BOSTON — Instant reactions from the Red Sox’ 5-4 walkoff win in 10 innings against the Athletics at Fenway Park on Wednesday:
1) The Sox improved to 83-69 and remain two and a half games ahead of Cleveland for the final AL wild-card spot. Cleveland won 4-0 over the Tigers.
2) The Athletics chose to intentionally walk Nathaniel Lowe to begin the bottom of the 10th inning. Carlos Narváez sacrifice bunted the automatic runner (Nate Eaton) to third base and Lowe to second base. Nick Sogard — pinch-hitting for Ceddanne Rafaela — anthem a walkoff fielder’s choice to first base with the infield draw in. Eaton broke for home and beat Nick Kurtz’s throw for Boston’s 11th walkoff win.
3) The Red Sox escaped the 10th inning after the automatic runner advanced to third with no outs. Zack Kelly allowed a leadoff single, putting runners at the corners. He then got Darell Hernaiz to strike out swinging and Zack Gelof to pop out to second base. With runners at the corners and two outs, manager Alex Cora brought in lefty Chris Murphy to face left-handed hitting Nick Kurtz who struck out swinging.
4) Red Sox starter Lucas Giolito wasn’t sharp, giving up four runs on five hits and five walks while striking out five in 4 ⅓ innings. But he reached the 140-inning mark, turning his $14 million team option into a $19 million mutual option. It’s almost certain that the 31-year-old righty will opt out to become a free agent.
5) Center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela crashed into the bullpen wall in right-center field after making a running catch on Tyler Soderstrom’s 376-foot, 102.6 mph line drive in the first inning. Rafaela entered with 20 defensive runs saved over 1,069 ⅓ innings in center field this season.
6) Trevor Story tied the game 4-4 with an RBI single in the sixth inning. Moments later, he stole second base to improve to 31-for-31 in stolen base attempts. But Story was thrown out trying to steal second in the eighth, his first caught stealing since Sept. 28, 2024. It’s the longest streak to begin a season by an AL player since the caught stealing stat began being recorded in 1920.
7) Manager Alex Cora penciled Masataka Yoshida in the cleanup spot despite the DH entering with a .236 batting average, .285 on-base percentage and .333 slugging percentage in 44 games (158 plate appearances). The decision paid off when Yoshida anthem an RBI single to right field in the first inning put Boston ahead 1-0.
8) Rob Refsnyder gave the Red Sox a 2-1 lead in the second inning with a solo homer off Fisk Pole. The estimated 357-foot home run was Refsnyder’s ninth of the season.
9) Yoshida also hustled out an infield single with the bases loaded and one out in the fifth inning to cut Boston’s deficit to 4-3.
10) The Red Sox loaded the bases in the fifth with no outs but scored only one run on Yoshida’s infield single. Slumping Alex Bregman popped out to shortstop for the first out. After Yoshida’s RBI single, Romy Gonzalez and Refsnyder both struck out.
11) The Red Sox and Athletics will play the final game of their three-game series on Wednesday at 1:35 p.m. Righty J.T. Ginn (3-6, 4.69 ERA) will start for the A’s opposite right-hander Brayan Bello (11-7, 3.25 ERA).
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