Clutch late hits by Tatis, Laureano push Padres past Red Sox in grinding effort
San Diego Padres relief pitcher Mason Miller (22) and catcher Freddy Fermin (54) celebrate defeating the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. After seeing a lead they’d held for much of the day disappear in the eighth inning, the San Diego Padres got timely two-out hitting to bounce back and beat the Boston Red Sox 3-2 on Saturday at Fenway Park. Despite starting the game as chilly as the conditions and striking out a career-high four times, Fernando Tatis Jr.
crushed a 2-2 count, 99 MPH Aroldis Chapman sinker over the head of Ceddanne Rafaela in center field for a two out double in the ninth. Then Ramón Laureano followed by ripping a liner to left field to score the eventual game-winning run. The Padres battled all game, grinding through a pair of runs in the first three innings while Randy Vásquez stacked a second-straight strong start in six efficient innings of work.
Freddy Fermin delivered an RBI double in the third inning in addition to scoring a run and throwing out a runner, while Miguel Andujar collected three of San Diego’s seven hits with a double and a run scored. Boston had equalized in the eighth inning, as Adrian Morejon allowed back-to-back singles to Rafaela and Roman Anthony. After a strikeout, pinch-hitter Andruw Monasterio hit a short chopper back to Morejon, whose throw to second was a low and forced Jake Cronenworth to regather the ball and scuttling the double-play opportunity as the run scored.
After blowing just four saves all of last season, Morejon has two in his first three appearances but ultimately earned his first win. The 29-pitch outing with a pair of strikeouts was on the order of the workload in his first two appearances, but both of those were multi-inning efforts. Mason Miller made it stand up by striking out the side in order in the ninth for his third save.
Fermin opened the scoring for the Padres in the second, leading off the inning with a walk — the third drawn by San Diego their first time through the lineup. Ty France followed by solidly lining a fastball down the pike high off the Green Monster, then Fermin scored on a ground out by Bryce Johnson. The Padres loaded the lineup with right-handed batters against rookie lefty Connelly Early, with Laureano and Andujar slotting second and third in the lineup.