Rob Refsnyder hit a walk-off single to center field with the bases loaded in the 10th inning as the Boston Red Sox beat the visiting Texas Rangers 5-4 on Monday night.
Boston overcame leaving 15 runners on base, striking out 15 times and going just 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position to break a four-game skid.
Refsnyder and Nick Sogard each had two hits and an RBI for Boston, helping to make a winner out of Josh Winckowski (3-1), who allowed an unearned run in the top of the 10th.
In the bottom of the frame, pinch hitter Enmanuel Valdez led off and smoked a ground-rule double off Gerson Garabito (0-1) into the center field triangle to score the tying run. Sogard singled Valdez to third. One out later, with Walter Pennington on the mound, New Hampshire native Mickey Gasper drew a pinch-hit walk in his major league debut to load the bases.
Masataka Yoshida’s grounder to second base led to a forceout at the plate before Refsnyder delivered.
After both closers — Boston’s Kenley Jansen and Texas’ Kirby Yates — forced extras, the Rangers took a 4-3 lead on Josh Smith’s high-chopping grounder over the mound that scored automatic runner Marcus Semien from third. Semien had moved up from second on Corey Seager’s groundout to second.
Seager went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer for Texas, which has lost five of its past six games.
Boston went up 1-0 in the fourth inning on a sacrifice fly from Sogard.
The Red Sox could have had more in the inning, but Semien made a diving catch at second base to take an extra-base hit away from Ceddanne Rafaela and limit the damage against Tyler Mahle to just one run.
An inning later, Semien tied the game on a line single to center that scored Leody Taveras.
Boston took the lead without the benefit of a hit in its half of the fifth, as reliever Andrew Chafin walked four straight after Mahle walked one and struck out two to begin the frame. Pinch hitters Gonzalez and Danny Jansen both drew bases-loaded free passes to force in runs.
In the seventh, Seager knotted the score at 3-3 when he greeted Red Sox reliever Bailey Horn with a first-pitch, two-run homer to deep right. Jonah Heim had drawn a leadoff walk against Zack Kelly.
Rangers relievers came up big late. David Robertson struck out three straight after Refsnyder’s leadoff single in the seventh, then Refsnyder struck out with the bases loaded against Yates to end the eighth.
Boston starter Brayan Bello allowed one run on four hits in six innings.
Mahle permitted two runs on three hits in 4 2/3 innings.
–Field Level Media
