Abreu's Two-Homer Night Rescues Boston From a 6-3 Hole

Wilyer Abreu hit two home runs and drove in three, capping a stunning four-run seventh inning with a 412-foot shot to right center that flipped Boston's win probability from 39% to 81% in a single swing. The Red Sox walked out of Fenway with a 7-6 win over Tampa Bay after spending most of the night chasing a deficit they had largely handed to themselves.

Tampa Bay built its lead the ugly way and the legitimate way. In the second inning, a throwing error by second baseman Seigler let Vilade score, then Simpson came around on a Fortes single to make it 2-0. Boston answered immediately — Jahmai Jones went deep to left at 407 feet, a two-run shot that tied it at 2. Patrick Sandoval then gave the lead right back. The fourth inning was a disaster: catcher Narváez committed two throwing errors that each allowed Simpson to score — yes, the same inning, the same runner, the same mistake twice — and Mesa Jr. followed with a 404-foot homer to right. A Díaz single plated Palacios, and suddenly it was 5-3 Tampa Bay with Sandoval's night effectively done. He finished with 9 hits and 4 earned runs allowed over 5.0 innings, a line that looks about as rough as it reads.

DeLuca made it feel like a blowout in the seventh, launching a 394-foot homer to left center to push the lead to 6-3. At that point, the story of the night appeared to be Tampa Bay's ability to pile on against a Boston rotation that couldn't hold anything. Then the seventh inning happened — all of it, in one breathless sequence. A groundout by Yoshida scored Monasterio. Rafaela doubled to center to score Duran. Suddenly it was 6-5, and Abreu stepped in with Rafaela on base. What followed was a 412-foot hammer to right center — a two-run walk-off swing that turned a three-run deficit into a one-run lead and sent Boston's win probability from 39% to 81% in an instant.

Abreu finished 2-for-3 with 2 home runs, 3 RBI, and 2 runs scored — the kind of line that carries a ballgame on its back. Jones's 407-foot two-run shot in the second looks like the play that kept Boston close enough to matter, and Rafaela's double in the seventh looks like the play that set the table. On the Tampa Bay side, Simpson was everywhere — 2-for-4 with 2 runs scored — but the Rays couldn't protect a three-run lead entering the final innings, and that's the number that defines their night. Ian Seymour allowed 3 earned runs over 3.0 innings in relief, and the bullpen couldn't close the door when it needed to most.