Adley Rutschman homers twice to help Red Sox beat his former team
Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 6‑5 on Thursday night at Camden Yards, giving the recently traded Red‑Sox catcher Adley Rutschman a dramatic home‑run double against his former club.
Rutschman opened the game by smashing a solo shot to right field, the first of his career against the Orioles and the first of his season. The crowd rose to a standing ovation as the ball sailed over the outfield fence, putting Boston up 1‑0. He followed that up in the sixth with another homer that narrowed the Orioles’ lead to one run.
The Orioles’ offense fired in the middle of the inning, however. Luis Robert Jr. homered in the fourth inning to give Baltimore a 2‑1 lead. He added a second home run that same inning, this time from the hand of Pete Alonso. Alonso, a former New York Met and new Oriole, had already hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game in the bottom half of the first inning. With his fourth homer of the year, Alonso moved him into a tie for the American League lead in home runs at 94 with Houston’s Yordan Alvarez.
Boston answered with a run in the sixth when Rutschman’s second homer cut the deficit to 3‑2. After that, the game tightened. In the seventh inning, Orioles starter Brandon Young surrendered a double to Boston’s White, then an RBI single to Isiah Kiner‑Falefa, which tied the score at 3‑3.
With the game locked at 3‑3, Boston’s offense had a chance to take the lead. In the eighth inning, Nick Sogard hit a two‑run homer to right‑center field, his fourth of the season, breaking the tie and giving the Red Sox a 5‑3 advantage. The ball was only the second homer allowed by pitcher Yennier Cano in 61 appearances. A ninth‑inning solo blast by Roman Anthony pushed Boston’s lead to 6‑3.
The Orioles were unable to mount a comeback. After their two homers in the fourth inning, they managed only two hits for the rest of the game.
Pitching was a key factor in the Red Sox’s victory. Boston’s reliever Luis De León, who had been called up earlier in the week, struggled in both of his appearances. He was charged with the loss, his record dropping to 0‑2. In contrast, Boston’s Erik Miller earned a win, improving his record to 4‑0. Aroldis Chapman earned his 31st save of the season in 33 chances, even after Christian Encarnacion‑Strand hit a two‑run homer off him in the ninth inning.
Rutschman’s return to Baltimore was a momentous one. Just a month earlier, the Orioles had traded him to Boston, making him a former player of the team he was now facing. The home‑run double was the only hit by the Orioles after their fourth‑inning surge, and their two hits in the remainder of the game were all singles.
Looking ahead, Boston will send Ranger Suarez (5‑4) to the mound Friday night to face Orioles’ Shane Baz (5‑14). The Red Sox will be looking to continue the momentum from last night’s win as they aim to improve their record in the race for the American League East.
The game was a showcase of Boston’s power and resilience, with Rutschman leading the charge against the crowd that once cheered him. The Red Sox’s 6‑5 win over the Orioles marks a memorable chapter for both the team and its new, former‑Orioles player.
