G34: Red Sox 6, Rangers 1

Red Sox - 101 003 100 - 6 10  1
Rangers - 000 000 100 - 1  5  0

The way the top of the sixth unfolded is my favourite kind of Red Sox inning. Two outs and no one on base. The other team assumes they'll be back in their dugout in a minute or two, but the Red Sox start getting guys on base and end up scoring some runs.

Boston was up 2-0 when Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers both struck out against Doug Fister (6.1-9-6-2-5, 103). Then, Eduardo Nunez singled to left, Jackie Bradley was hit with a 1-2 pitch, and  Sandy Leon, who started the day slugging .111 (slugging! .111!) cranked a 2-0 pitch to deep right-center. The Red Sox now led by five.

Chris Sale (7-4-1-1-12, 103) struck out the side in the first, looking like the dominating ace of last season, then escaped a bases-loaded jam in the second by catching a line drive off Carlos Perez's bat that was headed straight for his coconut. After that, the Rangers did not put up much of a fight. Sale gave up a home run to Ryan Rua leading off the seventh.

Mookie Betts left the game in the middle of the second. He singled to start the afternoon and ran to second when Andrew Benintendi grounded to first. Texas first baseman Ronald Guzman recorded the out at first and threw to second base. The ball hit Betts in the back and it seemed like he might have jammed his right wrist when he slid. But reports after the game were that he had suffered a right shoulder contusion. There is apparently nothing wrong with his wrist.

Betts ended up scoring on Mitch Moreland's double. Boston added a run in the third when J.D. Martinez doubled and scored on Bogaerts's single to left. Martinez hit a solo dong in the seventh.

News Flash: Phil Cuzzi is not a good umpire. He had successive calls at first base challenged and overturned today. The calls came within a span of three batters. Cuzzi called Jurickson Profar safe at first when a high throw from Devers in the bottom of the third pulled Moreland off the bag, but replays showed that Moreland got his foot back in time for the third out. Then, with one out in the top of the fourth, Cuzzi ruled Jackie Bradley safe on a similar play. The throw pulled Guzman off the bag, but replays showed that he had been able to slap a tag on Bradley's left shoulder.

MFY Watch: Through seven innings, the Yankees and Cleveland had combined for no runs and one hit. Cleveland ended the Yankees' no-hit bid with four runs in the top of the eighth, but New York answered with three in the bottom half. In the bottom of the ninth, Cody Allen shit the bed yet again. He gave up back-to-back doubles that tied the game at 4-4 and Gleyber Torres hit a three-run homer off Dan Otero. New York has won 15 of its last 16 games.

Cleveland - 000 000 040 - 4  4  1
MFY       - 000 000 034 - 7  6  0

Torres (21 years, 144 days) is the youngest player in Yankees history to hit a walk-off home run. Mickey Mantle was 41 days older when he did it against the Red Sox on April 23, 1953.

Chris Sale / Doug Fister

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

The Yankees host Cleveland at 1 PM. Both New York and Boston have tomorrow off before beginning a three-game series in the Bronx on Tuesday night.

On April 10-12, the Red Sox took two out of three from the Yankees at Fenway Park: 14-1, 7-10, 6-3.

AL East

             Current      Thru April 20   Since April 21
              W    L          W    L         W    L
Red Sox      24    9         17    2         7    7
Yankees      23   10          9    9        14    1
Blue Jays    18   16         13    6         5   10
Rays         15   16          6   13         9    3
Orioles       8   25          6   14         2   11

St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina underwent emergency surgery Saturday evening after being hit in his groin area by a foul ball ...

In the ninth inning of Saturday's game against the Chicago Cubs, Kris Bryant nicked a 102-mph fastball from Cardinals reliever Jordan Hicks that drilled Molina in his groin area. The Cardinals catcher doubled over, and it took several minutes for him to regain his breath. He was unable to walk at first.

Deadspin: "Yadier Molina Undergoes Surgery After Taking Fastball To The Dick And Balls"