Roman Anthony’s early thunder carries Red Sox past Rays 4-2 at Tropicana Field

The damage was early, and it was loud

Boston’s offense was most convincing when it simplified the job. Roman Anthony opened the scoring with a solo homer to center in the first inning, a 438-foot drive that immediately gave the Red Sox a lead. Tampa Bay answered in the bottom half when Junior Caminero’s groundout brought Yandy Díaz home, but Boston’s most important inning followed right away.

The second inning was the game’s defining stretch. Caleb Durbin scored, Trevor Story scored, and Anthony lined a single to right that brought both home. In a game that would end with the Rays owning nine walks and plenty of traffic, those two runs stood out because they turned one Boston opening into real separation. Anthony finished 2-for-5 with three RBIs, and all three of them arrived before the game was a third of the way done.

Jahmai Jones added the last Red Sox run in the third, driving a 414-foot solo homer to left. That blast made it 4-1, and it left Boston with a very clear formula for the rest of the night: protect a three-run cushion and make Tampa Bay prove it could cash in its chances. Ian Seymour’s line told the story from the Rays’ side. He struck out five and walked only two in five innings, but seven hits and two home runs against him were enough to put the game behind Tampa Bay early.

Rays kept arriving on base, but not home

If the box score had only listed opportunities, Tampa Bay would have looked much healthier. The Rays drew nine walks, collected five hits and three doubles, and still finished with only two runs. They left 23 men on base, which is the number that hangs over everything else in this game. Boston pitchers gave them enough openings to make this far more uncomfortable than the final score suggests.

Ranger Suárez set the tone for that balancing act. In 5.2 innings, he allowed only three hits and one run, but he also issued five walks. That is the kind of start that can tilt either direction depending on the next at-bat. For Boston, the key was that Tampa Bay’s first run came on a groundout rather than a bigger swing, and no Rays hitter produced the kind of extra-base scoring play that would wipe out the early deficit in one shot.

The Red Sox bullpen helped preserve that distinction, even if it was not perfectly clean. Wyatt Olds recorded one out in a brief appearance that included two walks and a strikeout. Greg Weissert then gave Boston two scoreless innings while allowing only one hit, a valuable settling stretch in the middle of the late frames. Tampa Bay finally added another run in the ninth when Jonathan Aranda reached on a fielder’s choice that scored Victor Mesa Jr., but the Rays still ended the night with both of their RBIs coming on balls that stayed in the infield.

Our take: Boston’s power held up, but both clubs left work behind

Boston should feel good about the shape of this win even while admitting it was messier than it needed to be. The Red Sox got exactly what winning teams look for on nights when the lineup does not sustain offense all the way through: a star turn from Anthony, a secondary jolt from Jones, and just enough pitching to keep the lead intact. Anthony drove in three of the four runs, and Jones supplied the other on his own. That is real game-swinging production.

Our take: the caution for Boston is obvious in the same box score. The Red Sox left 18 runners on base, struck out 11 times, walked only twice, and their pitchers issued nine walks with four wild pitches. Against a lineup that converted more cleanly, that combination might not survive. A reasonable improvement from here is not some sweeping overhaul; it is simply cutting down the free baserunners that kept Tampa Bay alive and finding one more hit in the innings that already had traffic.

Our take: Tampa Bay’s frustration should be different. This was not a night when the Rays disappeared completely. They worked 175 pitches from Boston’s staff, drew nine walks, and got doubles from the lineup, so there was enough table-setting to win. What they did not get was the decisive contact after those baserunners arrived. When a club leaves 23 on base and gets its only scoring from a groundout and a fielder’s choice, the lesson is hard to miss. The process of reaching base gave the Rays a chance; the finishing swing never showed up.

Scoring moments

1. 1st Inning

   Anthony homered to center (438 feet).

2. 1st Inning

   Caminero grounded out to third, Díaz scored.

3. 2nd Inning

   Anthony singled to right, Durbin scored and Story scored, Eaton to third.

4. 3rd Inning

   Jones homered to left (414 feet).

5. 9th Inning

   Aranda grounded into fielder's choice to third, Mesa Jr. scored, Díaz out at second.