BOSTON (AP) — A little time off at the All-Star break looks like it was all the Milwaukee Brewers needed to get rolling.
Hunter Renfroe belted a two-run homer over the Green Monster, Eric Lauer pitched five innings of one-run ball for his first victory in over a month and the Brewers beat fading Boston 9-4 on Saturday, sending the Red Sox to their 13th loss in 16 games.
Omar Narváez and Tyrone Taylor each added a solo shot, and Rowdy Tellez had three hits and drove in a run for the NL Central-leading Brewers, who are 7-1 since the break.
“I guess a little rest does a lot of people good for sure,” Renfroe said. “I think we’re swinging the bat well and seeing the ball all right.”
Milwaukee, playing in Boston for the first time since 2014, will try for a sweep of the three-game series Sunday.
“I would probably say this is the best we’ve played as a team,” said Brewers reliever Devin Williams, who extended his club-record for a single season with his 30th straight scoreless appearance. “I think we’re all kind of clicking on all cylinders right now.”
While the Brewers are going in one direction, the Red Sox are the opposite.
Christian Vázquez and Xander Bogaerts each had an RBI single for Boston, which is last in the AL East and has dropped seven of nine in a season-high 10-day game homestand.
“We’ve been talking about, we need to get to the next level,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “It seems like we haven’t been able to do that throughout the season, let’s be honest. We take a few steps forward and a lot of steps back.”
Renfroe, who played one season with the Red Sox before being traded to the Brewers last November, belted a curveball from Nick Pivetta (8-8) into the second row of seats for his 18th homer, making it 4-1 in the fifth. Pivetta dropped to one knee after…
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