Payton Tolle’s historic performance powers Red Sox to 9th straight win

In one of the most dominant victories of a magical run, the Boston Red Sox crushed the Athletics 13-1 on Friday at Fenway Park, extending their winning streak to nine games while receiving a historic performance from Payton Tolle.

Tolle, 23, became the youngest pitcher to strike out 14 batters in a game since the late José Fernández of the Miami Marlins logged the same total in 2014 against the Atlanta Braves. Tolle is also the youngest Red Sox pitcher to reach that threshold since Roger Clemens became the first big leaguer to strike out 20 batters in a nine-inning game in 1986.

As efficient as he was overpowering, Tolle allowed only two hits, including a solo home run, across six innings and 84 pitches.

A night after a 13-inning victory, the Red Sox largely dispensed with the dramatics. They erupted for five runs in the second inning and piled on with four more in the fourth. The offense finished with 15 hits, including Jarren Duran’s third home run in five games.

The Red Sox (64-51) have now won 11 of their past 12 games. They are 32-5 since June 25, the best 37-game stretch in franchise history — a run that also included a franchise-record 15-game win streak in July. The 2022 Los Angeles Dodgers were the last team to have a 32-5 stretch within a single season.