After watching what the Red Sox managed to do after falling behind by three runs in the first inning, Tampa Bay must have almost choked on their popcorn.
The Red Sox put Game 1 in their rearview mirror in a major way, running away from the Rays in Game 2 of the teams' American League Division Series with a 14-6 win at Tropicana Field.
Five home runs - from Xander Bogaerts, Alex Verdugo, Kiké Hernandez, J.D. Martinez and Rafael Devers - will jump off the box score, and for good reason. The power display was a major reason why the Red Sox were able to come back from a 5-2 deficit after the first inning following Chris Sale's one-inning debacle. Oh, and there was a total of 20 hits along the way.
But equally as important was the work turned in by Tanner Houck.
The Red Sox hurler came on for Sale (who suffered through the shortest outing of his career thanks in large part to Jordan Luplow's grand slam) and absolutely dazzled. Houck held the Rays to just one run on two hits over his five innings of relief, striking out five and not walking a batter.
Offensively, it was difficult to decipher the true star. There were five players with three or more hits, tying a postseason major league record.
Hernandez had five hits, and Martinez notched four with Bogaerts, Verdugo and Christian Vazquez managing three, apiece.
In terms of timeliness, the most ardent tip of the hat probably goes to the Sox' designated hitter, who fought off his sore ankle for a fifth-inning three-run homer that allowed the Sox to pull away for good.
The about-face was dramatic, with all the momentum Tampa Bay left Thursday with now out the window.
The attention now turns to Sunday's Game 3 at Fenway Park, which the Red Sox have to feel good about considering Nathan Eovaldi takes the mound.
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