Porcello stellar as Red Sox beat Twins
MINNEAPOLIS » What Rick Porcello did six days ago carried over into an outstanding performance.
Porcello allowed one hit in seven innings, Mookie Betts and Andrew Benintendi homered, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 9-2 Thursday to avoid a series sweep.
Xander Bogaerts had two RBIs for the Red Sox, who had a season-high 16 hits, and finished 6-4 on a road trip through Baltimore, Seattle and Minnesota.
“We definitely needed a win today, especially to end this long road trip after dropping the first two games to these guys,” Porcello said.
He was dominant in a game that was 2-0 through six innings.
After a first-inning single by Logan Morrison, ending a 0-for30 stretch against Boston, Porcello (9-3) retired 19 of 20 Twins hitters, including the last 16. Throwing 97 pitches, he struck out five and walked one.
Porcello finished seven innings
for the first time in 10 starts since April 29. His best previous start of the season was April 12 against the Yankees, when he allowed two hits and struck out six in seven innings.
Last Friday in Seattle, Porcello allowed four earned runs and seven hits in six innings. But his mood was much different in the final inning.
“I was just pitching a lot more relaxed, the delivery was smooth and I executed, so I tried to carry that with the tempo and everything into today,” he said.
“He was under control,” said manager Alex Cora.
Kyle Gibson (2-5) allowed seven hits and two earned runs in six innings for Minnesota, striking out five for his ninth quality Boston Red Sox’s Xander Bogaerts, left, celebrates with J.D. Martinez after he scored on a double by Mitch Moreland in the eighth inning of a baseball game Thursday in Minneapolis. The Red Sox 9-2. start this season. He had only 10 in 2017 and eight in 2016.
Betts hit the first pitch of the fifth inning into the front row of seats in rightcenter for a 2-0 lead. He finished with three hits and has reached base eight times in his last three games.
“He likes to take a lot of first pitches and then once in a while ambushes, and he got him that time,” said Twins manager Paul Molitor.
The Red Sox were 5 for 14 with runners in scoring position, finishing the three-game series 7 for 36.
“It was a just couple tough days,” Betts said. “We came out ready to swing it and we just showed what we can do.”
Bogaerts’ two-run double keyed a three-run seventh against Ryan Pressly. Benintendi hit a two-run shot in the eighth.
PREPARATION PAID OFF
With left-handed hitting Joe Mauer up, Betts, playing right field, shifted to right-center and barely had to move to catch a fly ball. Betts then waved a card telling him where to play toward the dugout.
“It was an extreme one from the analytical department,” Cora said. “. I’m glad that it happened. They believe in what we’re doing, but sometimes they see something extremely out of the ordinary. I was the happiest guy, like ‘Thank God they hit it right there.”’