Left-hander Chris Sale held the Padres to two solo homers over seven innings and Enmanuel Valdez gave Boston a quick 3-0 lead with a three-run, second-inning homer Saturday night as the visiting Red Sox scored a 4-2 victory in San Diego.
Sale allowed three hits and a walk with eight strikeouts. He threw 111 pitches (73 strikes) to improve to 4-2. Kenley Jansen, who blew his last two save opportunities, retired Brandon Dixon on a game-ending pop out to third after putting the tying runs on base with walks. It was Jansen’s 10th save.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox scored four runs on six hits, a walk and a hit batter against Padres starter Joe Musgrove, who had six strikeouts in five innings. Musgrove fell to 1-2.
Raimel Tapia triggered the Red Sox second-inning rally with a one-out single and moved to second when Musgrove hit Enrique Hernandez with a pitch. With Valdez at the plate, Tapia and Hernandez ran on a double steal. Tapia was originally called out at third for the second out in the inning. But Boston manager Alex Cora appealed and Tapia was ruled safe.
Valdez then launched a high, 374-foot drive to right on Musgrove’s third pitch for his third homer of the season.
Boston’s second successful appeal led to its fourth run in the fourth. Hernandez doubled leading off the inning, although he was originally called out on a throw by Jose Azocar. But the Red Sox appealed and Hernandez was ruled safe at second. He moved to third on a single by Connor Wong and scored on Alex Verdugo’s one-out single.
Juan Soto reduced Boston’s lead to 3-1 in the bottom of the second on his eighth homer of the season — a 409-foot drive to right center.
Fernando Tatis Jr. again reduced the Padres’ deficit to two runs with his seventh homer of the season on a full-count, 440-foot drive to left center in the sixth. Tatis’ homer was the ninth straight solo homer by the Padres.
Ha-Seong Kim followed the Tatis homer with a double — the Padres’ third and final hit.
–Field Level Media
