Christian Vazquez hit two home runs and collected three RBIs Thursday night for the Boston Red Sox, who earned a 4-2 win over the host New York Mets and a sweep of the two-game interleague series.
The Red Sox had lost four straight, including back-to-back games to the Mets in Boston on Monday and Tuesday, entering the series.
Vazquez was 4-for-8 with three homers and six RBIs in the two games in New York. He hit a game-tying homer in the seventh inning Wednesday night before adding what proved to be the decisive two-run single in the eighth inning of the Red Sox's 6-5 win.
On Thursday, Vazquez opened the scoring in the second inning by hitting a long solo homer to left off Steven Matz. The Mets took a short-lived lead in the third on a two-run single by Jeff McNeil, but Xander Bogaerts led off the fourth with a single before Vazquez homered just beyond the reach of left fielder J.D. Davis for a 3-2 edge.
The two-homer game was Vazquez's second of his career. He is the first Red Sox catcher with four homers in the first seven games of a season since Carlton Fisk in 1981.
The Red Sox added an insurance run in the ninth, when they loaded the bases against beleaguered Mets closer Edwin Diaz before Jose Peraza was hit by a pitch.
Martin Perez (1-1) earned his first Red Sox win after allowing two runs on two hits and four walks while striking out five over 5 2/3 innings. Perez had just one 1-2-3 inning.
Heath Hembree tossed 1 1/3 one-hit innings, and Matt Barnes got into and out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth before Brandon Workman earned his second save with a one-hit ninth.
McNeil had two hits for the Mets, who left 20 runners on base in the two losses.
Matz (0-1) allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out three over 5 1/3 innings.
--Field Level Media
Boston | NY Mets | |
Martin Perez | Player | Steven Matz |
Win | W/L | Loss |
5.2 | IP | 5.1 |
5 | Strikeouts | 3 |
2 | Hits | 8 |
3.18 | ERA | 5.06 |
Boston | NY Mets | |
Alex Verdugo | Player | Jeff McNeil |
2 | Hits | 2 |
0 | RBI | 2 |
0 | HR | 0 |
2 | TB | 2 |
.667 | Avg | .500 |