Ramon Laureano came through in the clutch Saturday night, delivering a game-winning RBI single with two outs in the ninth inning that lifted the San Diego Padres to a 3-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox in the middle game of their three-game series.
The decisive rally unfolded against Boston’s closer Aroldis Chapman (0-1), who suffered the loss. Fernando Tatis Jr. sparked the winning sequence by smashing a double that sailed over center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela’s head, positioning himself perfectly for Laureano’s clutch hit to left field that brought home the go-ahead run.
Miguel Andujar turned in an outstanding offensive performance for the Padres, collecting three hits in five at-bats while adding a double and crossing the plate once.
The Padres’ offense struggled through the middle innings, managing only two hits from the fourth through seventh frames, which allowed Boston to level the score. Adrian Morejon (1-0) picked up the victory despite surrendering a potential save opportunity, while Mason Miller locked down his third save of the season by striking out three consecutive batters in the ninth.
Boston’s offense was paced by Rafaela and Roman Anthony, who each collected a pair of hits. Anthony showcased his power with a triple during the fifth inning.
The Red Sox mounted their comeback in the eighth frame when Rafaela and Anthony opened with consecutive singles. Pinch-hitter Andruw Monasterio then worked a grueling nine-pitch at-bat that resulted in an RBI on a fielder’s choice. San Diego appeared ready to escape further damage with a potential 1-4-3 double play, but Jake Cronenworth’s error on Morejon’s throw to second base prevented the inning-ending play.
Following Boston starter Connelly Early’s escape from an early two-on, two-out situation, San Diego grabbed the initial advantage in the second inning on Bryce Johnson’s RBI groundout. The run scored Freddy Fermin, who had drawn a leadoff walk and advanced to third base on Ty France’s single that bounced off the outfield wall.
Boston answered immediately in the bottom half of the second when Willson Contreras led off with a single to left field and came around to score on Marcelo Mayer’s sacrifice fly, knotting the game at 1-1.
The Padres reclaimed the lead in the third inning through a pair of well-placed doubles. Andujar started the rally by driving a one-out double into the left-field corner, and after Manny Machado drew a walk to keep the inning alive, Fermin delivered a two-out liner that eluded the diving attempt of Boston third baseman Caleb Durbin, restoring San Diego’s 2-1 advantage.
Offensive production stalled for both clubs over the next several innings, although the Red Sox created multiple scoring chances with four hits spread across the fourth and fifth innings.
San Diego’s Randy Vasquez navigated around three singles in the fourth inning, ending the threat by striking out Mayer with two runners in scoring position. The following inning, Anthony was left stranded despite his booming two-out triple to deep right field.
Vasquez completed six solid innings, surrendering just one run while recording three strikeouts.
Early struggled with his command, requiring 88 pitches to get through only four innings. He allowed two runs on three hits and four walks while striking out four batters.
