Red Sox beat Twins 9-3 for 5th straight win

By BRIAN HALL Associated Press

MINNEAPOLIS – Alex Verdugo tripled and drove in four runs, James Paxton pitched 6 1/3 effective innings and the Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 9-3 on Monday night for their fifth straight win. 

Triston Casas hit a two-run homer and Jarren Duran added three doubles for Boston, which has outscored opponents 40-14 during the win streak. 

Paxton (3-1) gave up three hits and a walk while striking out seven. Over his past four games, the tall left-hander has given up six earned runs in 24 1/3 innings with 32 strikeouts. 

Pablo López (3-4) allowed five runs – four earned – in 5 2/3 innings for Minnesota, which has lost four of five but remains two games ahead of Cleveland in the American League Central despite falling under .500 (36-37) for the second time this season. 

Twins catcher Christian Vázquez hit a three-run homer against his former team, his first in 48 games in his first season in Minnesota. 

Duran’s second double of the game drove in two runs in the fourth and put Boston ahead 3-0 before Vázquez’s homer off Paxton in the fifth. But after Jovani Moran relieved López with two outs and two on in the sixth, Verdugo lined a triple down the right-field line to score three. 

BOTTOM TO TOP 

The bottom of the Red Sox order got most of the damage started. 

Casas, catcher Connor Wong and shortstop Pablo Reyes combined to go 5 for 12 with two walks and seven runs scored. 

TRAINERS ROOM 

Red Sox: RHP Tanner Houck (facial fracture) is scheduled to see a doctor on Tuesday, a visit that will help determine more of a timetable for his possible return. … LHP Joely Rodriguez (left shoulder inflammation) is scheduled to start a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday. 

Twins: RHP Kenta Maeda (right triceps strain) has likely finished his rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul and manager Rocco Baldelli said it’s possible Maeda could rejoin the rotation at some point this week. Baldelli didn’t have a definitive day for when it might be, but the Twins would go to a temporary six-man rotation. 

UP NEXT 

RHP Bailey Ober (4-3, 2.65 ERA) is scheduled to start Tuesday for Minnesota, with Boston countering with RHP Kutter Crawford (1-3, 4.20).