LOS ANGELES (DA) — Ceddanne Rafaela homered twice and drove in both of Boston’s earned runs as the Medias Rojas defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-2.
Rafaela opened the scoring with a solo home run off Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the first inning. After Los Angeles moved ahead 2-1 in the second on a two-run homer by Teoscar Hernández, Rafaela struck again in the third with his second solo shot of the game and 14th homer of the season.
The Curaçao-born center fielder finished 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored, raising his batting average to .288. He also recorded a pair of outfield assists, throwing out Shohei Ohtani and Andy Pages at second base.
Boston scored the decisive run in the eighth inning to take a 3-2 lead. Chase Meidroth reached on a double and later came around to score.
Romy González earned the victory with a scoreless inning in relief, while Garrett Whitlock followed with a scoreless eighth. Aroldis Chapman retired the Dodgers in the ninth to record his 27th save.
Yamamoto worked eight innings for Los Angeles but took the loss after allowing 3 runs on four hits, including Rafaela’s two home runs. The Dodgers collected 10 hits but went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position and left seven runners on base.