The Associated Press
Kyle Hightower
BOSTON–When Drew Pomeranz has been on the mound this season, it’s usually meant good things for the Boston Red Sox.
Pomeranz pitched three-hit ball into the seventh inning, and Dustin Pedroia drove in three runs, as the Red Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-1 last night.
Pomeranz (10-4) allowed an unearned run over 6 2/3 innings to win his fourth-straight decision and continues to be among Boston’s most dependable arms.
He hasn’t lost since June 11, and the Red Sox are 9-3 in his past 12 starts.
His ERA over the stretch is 2.62, dropping it from 5.29 to 3.51 for the season.
“I feel really good with all my pitches on both sides of the plate, which is something I really haven’t had before,” Pomeranz said.
Pedroia and Deven Marrero each had two-run singles with two outs in the second inning to provide all the offence the Red Sox needed.
Pedroia has six RBIs in the series, which wrapped up this afternoon.
Pomeranz said being healthy has been a factor in his run of quality starts.
He acknowledged he felt good–but not great–in spring training as he struggled with his mechanics.
Since then, he’s found a rhythm.
Aaron Sanchez (1-3) gave up five runs, six hits, and five walks in four innings.
He also saw his four-game winning streak against Boston end.
Pitching in just his third game off the disabled list for a blister issue on his middle finger, the same problem contributed to his early exit yesterday.
“It’s one of those things,” Sanchez said.
“You take a step forward, you think you’re past it, and you’re right back to step one.”
A base-running error early in the second almost derailed Boston’s big inning.
Chris Young led off with a double and Jackie Bradley Jr. followed with a single.
After Bradley stole second, Christian Vazquez hit a sharp grounder to first baseman Justin Smoak.
He stepped on the bag for the out, then caught Young hung up between third and home.
Young was tagged out after a brief rundown for the double play but Brock Holt walked to keep the inning alive.
While Pedroia was hot at the plate, his streak of 114 games without a fielding error ended when he tried to backhand a grounder by Darwin Barney in the fifth inning.
The streak was a club record for a second baseman. His last error was Aug. 9, 2016 at Detroit.
Before his single to lead off the third inning, Miguel Montero had been 0-for-15 with Toronto since coming over in a July 3 trade from Chicago.
Meanwhile, Red Sox manager John Farrell said he plans to combat a recent run of hot days and long games the same way he handled a similar stretch a year ago.
It starts with limiting the pre-game workload and sun exposure, which included bypassing outdoor batting practice yesterday.
The Red Sox even may restrict player access to the clubhouse during the hottest part of the day.
“We went through that last year. I thought it paid dividends, the two-four weeks following that stint,” Farrell said.
“And that’s about the take place again.”
On the injury front, Jays’ right-hander Michael Bolsinger was placed on the 10-day disabled list prior to the game with left knee inflammation.
Bolsinger allowed one hit–a walk-off homer in the 15th inning–in 3 1/3 innings in Toronto’s 5-4 loss on Tuesday night.
Right-hander Cesar Valdez was recalled from ‘AAA’ Buffalo to take his roster spot.
Elsewhere in the AL, Minnesota beat New York 6-1, Seattle downed Houston 4-1, Oakland dumped Tampa Bay 7-2, Baltimore pounded Texas 10-2, and Kansas City edged Detroit 4-3.
Over in the NL, Chicago dumped Atlanta 8-2, Philadelphia pounded Miami 10-3, Colorado routed San Diego 18-4, Pittsburgh nipped Milwaukee 3-2 (10 innings), Cincinnati shaded Arizona 4-3 (11 innings), and New York beat St. Louis 7-3.
