Red Sox rout Rays for first 13-game streak since 1948
The Boston Red Sox crushed the Tampa Bay Rays 6-1 on Sunday at Fenway Park, completing a four-game sweep and extending their winning streak to 13 games — matching the franchise's second-longest run since 1948. Interim manager Chad Tracy's club now sits at 50-48 and holds the American League's third wild-card spot.
Key Takeaways
- Boston finished a four-game sweep of the AL East-leading Rays with a 6-1 win at Fenway.
- The 13-game streak ties the 1948 Red Sox for the second-longest in franchise history, two shy of the 1946 club's 15-game run.
- Sonny Gray improved to 12-1 with his ninth straight quality start; Willson Contreras hit a two-run homer, his 22nd of the year.
- The Red Sox trail Tampa Bay by six games and hold the AL's third wild-card berth after climbing from 15½ games out in late June.
How did the Red Sox beat the Rays on Sunday?
Victor Mesa Jr. gave Tampa Bay a brief lead with an inside-the-park homer in the second, but Andruw Monasterio answered with an RBI double. In the third, Boston scored three runs without a hit — via walks, a hit batter, a passed ball, a fielder's choice, and an RBI groundout — for a 4-1 advantage.
Contreras then sliced an opposite-field two-run homer over the bullpen in the fifth to make it 6-1. Gray allowed one run on five hits over six innings, walking a season-high four but stranding seven runners as the Rays went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position against him.
Why does this Red Sox streak matter for the playoff race?
Less than a month ago, Boston was 32-46 and 15½ games out of first after a rough stretch that included losses in Denver. The club has since surged, sweeping the Yankees and White Sox as well as the Rays, and posting an 18-2 tear that pulled them back into contention.
At 50-48, the Red Sox sit six games behind the Rays and four behind the Yankees while holding the third wild-card spot. Third baseman Caleb Durbin said the club has "flipped the script," and Tracy stressed that winning against playoff-caliber teams at home out of the All-Star break matters.
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Where does the streak rank in Red Sox history?
According to MLB.com, the 13-game run matches the 1948 team and sits two wins short of the franchise-record 15-gamer by the 1946 AL pennant winners. Over the last month Boston is 21-5, and Durbin called being part of that history "super cool."
Next up at Fenway: three games against the Orioles and three against the Blue Jays, with the scorching-hot Red Sox chasing more history while trying to shrink the gap on first place.