By Tiffany Williams –
The Red Sox dropped the opener of their two-game series against the Orioles on Monday night at Fenway Park, falling 6-3 and continuing a difficult stretch in August. Boston has now lost seven of its last 11 games since August 6, following a seven-game winning streak that carried through the end of July. The team has also lost back-to-back home games after a dominant run at Fenway from July 7 to August 5 when they went 14-1.
Boston recorded its American League-leading 59th quality start of the season, second in Major League Baseball behind Philadelphia’s 68. It was their fifth in the last six games and 12th in their last 18. Despite the strong pitching effort, the Red Sox allowed 10 or more hits for the 39th time this season and fell to 13-26 in those games. They are now 8-10 in contests decided by three runs or fewer since the All-Star break.
Jarren Duran provided all of the offense for Boston, driving in all three runs. He went 1-for-3 with a double, three RBI and a sacrifice fly, marking his eighth game this season with at least three runs driven in. Since July 21, Duran has 22 extra-base hits and 30 RBI while batting .294 with a .991 OPS.
Dustin May delivered a quality start in his third outing with the Red Sox, allowing two runs on eight hits over six innings while walking two and striking out five. After giving up three consecutive hits and a run in the fourth inning, May retired seven straight and eight of his last 10 batters faced. He has thrown at least five innings in 18 of his 21 starts this season and now owns 10 quality starts, a career high. In three starts with Boston, he has posted a 2.87 ERA with 17 strikeouts compared to a 4.85 ERA in 19 appearances with the Dodgers earlier this year.
Rookie Roman Anthony singled in the fourth and ninth innings to finish 2-for-4 with a run scored. Over his last 41 games dating back to June 28, he is hitting .327 with 33 runs, 14 doubles, three homers, 18 RBI and 25 walks.
The Red Sox and Orioles continue their series Tuesday night at Fenway Park.
The Connecticut Sun return to action Tuesday with a road matchup against the Washington Mystics at CareFirst Arena. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. and the game will air locally on NBC Sports Boston with Brendan Glasheen and Ashley Battle on the call, as well as streaming on WNBA League Pass. Connecticut enters at 6-27 after dropping a 99-93 overtime decision to the Indiana Fever on Sunday in Uncasville. Marina Mabrey led the way with 27 points, while rookie Saniya Rivers added 15 points and a franchise rookie record five blocks. Rookie guard Leila Lacan dished out 14 assists, the most in a single game by a Sun rookie and tied for the second-most in team history.
Connecticut holds a 60-37 all-time record against Washington, including a 24-23 mark on the road. The teams last met on June 8, when the Sun fell 104-67 in D.C. In the time since, the Sun acquired forward Aaliyah Edwards from Washington in exchange for guard Jacy Sheldon and a 2026 draft pick swap. The Mystics, now led by first-year head coach Sydney Johnson, enter the contest at 16-18 after a 95-86 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks.
The Worcester Red Sox will return home Tuesday night to begin a six-game series against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp at Polar Park. Worcester, which has just 18 home games remaining this season, split a six-game road set against the Iowa Cubs last week.
The WooSox opened the series in Des Moines on August 12 with a 7-4 victory, powered by home runs from Nate Eaton and Mikey Romero and a bases-clearing triple from Eaton in the ninth. Kyle Harrison struck out eight in five scoreless innings the following day, but the WooSox fell 1-0 after managing just two hits. Worcester bounced back Thursday with a 13-10 slugfest win that featured five home runs, including blasts from David Hamilton, Kristian Campbell, Jhostynxon Garcia, Eaton and Trayce Thompson.
The Cubs answered Friday, rallying for a 9-6 victory with a grand slam by Forrest Wall and a two-run single from Kevin Alcantara. Worcester took Saturday’s game behind a strong outing from Payton Tolle, who tossed five shutout innings in a 9-5 win. The Cubs closed the series Sunday with an 8-5 victory, overcoming a 4-0 first-inning deficit. Caleb Knight and Hayden Cantrelle each homered to spark the comeback, and the WooSox stranded 10 runners in the loss.
Worcester now stands at 61-58 on the season and will look to gain ground in the standings as it begins its homestand against Jacksonville.