ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Adrian Gonzalez homered and David Ortiz, Darnell McDonald and Dustin Pedroia drove in runs to back starter Clay Buchholz and lead the Boston Red Sox to a 4-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday night.
The win was the 11th in 12 games for the AL East leaders, who concluded a 10-day, nine-game trip with an 8-1 record — Boston’s best mark on a trip of at least nine games since 1977.
The Red Sox retained a 112-game lead over the New York Yankees in the division and dropped the third-place Rays 512 off the pace by rebounding from losing the opener of the three-game series to win the final two.
Buchholz (6-3) allowed one run and two hits in five innings before leaving because of lower back tightness.
