TAMPA – The Red Sox needed a big hit as much as they needed water on a hot Friday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
The type of moment that had been annoyingly elusive for Boston over the last two weeks at least appeared via Jarren Duran’s bat.
As Duran mauled a go-ahead, two-run homer to right in the top of the seventh that fueled the Red Sox to an 11-7 victory over the Rays, he posed as the ball took flight.
You can’t blame the outfielder for enjoying the moment as the baseball landed on top of the roof of a bar beyond the right field stands. It was a hit his team badly needed to regain some good vibrations heading into this crucial final stretch.
In the opener of the final road trip of the season, three in Tampa followed by three in Toronto, the Red Sox (84-70) allowed themselves to breathe a bit easier.
The offense, which has struggled to produce with Roman Anthony (left oblique) and Wilyer Abreu on the injured list at the same time and several other players slumping simultaneously, came to life.
Alex Bregman smashed his second homer since Aug. 12, a solo shot to left in the third. Ceddanne Rafaela came through with four hits, including an RBI single in Boston’s seven-run eighth inning.
On a night ace Garrett Crochet turned in a quality start (six innings, four hits, three runs, three walks, nine strikeouts), his teammates made sure it didn’t go to waste.
The late-game barrage allowed manager Alex Cora the opportunity to rest his elite setup/closer combo of Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman.
