Red Sox Shut Out Royals, Kutter Crawford Delivers Another Gem
BOSTON — Kutter Crawford is in the best form of his young career.
The Red Sox starting pitcher received a raucous standing ovation after pitching seven scoreless innings, striking out four, and allowing just two hits and one walk. The fourth-year pitcher earned his third consecutive win and sixth of the season, marking his second straight seven-inning scoreless performance.
Red Sox Triumph in Series Finale Against Yankees in 3-0 Win
The Red Sox (52-42) will face the Royals in the rubber match of their three-game series on Sunday, July 14, with the first pitch scheduled for 1:35 p.m.
Crawford started the game with a perfect one-two-three inning. Jarren Duran began the bottom half with a lead-off double to center field. Lugo walked David Hamilton, putting two on with no outs, but managed to escape the inning without giving up a run, thanks to Garrett Hampson’s leaping catch in deep right-center.
In the second inning, Crawford allowed a lone baserunner before Rafael Devers ended the inning with a sharp grounder to third and a strong throw across the diamond.
Dominic Smith singled to right field after a quick first out. Reese McGuire then put the Red Sox on the board with an RBI double to the right-field corner, bringing Smith home from first.
Hampson got the Royals their first hit with a one-out double in the third inning, but Crawford closed the inning without further damage.
Yoshida and Devers hit back-to-back singles, putting two runners on with one out. Lugo struck out Rob Refsnyder for the second out, but Wilyer Abreu extended Boston’s lead with an RBI ground-rule double. Smith continued his strong performance with another single to right field, driving in both Devers and Abreu for the Red Sox.
