Boston Red Sox vs Tampa Bay Rays Box Score on Aug 25, 2018

Tommy Pham homered, and Kevin Kiermaier tripled among two hits to score what proved to be the game-winning run and help lead the Tampa Bay Rays to their seventh straight victory, 5-1, over the Boston Red Sox on Saturday night at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Joey Wendle and Matt Duffy each had two hits and a walk, and Ji-Man Choi had an RBI triple for Tampa Bay, which has won the first two of the three-game series with the Red Sox.

Boston entered the weekend with a 14-series unbeaten streak (10-0-4), the team's longest since 1972 (10-0-6). The Red Sox, who haven't been swept in a series all year long and face Rays ace Blake Snell on Sunday, last lost a series on June 29-July 1 to the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium.

Five Tampa Bay pitchers combined to five-hit the Red Sox, with Ryne Stanek (2-3), who pitched a hitless sixth inning, picking up the victory.

J.D. Martinez went 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles, his major-league-leading 52nd multi-hit game, and Eduardo Nunez had two hits for Boston, which has won just two of its last seven games.

Rick Porcello (15-7) took the loss. He allowed three runs on six hits and two walks in five-plus innings, striking out eight.

Tampa Bay starter Ryan Yarbrough worked five innings, allowing one run on five hits and a walk. He struck out two.

Martinez helped give Boston a 1-0 lead in the second when he led off with a hustle double to left, went to third on a single by Xander Bogaerts and scored on a double-play groundout by Mitch Moreland.

The Rays tied it in the fourth when C.J. Cron was hit by a pitch, sacrificed to second by Kiermaier and scored on a two-out single to center by Brandon Lowe.

Tampa Bay then took a 3-1 lead in the sixth, chasing Porcello in the process. Kiermaier led off the inning with a triple to the gap in right-center, and Porcello was lifted for Ryan Brasier after hitting Willy Adames. Brasier then bounced a wild pitch to allow Kiermaier to score. Adames later scored on a sacrifice fly by Wendle.

Pham made it 4-1 in the seventh with his 15th homer of the season to center off reliever Brandon Workman. Choi finished the scoring with an RBI triple in the eighth, driving in Duffy, who had walked.

--Field Level Media