BALTIMORE — Ceddanne Rafaela hit a two-run home run in the ninth inning to give the Boston Red Sox a 3-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles on August 27, 2025, at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The victory moved Boston to 74-60, keeping the team in second place in the American League East, four games behind the division-leading Toronto Blue Jays. Baltimore dropped to 60-73, remaining in last place in the division, 17.5 games out of first. Rookie Roman Anthony started the scoring with a solo homer in the first inning, but the Orioles took a late lead before Rafaela’s blast off reliever Keegan Akin flipped the outcome.
Brayan Bello started for Boston and delivered 6 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on five hits with six strikeouts and one walk. The right-hander, who signed a six-year extension with the Red Sox before the 2024 season, escaped jams in the second and seventh innings, including a passed ball by catcher Connor Wong that advanced a runner. Bello’s outing lowered his ERA to 2.99 through 23 starts this year, with a 10-6 record and 108 strikeouts in 138 1/3 innings. Reliever Justin Wilson inherited a runner in the seventh and induced a groundout to end the threat. Greg Weissert pitched a clean eighth to earn the win, improving to 6-4 with a 2.91 ERA. Aroldis Chapman closed with a perfect ninth, striking out all three batters for his 26th save. The 37-year-old closer, who joined Boston on a one-year deal in the offseason, has a 1.04 ERA in 52 innings this season, converting 26 of 28 save opportunities.
Baltimore’s Dietrich Enns lasted 2 1/3 innings, giving up one run on two hits with three strikeouts. Roansy Contreras followed with 4 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing three hits and hitting one batter. Akin entered in the eighth and retired the side but faltered in the ninth, allowing two runs on two hits to take the loss and a blown save. His record fell to 4-4 with a 3.29 ERA in 41 innings this year, including 49 strikeouts and three saves.
Boston collected seven hits, with Anthony and Rafaela providing the power. Anthony, the Red Sox’s top prospect selected in the second round of the 2022 draft, went 2-for-4 with his seventh home run, a solo shot to center off Enns in the first for a 1-0 lead. The 21-year-old outfielder, who signed an eight-year, $130 million extension in August, is batting .286 with a .857 OPS in 59 games since his June 9 call-up from Triple-A Worcester. Rafaela doubled in the fifth and homered in the ninth for his 15th of the season, driving in Jarren Duran for the winning runs. Rafaela, a 24-year-old center fielder from Curacao who debuted in 2023, is hitting .249 with 55 RBIs this year and started his second straight Opening Day in center. Duran added two hits and stole his 22nd base, while the Red Sox went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left five on base.
The Orioles managed five hits, with Dylan Beavers contributing significantly. Beavers, a 24-year-old outfielder drafted 33rd overall in 2022, doubled in the second to score Coby Mayo and tie the game at 1-1 after a deflection off shortstop Trevor Story and Rafaela. He later walked in the seventh, advanced, and scored on Dylan Carlson’s double for a 2-1 lead. Beavers, called up August 16 from Triple-A Norfolk, is batting .344 with a 1.038 OPS in 17 games, including his first career homer on August 21. Carlson doubled and drove in a run, while Gunnar Henderson stole his 20th base. The team left five on base and went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position. Top prospects Jackson Holliday, Mayo, and Samuel Basallo combined for 1-for-12; Basallo, a 20-year-old catcher who signed an eight-year, $67 million extension on August 23, went 0-for-4 in his 11th game since debuting August 17.
The game remained tight after Anthony’s early homer. Baltimore tied it in the second on Beavers’ RBI double following Mayo’s single. The score held until Carlson’s seventh-inning double scored Beavers. In the ninth, Duran singled and stole second before Rafaela’s homer to left-center off Akin. Chapman then struck out Holliday, Emmanuel Rivera, and Henderson to secure the win.
Boston has won seven of its last 10 games, strengthening its wild-card position as the No. 1 wild-card team, 1.5 games ahead of the New York Yankees. The Red Sox, managed by Alex Cora, have relied on young talent like Anthony and Rafaela amid a rotation led by Bello. Baltimore, under interim manager Tony Mansolino after parting with Brandon Hyde in May, has lost three straight and struggled with a 45-45 record under Mansolino following Hyde’s 15-28 start. The Orioles’ rebuild features prospects like Holliday (No. 1 overall in MLB Pipeline rankings entering 2025), Mayo, Basallo (No. 3), and Beavers, but the team has faced injuries and inconsistency. Boston leads the season series 7-6, with the finale set for August 28 featuring Cade Povich against Garrett Crochet.
