The Boston Red Sox beat the Chicago White Sox 8-1 on Tuesday night at Rate Field, extending the best stretch of their season to nine wins in the last 11 games. The victory was their fourth in a row, and it came against a White Sox team that had been nearly unbeatable at home, winning 24 of 30 at Rate Field heading into Tuesday.
Home runs from Andruw Monasterio and Ceddanne Rafaela broke the game open early. Willson Contreras finished 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs, and a walk. The lineup produced 11 hits, with five going for extra bases. Payton Tolle dominated on the mound.
But the most significant development Tuesday night did not happen in Chicago. It happened in Baltimore.
Red Sox Climb Out of Last Place
The Cubs beat the Orioles 5-2. That result, combined with Boston’s win, pushed the Red Sox ahead of Baltimore in the AL East standings for the first time in more than six weeks.
It has been a long time coming. The Sox were 14 games under .500 in late June. The season looked like it was heading toward the kind of finish that leads to trade deadline sell-offs and conversations about next year.
The Red Sox are now 41-48. Still below .500. Still far from where the front office expected this team to be. But the trajectory has changed, and the numbers under interim manager Chad Tracy tell the story. Tracy is 31-31 since taking over, and the team has looked like a fundamentally different group over the last two weeks.
They have trimmed that deficit nearly in half. That matters even if the record does not look pretty yet.
GettyANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – JULY 5: Jarren Duran #16 of the Boston Red Sox rounds the bases after hitting a home run against the Los Angeles Angels in the second inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on July 5, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images)
Tolle Delivered When Boston Needed It Most
The milestone does not happen without Payton Tolle.
The left-hander came into Tuesday’s start off the worst outing of his career, having allowed six runs in just three innings against the Nationals in his last trip to the mound.
Tolle responded with six shutout innings. He held the White Sox to two hits and a walk, punching out six and issuing just one free pass. From the second inning on, he was virtually untouchable, setting down 15 of his final 16 batters.
“I needed it a little bit, a little pat on the butt,” Tolle said. “Just keep things rolling.”
The timing mattered as much as the performance. Ranger Suarez left his last start with left adductor tightness. Connelly Early is out with elbow inflammation. The rotation has thinned to the point where every start from the remaining arms carries extra weight. Tolle absorbing six innings and keeping the bullpen fresh was exactly what Boston needed.
GettyCHICAGO, ILLINOIS – JULY 7: Payton Tolle #70 of the Boston Red Sox pitches during the first inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on July 7, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images)
The Lineup Keeps Producing
The offense set the tone in the second inning. Monasterio led off with a solo homer to left field. Two batters later, Rafaela drove a breaking ball out for a two-run shot that put Boston ahead 3-0.
Jarren Duran doubled to lead off the fourth and scored on a Connor Wong squeeze bunt. The Red Sox tacked on four more in the ninth, including a two-run double from Contreras down the left-field line.
Since the benches-clearing incident against the Nationals on June 30, Contreras has gone 8-for-21 with four extra-base knocks and eight driven in across four games. The newly minted All-Star is not slowing down.
“We’re carrying really good energy right now,” Contreras said. “We’re not giving up. We’re not backing up, either.”
GettyCHICAGO, ILLINOIS – JULY 7: Ceddanne Rafaela #3 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates hitting a two-run home run during the second inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on July 7, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Geoff Stellfox/Getty Images)
Final Word for the Red Sox
Out of last place for the first time in six weeks. Nine wins in the last 11 games. A road trip that started in Anaheim and moved to Chicago has given the Red Sox something they have not had for most of this season.
Momentum.
Jake Bennett takes the mound Wednesday with a chance to clinch back-to-back series victories. The All-Star break is around the corner, and for the first time in months, Boston heads into it with real reasons to believe the second half can look different.
The climb has been slow. Tuesday night proved it has also been real.
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