Kutter Crawford pitched deep into the eighth inning with just one hit allowed, Rafael Devers smashed a solo home run, and the Boston Red Sox defeated Seth Lugo and the Kansas City Royals 5-0 on Saturday.
Crawford, now 6-7 for the season, struck out four and walked one, impressively throwing 79% of his pitches for strikes. His strong performance earned him a standing ovation as he left the mound after giving up a leadoff single in the eighth.
Devers, who will be an All-Star, hit his 22nd home run of the season, moving him up to 11th place on the Red Sox’s all-time home run list. Lugo, the potential AL All-Star starter, struggled, giving up five runs on 10 hits over five innings.
His ERA, which was the best in MLB before the game, rose to 2.48.
Manager Alex Cora praised Crawford’s ability to consistently throw strikes, noting his efficiency and command of all his pitches. The win extended Boston’s strong stretch since mid-June to 19-8, while ending Kansas City’s four-game winning streak.
Zack Kelly sealed the win with a double-play ball on his first pitch and completed the eighth inning, contributing to Boston’s 11th shutout of the season, the most in MLB.
