Devers hits two homers as Red Sox win fourth straight

Jul. 24—Following Thursday's thrilling extra-innings win, the Red Sox came back strong again on Friday to beat the Yankees 6-2 for the team's fourth straight victory. Here are five highlights from Friday's win.

1. Devers goes deep

Dating back to the last series against the Yankees in the Bronx, the Red Sox have struggled at times to drive in runners in scoring position. That was definitely not an issue for Rafael Devers on Friday, however, as the 24-year-old slugger blasted two no-doubt home runs to deep center to power the Red Sox offense.

Devers first broke a 1-1 tie in the fifth inning by ripping a 99.2 mph fastball from Gerrit Cole out to deep centerfield for a two-run home run. Then in the seventh, he came up again with two men on and launched another bomb to almost the exact same spot, making it 6-1.

With Friday's two home runs, Devers now has 100 home runs for his career. He was able to reach the mark in only 486 career games.

2. E-Rod leaves with migraine

Things took a disconcerting turn for the Red Sox in the second inning when starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez allowed a walk, a single and then an RBI double to Brett Gardner to open the inning and then subsequently doubled over in pain on the mound. Rodriguez left the game after recording only three outs and was later reported to have been dealing with migraine symptoms.

3. Valdez comes up big

Having to go to the bullpen so early could have been devastating for the Red Sox, but reliever Phillips Valdez made sure to pick his teammates up. Fresh off his call-up from Triple-A Worcester, Valdez pitched three scoreless innings with seven strikeouts while allowing one hit and one walk.

Valdez relied primarily on his sinker throughout the outing, throwing 36 sinkers out of 55 total pitches while drawing 12 swings and five whiffs plus 11 called strikes. His changeup was also effective in limited usage, getting six whiffs on seven swings over 16 total changeups.

4. Fenway giveth, Fenway taketh away

It didn't wind up mattering given Devers' later heroics, but the Red Sox did not particularly enjoy a home field advantage in their three-run fifth inning. First Kiké Hernández smoked a ball high off the Green Monster, which would have likely been a home run in most other parks but wound up being quickly played in to hold Hernández to a single.

Then, next batter up, rookie Jarren Duran ripped a liner deep into the triangle in deep centerfield. The ball should have easily scored Hernández and Duran would have easily had a triple, if not an inside the park home run, but the ball bounced over the wall for a ground rule double, leaving both at second and third respectively.

5. State of the race

The Tampa Bay Rays won again on Friday to keep pace with the Red Sox, beating the Cleveland Indians (soon-to-be Cleveland Guardians) 10-5. As a result, Boston maintains its one-game lead in the AL East, though the Red Sox now hold a nine-game advantage on the Yankees.

Email: mcerullo@northofboston.com. Twitter: @MacCerullo.