BOSTON (Interstat) — Wilyer Abreu homered twice and drove in three runs as the Boston Red Sox beat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-3 in the first game of a doubleheader Friday at Fenway Park. The Red Sox scored three runs in the first inning. Abreu tied the game at 2 with a two-run homer. The Rays had taken a 2-0 lead in the top half on a two-run single by Jonny DeLuca that included a throwing error. Boston added a run in the third and another in the fourth on Anthony Seigler’s RBI double. Junior Caminero hit a solo homer for Tampa Bay. Greg Weissert earned the win with a scoreless inning of relief, improving to 2-2. Aroldis Chapman pitched a perfect ninth for his 20th save. Mason Englert took the loss, falling to 0-3. The Rays had seven hits, while Boston had eight. Attendance was 34,255. Time of game was 2:30. Boston improved to 48-48, and Tampa Bay fell to 56-40.

BOSTON (Interstat) — A back-and-forth opening inning set the stage Friday night at Fenway Park, but the Boston Red Sox’s power display proved decisive in a 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in the first game of a doubleheader. The Rays struck first with two runs in the top of the first, only to see the Red Sox answer immediately with three runs of their own, capped by back-to-back homers. Tampa Bay tied it in the third on a solo shot, but Boston reclaimed the lead for good with another homer in the bottom of the third and added an insurance run in the fourth. Attendance was 34,255, and the game lasted 2 hours, 30 minutes. Tampa Bay fell to 56-40, while Boston improved to 48-48. The Rays grabbed the early advantage against Red Sox starter Greg Weissert. With one out, Junior Caminero singled to right field. Ryan Vilade walked, and Cedric Mullins walked to load the bases. Jonny DeLuca then grounded a single to left field, scoring Caminero and Vilade. A throwing error by left fielder Jarren Duran allowed DeLuca to advance to second and Mullins to third, but Ben Williamson grounded out to end the inning with Tampa Bay ahead 2-0. Boston answered immediately against Rays starter Mason Englert. Ceddanne Rafaela led off the bottom of the first with a double to left field. Wilyer Abreu then crushed a 1-0 pitch to right-center field for a two-run homer, his 12th of the season, tying the game 2-2. Willson Contreras followed with a solo homer to left-center, his 21st, giving the Red Sox a 3-2 lead. Masataka Yoshida grounded out, Caleb Durbin singled, and Duran struck out swinging to end the inning. The Rays tied the game in the top of the third. After Jonathan Aranda struck out, Caminero launched a solo homer to left field, his 29th, knotting the score 3-3. Vilade lined out, but Mullins singled on a bunt grounder to Weissert. DeLuca flew out to end the inning. Boston regained the lead in the bottom of the third. Abreu led off with his second homer of the night, a solo shot to right-center field, his 13th, putting the Red Sox up 4-3. Contreras struck out, Yoshida grounded out, and Durbin singled on a soft bunt pop to Englert. Durbin was caught stealing second to end the inning. Boston extended its lead in the bottom of the fourth. Duran grounded out, and Connor Wong grounded out before Tsung-Che Cheng drew a walk after a challenge confirmed the pitch result. Anthony Seigler doubled to right field, scoring Cheng and giving the Red Sox a 5-3 lead. Rafaela struck out to end the inning. Neither team scored after the fourth. The Rays put a runner on in the fourth when Williamson singled, but Hunter Feduccia bunted into a double play. Taylor Walls reached on a fielding error by third baseman Durbin, but Yandy Díaz grounded into a force out. In the sixth, DeLuca singled but was forced out at second on a grounder by Williamson. In the seventh, Walls singled but was erased on a double play grounder by Díaz. The Rays went down in order in the eighth and ninth. Englert took the loss, falling to 0-3. He pitched five innings, allowing eight hits and five earned runs with four strikeouts. Cam Booser pitched a scoreless sixth inning, allowing no hits. Cole Sulser pitched a scoreless seventh with one strikeout. Craig Kimbrel pitched a scoreless eighth with one strikeout. Weissert earned the win, improving to 2-2. He worked three innings, allowed three runs on four hits with two walks and three strikeouts. Jovani Morán pitched two scoreless innings in relief, allowing one hit and striking out none. Aroldis Chapman earned his 20th save of the season with a perfect ninth inning, striking out two. Key offensive performers for Tampa Bay included DeLuca, who went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run scored. Caminero went 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs scored and an RBI. Walls went 1-for-3. Vilade went 0-for-3 with a walk. Feduccia went 0-for-3. Aranda went 0-for-4. Nick Fortes struck out as a pinch hitter. Ben Williamson went 1-for-4. For Boston, Abreu went 2-for-4 with two home runs, three RBIs and two runs scored. Contreras went 1-for-4 with a home run and an RBI. Seigler went 1-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a walk. Durbin went 2-for-4. Rafaela went 1-for-4 with a double. Duran went 0-for-3 with a strikeout. The Red Sox outhit the Rays 8-7. Tampa Bay left four runners on base while Boston left five. The game featured three home runs, all by Boston, and the Rays defense committed one error, a throwing miscue by Duran on DeLuca’s first-inning single. Boston’s defense also committed one error, a fielding error by Durbin. Tampa Bay had won three of its previous four games, including a 6-1 victory over Seattle on July 11. The Rays had split a four-game series with the Yankees before that. Boston entered on a six-game winning streak, having swept the Mets and White Sox on the road. The teams resume the doubleheader with Game 2 later Friday. The Rays then continue their road trip with four games in Toronto beginning Monday. The Red Sox host the Orioles for three games starting Monday. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a 7-5 Boston victory. Interstat’s ELO system gave the Red Sox a 54.20 percent probability to win. Tampa Bay had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total score of eight went over the over-under line of 8.5.

BOSTON (Interstat) — The Tampa Bay Rays open a critical doubleheader against the Boston Red Sox on Friday at Fenway Park, with the first pitch set for a cloudy 74-degree evening. Tampa Bay (56-38), leading the American League East, sends a roster that has relied on depth and pitching to overcome recent inconsistency. The Rays lost four of their last six games coming into the series, including an 8-2 defeat Sunday to Seattle. Right-hander Chris Roycroft, a key arm out of the bullpen, enters after a strong outing in that loss, throwing three scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Over his last three appearances, Roycroft has allowed three earned runs in six innings, striking out seven. First baseman Jonathan Aranda provided the lone offense Sunday with a two-run homer. Boston (46-48) returns home after a successful road trip, winning five of six against the Mets and White Sox. The Red Sox took a 3-2, 10-inning victory Sunday in New York, where right-hander Brayan Bello earned the win with 4 1/3 innings of one-run ball, scattering two hits and striking out five. Boston’s bullpen, anchored by Payton Tolle and Garrett Whitlock, has been sharp. The Red Sox have won six of their last eight overall. The clubs have met twice previously this season, with Tampa Bay taking four of six games. The Rays won three consecutive games in Boston in June, then split a two-game set in St. Petersburg. The last meeting, June 10, saw Tampa Bay win 7-5. Interstat’s game simulator projects a 7-5 Boston victory. Tampa Bay enters as a -1.5 favorite on the run line, with the over/under set at 8.5. Following this doubleheader, both teams continue their series Saturday and Sunday before diverging schedules. Tampa Bay heads to Toronto for a four-game set, while Boston hosts Baltimore for three.