Seventh-inning surge gives Red Sox game and series win over Guardians

CLEVELAND — With two outs and two strikes in a game-swinging seventh inning Sunday afternoon, Guardians reliever Tim Herrin did exactly what he wanted to do against the Red Sox’ Wilyer Abreu: fastball, outside edge of the plate, just nipping the strike zone.

It could have been — should have been — an inning-ending strikeout, maintaining a narrow Cleveland lead. But plate umpire Austin Jones deemed it a ball. The Guardians already had used all of their ball-strike challenges, so they had to stand there and take it. Abreu jogged to first base with a bases-loaded walk to force in the tying run.

Granted new life in the inning and game, the Red Sox took full advantage, turning it into a six-run rally on the way to a 9-4 win.

Masataka Yoshida had the go-ahead hit, a two-run single to center. Isiah Kiner-Falefa added an RBI single, stretching his hit streak to seven. And Caleb Durbin brought in two more with the first triple of his career.

By the end, the Sox snagged their first consecutive victories and first series win since May 18-20, when they swept the Royals. They are 25-33 heading into an offday Monday.

Everybody in the Red Sox’ starting lineup had at least one hit and at least one run or RBI.

Aroldis Chapman tossed a scoreless ninth inning. Even though it wasn’t a save situation, interim manager Chad Tracy wanted to get him into the game no matter what because he hadn’t pitched since May 20.

The big seventh proved to be the last twist in a serious seesaw of a game. The Red Sox and Guardians (34-27) combined for eight plays that tied the score or gave a team a lead.

The early and middle innings featured lots of back and forth, with neither Red Sox lefthander Ranger Suarez nor Guardians righthander Tanner Bibee enjoying a peak performance.

Jarren Duran, the first batter of the game, launched a home run to right field for an instant 1-0 Red Sox lead.

In the bottom of the second, Suarez more than gave it back, walking a batter and hitting another with a pitch to help Cleveland load the bases with no outs. Austin Hedges, defensive specialist, came through with a two-run single for a 2-1 lead.

Marcelo Mayer singled and Connor Wong doubled to open the fifth. They scored, respectively, on a sacrifice fly from Mickey Gasper and Abreu’s single to give the Sox the lead, 3-2, fleetingly.

The Guardians took it back with a two-run rally in the bottom of the inning. The key moment: Left fielder Yoshida could not track a routine fly ball off the bat of José Ramírez. That drove in one run and set up another. Ramírez scored on Chase DeLauter’s single.

Suarez needed 32 pitches to get through the frame, his last. He finished five innings having allowed four runs and eight hits. He struck out a season-high-tying 10 and walked two.

Bibee wound up with a quality start, holding the Sox to three runs (and six hits) in six innings.