.[463] The team also activated Richard Fitts from the 15-day injured list.[464] May 30: The team placed Liam Hendriks on the 15-day injured list retroactive to May 28 and recalled Nick Burdi from Worcester.[465]

June transactions

June June 1: The team designated Blake Sabol for assignment, optioned Nick Sogard to Worcester, recalled Luis Guerrero from Worcester, and added Nate Eaton to the active roster. The team also placed Justin Slaten on the 15-day injured list retroactive to May 29.[466] June 4: Yasmani Grandal informed Worcester that he was stepping away from his minor-league deal.[467] June 5: The team sent Blake Sabol outright to Worcester.[468] June 7: The team selected the contract of Robert Stock from Triple-A, and Josh Winckowski was placed on the 60-day injured list.[469] June 9: The team selected the contracts of Roman Anthony and Brian Van Belle from Worcester, and designated Robert Stock and Ryan Noda for assignment. The team also placed Wilyer Abreu on the 15-day injured list.[470][471] June 10: The team designated Brian Van Belle for assignment.[472] June 11: The team acquired pitcher Jorge Alcala from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for minor-league infielder Andy Lugo.[473] The team also sent pitcher Robert Stock outright to Worcester.[474] June 12: The team signed free agent pitcher Michael Manjarres to a minor-league contract.[475] June 13: The team sent Nick Burdi on a rehab assignment to Worcester, whilst the White Sox claimed Ryan Noda off of waivers from the team.[476] June 14: The team traded Brian Van Belle to the Reds in exchange for cash considerations.[477] June 15: The team traded Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for pitchers Kyle Harrison and Jordan Hicks and minor-league players James Tibbs III and Jose Bello. The team designated Zach Penrod for assignment.[478][479][480] June 17: The team sent Wilyer Abreu on a rehab assignment to Worcester.[481] June 18: The team sent Tanner Houck on a rehab assignment to Worcester.[482] June 20: The team traded Zach Penrod to the Dodgers in exchange for cash considerations.[483] The team optioned Kristian Campbell to Worcester and reinstated Wilyer Abreu.[484] June 21: The team signed free agent Wascar Berroa to a minor-league contract.[485] June 22: The team sent Jordan Hicks on a rehab assignment to Worcester. The team sent Hunter Dobbins on the 15-day injured list retroactive to June 21 and recalled Richard Fitts from Worcester.[486] June 27: The team placed Marcelo Mayer on the bereavement list and recalled Nick Sogard from Worcester.[487] June 28: The team reinstated Chris Murphy from the 60-day injured list, placed Luis Guerrero on the 15-day injured list, and moved Justin Slaten from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list.[488] June 30: The team activated Jordan Hicks from the 15-day injured list and Marcelo Mayer from the bereavement list; the team optioned Nick Sogard to Worcester.[489]

