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The Boston Red Sox extended their recent dominance with a 3-2 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night in Los Angeles. Ceddanne Rafaela provided the offensive spark, launching two solo home runs off Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the first and third innings as Boston improved to 4-0 in their current winning streak.
Yamamoto held the Red Sox scoreless through seven innings aside from Rafaela’s two solo shots, retiring 13 consecutive batters after the second home run. The Boston lineup broke through in the eighth when Andruw Monasterio delivered a ground-rule double to lead off the inning, later scoring the go-ahead run on Connor Wong’s double-play grounder to give Boston a 3-2 advantage.
The Red Sox have been remarkably dominant since the All-Star break, compiling a 13-3 record in that stretch and a 22-4 mark since July began. The victory marked the second consecutive win over Los Angeles in this series, with Boston establishing early control in the matchup.
Red Sox left-hander Payton Tolle surrendered two runs across six innings, allowing nine hits while starter Justin Slaten pitched a scoreless seventh. Aroldis Chapman closed out the game with a perfect ninth inning for his 27th save of the season.
Yamamoto took the loss despite a strong performance, allowing three runs on four hits across eight innings to fall to 11-7. Teoscar Hernández paced the Dodgers offense with three hits, including a two-run home run off Tolle in the second inning.
Boston held All-Star first baseman Willson Contreras out of the lineup as a precaution following a pitch to his helmet Friday night that resulted in concussion testing. The Dodgers designated left-hander Cole Irvin for assignment after Friday’s 9-4 loss, while recalling right-handers Kyle Hurt and Wyatt Mills and placing Will Klein on the injured list with right elbow discomfort.
The teams continue their series Sunday night, with Red Sox left-hander Jake Bennett (6-4, 2.74 ERA) scheduled to face Dodgers right-hander Emmet Sheehan (4-7, 4.95 ERA).
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