BOSTON – The Red Sox opened up their weekend series with the Rays with a 7-3 win at Fenway Park Friday night.
Brian Johnson (4-3) picked up the win, tossing 5 2/3 innings of five-hit ball. He allowed three runs, all in the first inning, before settling in to his outing.
Heath Hembree, Ryan Brasier, Matt Barnes, and Tyler Thornburg combined for 3 1/3 scoreless innings out of the bullpen.
Xander Bogaerts went 3-for-4 with two runs batted in. Mitch Moreland and Jackie Bradley Jr. also had multi-hit nights.
Mookie Betts became the second player in team history to record three 100-run seasons before turning 26. Ted Williams was the other Red Sox hitter to accomplish that feat.
How it happened:
Johnson struggled to get out of the first inning. The lefty recorded two outs but then gave up three runs on a two-RBI double by Joey Wendle and a run-scoring single by Carlos Gomez.
The Sox cut the lead to one in the bottom of the first on a two-out, two-RBI triple by Bogaerts.
The Sox tied the game in the fourth on a RBI single by Eduardo Nunez. He drove in Bogaerts, who had doubled.
Betts doubled to lead off the fifth and came around to score on a Moreland single.
Bradley Jr. extended the lead to 5-3 in the sixth with a double, driving in Blake Swihart.
J.D. Martinez added a RBI single in the seventh, his 105th of the season, a new career-high. He would come around to score on a wild pitch.
Up next:
David Price (12-6, 3.75 ERA) will take the ball on Saturday against lefty Tyler Glasnow (1-2, 3.97 ERA).