James Paxton pitched six strong innings, Masataka Yoshida matched his career high with four of Boston’s 18 hits, and the Red Sox defeated the Kansas City Royals 9-5 on Monday night.
Boston has won four of its last five games and is now just 1 1/2 games behind the Royals for the final American League wild card spot.
“It was a humble approach,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “We hit the ball all over the place. We ran the bases well. The kids did a great job in the bottom of the lineup.
“We just kept putting pressure on them. They have a good team; it took a lot. But give our guys credit, they showed up today and did their job. Now we have to win the series, either tomorrow or the next day.”
Paxton (9-3) gave up two runs on five hits, earning his first win since being traded to the Red Sox by the Dodgers. “I felt good out there,” Paxton said. “To have (Cora) have that confidence in me was awesome.”
Boston catcher Connor Wong said Paxton was exactly who the Red Sox expected to get in the trade.
“We knew from last year that he gets better as the game went on,” Wong said of Paxton, who had 19 starts with Boston in 2023. “He did that against us in L.A. That’s just who he is.”
Brady Singer (8-7) allowed four runs on 10 hits in 5 2/3 innings, giving up at least one hit in every inning.
“I thought he pitched well,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said of Singer. “He really battled. They made a lot of contact, a lot of singles early. (Singer) couldn’t quite put them away. Where he was in the sixth, after giving up those two runs in the second, we had a really good chance to win that game.”
Singer wasn’t satisfied with his performance.
“I felt like the sinker in was going to be a huge part of it,” he said. “But I left a few over the middle of the plate and gave up a few hits on it.”
David Hamilton hit a double down the right field line for Boston’s first run in the second inning. Jarren Duran added an RBI with a slow roller.
