The stakes weren’t nearly as high but the Los Angeles Dodgers endured familiar struggles at Fenway Park en route to an 8-1 rout at the hands of the Boston Red Sox. The Dodgers had their losing streak extended to four games, while the Red Sox have now won five in a row.
Kenta Maeda again was the victim of the long ball and lack of run support. All-Star Game snub Rafael Devers’ gave the Red Sox a lead with his solo home run over the Green Monster in the first inning, and Christian Vazquez’s solo shot broke a 1-1 tie in the second.
Maeda managed to settle in from there, retiring nine in a row before walking Jackie Bradley Jr. with one out in the fifth inning. Even with the homers, Maeda struck out seven of the first 14 batters faced, including striking out the side in the fourth.
Embarking on a third time through the order quickly brought his night to an end, however, as Maeda allowed consecutive doubles on two pitches to open the sixth inning. He retired the next two batters and exited with the Dodgers trailing 3-1.
Offensively, the Dodgers managed just five hits. David Freese, A.J. Pollock and Corey Seager each were in the lineup in their respective returns from the injured list. The trio went a combined 1-for-11 with one walk.
The Dodgers’ first hit was provided by Alex Verdugo on what was a game-tying home run that hooked inside Pesky’s Pole in the second inning. They didn’t have hit until Verdugo’s flare single to lead off the fifth.
Cody Bellinger became the first Dodgers player other than Verdugo with a hit when he pulled a two-out single through the shift in the sixth inning. The Dodgers’ best look at the game came in the seventh as base hits by Pollock and Kiké Hernandez put two on with one out.
Eduardo Rodriguez escaped the jam by retiring Austin Barnes and Seager. Rodriguez completed seven innings for just a fourth time this year and set a season high with 10 strikeouts.
After a one-hour rain delay in the bottom of the seventh inning, JT Chargois took over for Pedro Baez once play resumed and promptly allowed sacrifice fly and three-run home run, which blew the game open.
The Dodgers dropped to 1-8 all-time at Fenway Park (including losses in Games 1 and 2 of the 2018 World Series).
