BOSTON – Coming off the exhaustion and the euphoria of the night before – an unforgettable 12-11 win over the White Sox in 13 innings that tapped out their bullpen – what the Red Sox needed more than anything on Friday night was a strong start from Payton Tolle.
What they got was the most dominant start of the rookie lefty’s young career.
Powered by Tolle (six innings, two hits, no walks, career-high 14 strikeouts) and another barrage of offense that allowed almost a complete reset by the bullpen, the steam-rolling Red Sox continued their summer surge with a 13-1 victory over the Athletics that extended the club’s latest winning streak to nine games.
In doing so, Boston (64-51) ripped off its 27th win in the last 30 games. Interim manager Chad Tracy’s squad is just the 10th team to go 27-3 or better in a 30-game single-season span since 1900, and the first since Cleveland in 2017.
While Boston’s recent feats continue to make statisticians dig through search engines, Tolle took center stage on Friday night.
When Tolle walked off the mound after his final frame, chants of “Tolle, Tolle, Tolle” could be heard from the latest sold-out crowd (37,227) at Fenway.
At 23 years old, Tolle demonstrated what it looks like for an opposing offense when he is in full command of his power and finesse. His 14 strikeouts are the most by a Sox pitcher 23 or younger since Rogers Clemens' 20-K masterpiece in 1986, and the most by a Sox starter since Chris Sale (17) in 2019.
On a night Tolle topped out at 99.5 mph and threw 14 pitches at 98 mph or higher, he repeatedly made the knees of Athletics batters buckle on his curveball. Of Tolle’s 15 benders, he got 11 strikes, including five for punchouts.
Making it even more impressive is that Tolle needed just 84 pitches to accumulate those 14 K’s. He struck out the side in three different innings and had a perfect game through four.