Boston (54-27) moved into first place in the AL East, a half-game ahead of the rival New York Yankees. After finishing their series with the Angels on Thursday night, the Red Sox play three games at Yankee Stadium this weekend.
The homer by Martinez capped a six-run second for the Red Sox, who won for the fifth time in six games. Eduardo Nunez and Sandy Leon also went deep in the inning. Boston improved to 5-0 against the Angels this season and has outscored them 45-10 with 18 homers and a .363 batting average.
Itr17;s the most homers by any club in a season series of six games or fewer, according to the Red Sox.
r1;I donr17;t know. Thatr17;s just what it is, really. Therer17;s no one explanation,r1; Martinez said. r1;Maybe we just match up well against them.r1;
Martin Maldonado launched a three-run homer and Ian Kinsler had a solo shot for the Angels, who lost their fifth straight and 12th in 16 games.
Los Angeles reliever Jake Jewell was carted off the field with what appeared to be a gruesome injury to his right ankle after covering the plate on a run-scoring wild pitch in the eighth.
r1;Her17;s getting evaluated, I think, at Massachusetts General,r1; Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia said. r1;Hopefully wer17;ll get an idea of whatr17;s happening sometime tonight.r1;
Angels star Mike Trout went 1 for 4 as a sprained right index finger kept him as the designated hitter for the eighth consecutive game.
Devers doubled off reliever Jose Alvarez (3-3) in the seventh, putting Boston back in front 7-6, and scored on Leonr17;s single in a game that took 4 hours.
Matt Barnes (2-2) worked a scoreless inning. Craig Kimbrel got four outs for his 23rd save, his first of more than three outs this season.
The Angels trailed 6-0 and looked as though they were in line for another lopsided loss to Boston before they charged back with a run in the fifth on Kinslerr17;s homer, three in the sixth on Maldonador17;s shot and two in the seventh.
r1;We battled back and got in the game. Wer17;ll keep battling,r1; Scioscia said. r1;But, at some point, obviously we need to put both ends together and get the pitching we need, get some early runs and get the game on our terms and wer17;re going to start to do things the way we can.r1;
Andrelton Simmonsr16; RBI double off reliever Joe Kelly tied it.
Martinezr17;s shot went over the Green Monster in left-center, raising his big league-best RBI total to 64. In his first season with Boston, the slugger has the most home runs in Red Sox history before the end of June.
Nunez hit Andrew Heaneyr17;s first pitch of the second into the center-field bleachers. Leon drove an inside fastball off a billboard above the Green Monster.
Boston starter Rick Porcello gave up four runs in 5 2/3 innings. Heaney was tagged for six runs in 3 1/3 innings.
TRAINERr17;S ROOM
Angels: INF Zack Cozart got a second opinion on his left shoulder after experiencing continued discomfort and plans to have surgery in Los Angeles soon to repair a torn labrum, the team said. r30; Scioscia said two-way rookie star Shohei Ohtani (sprained elbow ligament) will be re-evaluated Thursday. Three weeks ago, Ohtanir17;s elbow was injected with platelet-rich plasma and stem cells as he tries to avoid Tommy John surgery.
Red Sox: Cora said 2B Dustin Pedroia and knuckleballer Steven Wright will see Dr. Riley Williams III when the club is in New York to play the Yankees this weekend. Both are on the 10-day DL with left knee inflammation and had surgery performed by Dr. Williams. r1;Maybe we can do something differently as far as the treatments,r1; Cora said about Pedroia, who has played in just three games since offseason surgery. r30; Drew Pomeranz threw a simulated game and Cora said the left-hander could start a rehab assignment with Triple-A Pawtucket on Monday.
NEW ADDITION
The Red Sox signed infielder Brandon Phillips to a minor league deal. The 36-year-old veteran has played with five teams over 16 seasons.
UP NEXT
Angels: RHP Jamie Barria (5-3, 3.40 ERA) is slated to pitch the series finale Thursday. It will be his first career start against Boston.
Red Sox: LHP Brian Johnson (1-2 Youth Breeland Speaks Jersey , 4.50) takes Wrightr17;s turn in the rotation after he went on the disabled list Tuesday.
r12;
BOSTON r12; Last Saturday in Seattle, Mariners left-hander Wade LeBlanc pitched what had to be the game of his journeyman career in outdueling Steven Wright and handing the Boston Red Sox a 1-0 defeat.
The Mariners havenr17;t won since as they head into Friday nightr17;s rematch between the two pitchers in the opener of a three-game series on Friday night at Fenway Park.
The Red Sox won the Sunday game in Seattle and then lost the first two games in Minnesota before rebounding a 9-2 win and Rick Porcellor17;s ninth win of the season on Thursday.
After losing the game Sunday, the Mariners were swept in a three-game series by the Yankees in the Bronx r12; to start a difficult 10-game swing through the East that concludes with a four-game series in Baltimore.
LeBlanc, who has been pitching well in his latest role, is 3-0 with a 2.63 ERA and has yielded only 11 earned runs in nine starts r12; capped by 7 2/3 shutout innings (two hits, no walks, nine strikeouts) against the Red Sox.
He is just 33-35 with a 4.23 ERA in his career, but much of the negative numbers are in the past r12; at least for now.
After beating the Red Sox, he said, r0;Thatr17;s a stout lineup over there, but the fact that me and Z (catcher Mike Zunino) were able to mix things up and put them in the rocking chair makes things easier. Everything was executed and thatr17;s really all I can say. Itr17;s the most important thing for me r12; itr17;s to execute pitches. Today, me and Z were able to do that.r1;
But the team has faltered since, blowing a 5-0 lead in Wednesdayr17;s game before losing 4-3 on Thursday.
r0;Coming in here, we have been playing very good baseball Authentic Christian Kirk Jersey ,r1; said Seattle manager Scott Servais, whose team has dropped five of its last seven. r0;We know what kind of ballclub they have with the power and the bullpen. I thought we were right in the game the last couple of days.
r0;But you have to hit on the road. You have to get big hits on the road. We just didnr17;t get it done. It doesnr17;t detract or take away from anything that wer17;ve done to this point. Our guys are not down at all.r1;
The Boston bats snoozed through the first two games in Minneapolis, wasting starts by Chris Sale and David Price. The bats broke out Thursday, avoiding the sweep and leaving the Red Sox (50-26) as one of three American League teams with 50 wins.
r0;I think it was just a couple of tough days,r1; Mookie Betts, who hit is 19th homer of the season Thursday, said after the game. r0;We came out ready to swing it and it just showed what we can do.r1;
Wright has been outstanding since making his delayed 2018 debut (after knee surgery and a 15-game MLB suspension). He is 2-1 with a 1.23 ERA and gave up just the one losing run in the matchup with LeBlanc.
r0;Her17;s been great. Outstanding, really,r1; Cora said. r0;I heard a lot of good things about him before I got here and her17;s showed why.r1;
He is 2-2 with a 1.31 ERA in four games (two starts) against the Mariners. Kyle Seager is 3-for-9 and Nelson Cruz 2-for-6 (both .333), and Zunino is 1-for-8 (.125) and Dee Gordon 1-for-6 (.167) against the knuckleballer.
LeBlanc is 1-0 with a 3.24 ERA in three career starts against Boston. The Current Red Sox roster is a combined 3-for-16 against him. J.D. Martinez is 2-for-3 (.667) and no one has with more than three at-bats against him.
