Ceddanne Rafaela wins it for the Red Sox with a home run in the ninth inning
In an exciting MLB matchup, Ceddanne Rafaela hit a two-run home run in the ninth inning, giving the Boston Red Sox a 3-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles.
After Keegan Akin managed to get out of a jam in the eighth inning, the lefty couldn’t contain Boston in the ninth.
Jarren Duran opened the inning with a single, and Rafaela, who had a batting average of .188 since the All-Star break, hit a fly ball that cleared the left-center field fence.Ceddanne Rafaela, quien entró al juego bateando solo .188 desde el receso del All-Star, conectó un jonrón de dos carreras en la novena entrada para dar la victoria a los Red Sox sobre los Orioles.This was Rafaela’s third home run to take the lead in the ninth inning or later this season, tying William Contreras, Nick Kurtz, and Shohei Ohtani for the most in MLB.
The Red Sox, who are three games behind the Toronto Blue Jays and half a game behind the New York Yankees in the American League East, have won six of seven games on their road trip.
An apparent lack of communication between Duran and Rafaela helped Baltimore take a 2-1 lead in the seventh. After Baltimore’s Dylan Beavers drew a walk with two outs, Dylan Carlson lined a ball that landed at the base of the wall between Boston’s two outfielders, who appeared to hesitate over who would try to make the catch.
Boston’s opener, Brayan Bello, allowed two runs, one earned, and five hits in 6 2/3 innings.
Greg Weissert earned the victory, while Aroldis Chapman worked a perfect ninth inning for his 26th save. It was also the fourteenth consecutive hitless appearance for Chapman, which ties Scott Aldred (1998-99) for the second-longest streak in American League history, according to research.
Roman Anthony drove in Boston with a hit to center field against Dietrich Enns on the fifth pitch of the game. Two nights earlier, the rookie became the youngest player in Red Sox history (21 years, 104 days) to hit a home run to open the game.
Beavers has reached base in nine of his first 10 games in the majors for the Orioles. In those 10 games, he has scored 8 runs, hit 4 doubles, and accumulated 4 RBIs.