July transactions

July July 1: The team sent Masataka Yoshida on a rehab assignment to Worcester.[490] July 2: The team signed Rony Claderon to a minor league contract and recalled Cooper Criswell from Worcester.[491] July 3: The team optioned Cooper Criswell to Worcester.[492] July 4: The team sent Tanner Houck and Masataka Yoshida on rehab assignments to Portland.[493] July 5: The team sent Hunter Dobbins on a rehab assignment to Worcester and signed free agent Alexander Heredia to a minor league contract.[494] July 8: The team transferred Liam Hendriks from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list and optioned Richard Fitts to Worcester. The team selected the contract of Isaiah Campbell from Worcester.[495] July 9: The team placed Nick Burdi on the 60-day injured list. The team also activated Masataka Yoshida from the 60-day injured list, while optioning Nate Eaton and sending Tanner Houck on a rehab assignment, both to Worcester.[496] July 11: The team optioned both David Hamilton and Isaiah Campbell to Worcester, and activated Alex Bregman and Hunter Dobbins from the 10-day and 15-day injured lists, respectively.[497] July 12: The team traded Blake Sabol from Worcester to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for cash considerations. The team also placed Hunter Dobbins on the 15-day injured list with a right ACL tear and recalled Richard Fitts from Worcester.[498] July 18: The team signed free agent Ronaldo Hernández to a minor league contract.[499] July 20: The team signed free agent Andrews Opata to a minor league contract. The team also signed 2025 MLB draft selections Kyson Witherspoon, Marcus Phillips, Anthony Eyanson, Christian Foutch, Leighton Finley, Jacob Mayers, Maximus Martin, Barrett Morgan, Ethan Walker, Jack Winnay, Carter Rasmussen, Skylar King, Jason Gilman, Patrick Galle, Cade Fisher, and Fabian Bonilla to the organization.[500] July 22: The team signed 2025 MLB draft selections Henry Godbout, Mason White, Myles Patton, and Dylan Brown to the organization.[501] July 24: The team signed Ty Hodge and free agent Caleb Berry, Berry to a minor league contract. The team also sent Zack Kelly on a rehab assignment to Greenville Drive.[502] July 25: The team placed Marcelo Mayer on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to July 24, with a right wrist sprain. Correspondingly, the team recalled David Hamilton from Worcester.[503] July 29: The team optioned Richard Fitts to Worcester and recalled Cooper Criswell from Worcester.[504] July 31: The team traded minor-league infielder Blaze Jordan to the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for pitcher Steven Matz.[505] The team also traded minor-league players James Tibbs III and Zach Ehrhard to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for pitcher Dustin May.[506]

August

• August 1: The team activated Steven Matz, optioned Brennan Bernardino to Worcester and sent Nick Burdi on rehab assignment to Worcester.^[507]
• August 2: The team transferred Luis Guerrero from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list with a right elbow strain. The team also optioned both Cooper Criswell and Zack Kelly to Worcester, and activated Dustin May.^[508]
• August 5: The team designated Jorge Alcalá for assignment and recalled Isaiah Campbell from Worcester.^[509]
• August 6: The team signed Roman Anthony to an eight-year contract extension covering the 2026-2033 seasons with a club option for 2034 worth $130 million.^[510][511]
• August 8: The team claimed Ali Sánchez off waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays.^[512]
• August 11: The team designated Nick Burdi for assignment, and optioned both Chris Murphy and David Hamilton to Worcester. The team also activated Ali Sánchez and recalled Jovani Morán from Worcester.^[513][514]
• August 13: The team sent Nick Burdi outright to Worcester.^[515]
• August 18: The team signed first baseman Nathaniel Lowe to a one-year contract for 2025, wearing number 37. The team also placed outfielder Rob Refsnyder on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to August 15) with a left oblique strain, recalled infielder/outfielder Nate Eaton from Worcester, and designated catcher Ali Sánchez for assignment.^[516]
• August 19: The team optioned Jovani Morán and sent Justin Slaten to Worcester, the latter on rehab assignment. The team also recalled Brennan Bernardino from Worcester.^[517]
• August 20: The team optioned Isaiah Campbell to Worcester.^[518]
• August 21: The team recalled both David Hamilton and Richard Fitts from Worcester, and designated Abraham Toro for assignment. The team also placed Wilyer Abreu on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to August 18) with a right calf strain, and selected outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia to fill his place on the roster, wearing number 51.^[519][520]

MLB debuts

• March 27: Kristian Campbell^[521]
• April 6: Hunter Dobbins^[522]
• May 24: Marcelo Mayer^[523]
• June 9: Roman Anthony^[524]
• August 22: Jhostynxon Garcia^[525]

Awards and honors

Recipient	Award	Date awarded	Ref.
Alex Bregman	AL Player of the Week	April 7, 2025	[526]
Kristian Campbell	AL Rookie of the Month	May 2, 2025	[527]
Rafael Devers	AL Player of the Week	May 12, 2025	[528]
Alex Bregman	All-Star Reserve	July 6, 2025	[529]
Aroldis Chapman
Garrett Crochet
Trevor Story	AL Player of the Week	August 4, 2025	[530]

Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball and Boston Red Sox minor league players

Minor-league coaching assignments were announced on January 16.^[531]

Level	Team	League	Division	Manager	Notes
Triple-A	Worcester Red Sox	International League	East	Chad Tracy
Double-A	Portland Sea Dogs	Eastern League	Northeast	Chad Epperson
High-A	Greenville Drive	South Atlantic League	South	Liam Carroll
Single-A	Salem Red Sox	Carolina League	North	Ozzie Chavez
Rookie	FCL Red Sox	Florida Complex League	South	Chase Illig
	DSL Red Sox Blue	Dominican Summer League	Central	Sandy Madera
	DSL Red Sox Red		West	Amaury Garcia

Amateur draft

Main article: 2025 Major League Baseball draft

The 2025 MLB draft was held on July 13–14, 2025, in Cumberland, Georgia, site of the season's All-Star Game. With their 21 picks, the Red Sox selected 15 pitchers; the team only selected one high school player, in the 19th round, as all their other selections were college baseball players.^[532]

The Red Sox acquired a Competitive Balance Round A pick (between the first and second rounds) as part of the April 7 trade that sent pitcher Quinn Priester to the Brewers.^[433] The Red Sox received a Compensatory round pick (between the second and third rounds) due to the San Diego Padres signing Nick Pivetta.^[533] The Red Sox did not have a pick in the second round, due to Alex Bregman signing with the team in February.^[534]

Round	Pick	Name	Position†	School (state)	Birthplace	Signing date	Ref.
1	15	Kyson Witherspoon	RHP	Oklahoma (OK)	USA	July 20	[535][500]
Comp. Bal. A	33	Marcus Phillips	RHP	Tennessee (TN)	USA		[536][500]
Comp.	75	Henry Godbout	SS	Virginia (VA)	USA	July 22	[537][501]
3	87	Anthony Eyanson	RHP	LSU (LA)	USA	July 20	[538][500]
4	118	Mason White	SS	Arizona (AZ)	USA	July 22	[539][501]
5	148	Christian Foutch	RHP	Arkansas (AR)	USA	July 20	[540][500]
6	178	Leighton Finley	RHP	Georgia (GA)	USA		[541][500]
7	208	Myles Patton	LHP	Texas A&M (TX)	USA	July 22	[542][501]
8	238	Dylan Brown	LHP	Old Dominion (VA)	USA		[543][501]
9	268	Jacob Mayers	RHP	Louisiana State (LA)	USA	July 20	[544][500]
10	298	Maximus Martin	SS	Kansas State (KS)	USA		[545][500]
11	328	Barrett Morgan	RHP	Cowley College (KS)	USA		[546][500]
12	358	Ethan Walker	LHP	Kentucky (KY)	USA		[546][500]
13	388	Jack Winnay	3B	Wake Forest (NC)	USA		[547][500]
14	418	Carter Rasmussen	RHP	Wofford (SC)	USA		[548][500]
15	448	Skylar King	OF	West Virginia (WV)	USA		[546][500]
16	478	Jason Gilman	LHP	Kean (NJ)	USA		[549][500]
17	508	Patrick Galle	RHP	Ole Miss (MS)	USA		[550][500]
18	538	Cade Fisher	LHP	Auburn (AL)	USA		[546][500]
19	568	Fabian Bonilla	OF	Christian Military Academy (PR)	PR		[546][500]
20	598	Garrison Sumner	RHP	BYU (UT)	USA		[551]

† Positions are per MLB Draft Tracker.

Source:^[552][553]

Notes

1. Longtime Red Sox radio announcer Joe Castiglione retired at the end of the 2024 regular season.
2. There is some inconsistency between sources regarding the amount remaining on Devers' contract, ranging from "over $235 million" to $271.153 million.^[3][4]
3. The July 1 game was suspended due to rain in the top of the fourth inning with the Red Sox leading 2–1;^[418][419] it was completed before the regularly scheduled game on July 2.^[420]