G123: Red Sox 5, Yankees 1

Yankees - 000 010 000 - 1  3  0
Red Sox - 020 001 02x - 5 12  0

The Red Sox increased their division lead to five games, as Rick Porcello (6-3-1-3-4, 103) and three relievers limited the Yankees to three hits. The bottom of the order provided the muscle as the 6-9 hitters scored all five runs and were driven in by #8 hitter Sandy Leon (2-for-3, 2 RBI) and #9 hitter Jackie Bradley (2-for-3, 3 RBI).

After Xander Bogaerts and Leon had singled in the second, Bradley brought them both home with a triple into the triangle. Brett Gardner's home run in the fifth cut the lead to 2-1, but Boston added runs off the New York bullpen.

Mitch Moreland singled off Adam Warren with one out in the sixth. He went to second on a wild pitch, to third on Leon groundout, and scored on Bradley's single to right-center.

Aroldis Chapman recorded the final out of the sixth and pitched the seventh. He walked Mookie betts to lead off and wild-pitched him to second. betts took third on a fly out, but Chapman stranded him by retiring Hanley Ramirez and Rafael Devers. (Devers also got picked off first by catcher Gary Sanchez to end the third inning.)

The Red Sox seemed ready to explode for a huge inning in the eighth against Tommy Kahnle. Bogaerts walked on four pitches and Moreland doubled. Leon's double scored them both. Caleb Smith came out of the pen and walked Bradley on four pitches. Then Brock Holt singled, loading the bases with no outs. But ... Betts struck out, Andrew Benintendi flied to left, and Ramirez grounded to the pitcher.

We had to wait until his fourth and final plate appearance, against Addison Reed in the eighth, but Aaron Judge struck out swinging. Judge has now struck out at least once in 37 consecutive games, tying pitcher Bill Stoneman's all-time record, set over two seasons (35 games in 1971 and 2 games in 1972).

In looking at Stoneman's 1972 batting log at Baseball Reference, I see that he was a pinch-runner in a game (the day after his first start of the season) between Games 36 and 37 of his streak. He went into run in the second inning, was erased on a double play, and never took the field. I guess because he never had a chance to bat, the game doesn't count.

Sonny Gray / Rick Porcello

Holt, 2B
Betts, RF
Benintendi, LF
Ramirez, DH
Devers, 3B
Bogaerts, SS
Moreland, 1B
Leon, C
Bradley, CF

At the end of today, the Yankees will be either 3 GB or 5 GB the Red Sox in the AL East, which feels like a significant difference with only 39 games remaining in the regular season. The two teams will play one more series: four games at Yankee Stadium on August 31 and September 1-3.

Elias, from yesterday: Since earned runs became official in the American League in 1913, five Yankees pitchers have won their first three starts of the season against the Red Sox with a sub-1.00 ERA: Lefty Gomez (1934, 0.33), Hank Borowy (1945, 0.35), Whitey Ford (1956, 0.67), Scott Sanderson (1991, 0.43), and CC Sabathia (2017, 0.90).