Boston Red Sox vs Houston Astros Box Score on Aug 23, 2023

Adam Duvall homered for the third time in as many games, clubbing a three-run home run in the 10th inning that lifted the visiting Boston Red Sox to a 7-5 win over the Houston Astros on Wednesday.

Duvall drilled a 2-2 sinker from Astros reliever Kendall Graveman (3-6) into the left field seats immediately after fouling a pitch off his lower leg that resulted in an extended delay. He drove home Rafael Devers and Triston Casas and snapped a 4-4 tie with his 14th homer.

The Red Sox won an extended bullpen battle. Astros right-handers Seth Martinez, Hector Neris, Bryan Abreu, Ryan Pressly and Graveman combined to retire 14 consecutive batters before Casas reached via a one-out walk in the 10th.

Boston reliever Josh Winckowski allowed a run in the bottom of the 10th but stranded the bases loaded to earn his third save. The Red Sox claimed the finale of the three-game series after losing the first two games.

Red Sox reliever Garrett Whitlock worked two scoreless innings and recorded a critical strikeout of Kyle Tucker to close the seventh with a pair of runners on in a tie game.

Chris Martin stranded a pair in the eighth and Nick Pivetta (9-6) got two outs after entering suddenly in the ninth when closer Kenley Jansen departed due to right hamstring tightness.

The Red Sox clawed back from a three-run deficit with a pair of two-run frames off Astros starter Jose Urquidy.

In the third, an RBI double by Alex Verdugo and a run-scoring single by Casas cut Houston's lead to 3-2.

Trevor Story delivered an RBI single in the fifth that plated Justin Turner. Wilyer Abreu then pulled the Red Sox even at 4-4 with a run-scoring groundout that chased Urquidy, who allowed four runs on eight hits with three walks and one strikeout in 4 2/3 innings.

Boston left-hander Chris Sale recovered nicely following a ragged start, recording the biggest out of his appearance to close the bottom of the third.

The Astros claimed a 3-0 in the second inning when, two batters after Jeremy Pena reached on a one-out single, Martin Maldonado smacked his 10th home run to left-center field. Sale surrendered consecutive hits to Jose Altuve (double) and Alex Bregman (single) in the first, with Altuve subsequently scoring on a Tucker sacrifice fly.

Sale found more trouble in the third.

After Bregman worked a leadoff walk, Sale recorded a pair of outs before Yainer Diaz delivered a single and Jose Abreu added a run-scoring double that advanced Diaz to third. However, Sale struck out Pena to keep the deficit at 4-2, the first of seven consecutive batters he retired to cap his outing.

In five innings, Sale allowed four runs on six hits and one walk with nine strikeouts.

--Field Level Media