Red Sox Match 80-Year-Old Franchise Record With 15th Straight Win

The Boston Red Sox‘s remarkable turnaround season reached a new milestone Wednesday, as the Red Sox knocked off the Orioles 6-3 to extend their winning streak to 15 games, tying the longest run in franchise history — a mark first set by the legendary 1946 squad.

The victory came in the opener of a day-night doubleheader at Fenway Park, rescheduled after rain wiped out Tuesday’s game. Any worry that the delay might cool off Boston’s momentum evaporated almost immediately: the offense jumped ahead 4-0 in the first inning behind a two-run single from Caleb Durbin and a two-run triple off the bat of Jarren Duran.

Ceddanne Rafaela added an insurance homer over the Green Monster in the fourth for his ninth of the season, while rookie left-hander Jake Bennett worked into the sixth inning, scattering nine hits but allowing only three runs. Closer Aroldis Chapman slammed the door as Fenway’s crowd grew louder with every out.

The streak stands among an elite group historically. It marks just the eighth time since the sport’s expansion era began in 1961 that a team has won 15 or more games in a row within a single season, joining clubs like the 2017 Cleveland squad, which holds the modern record at 22 straight, and the 2021 Cardinals, the most recent team to pull off a run this long before Boston’s current stretch.

What makes the turnaround especially striking is where this Red Sox team stood just weeks ago. As recently as June 24, Boston sat at 32-46, buried in last place in the American League East. Since then, the club has won 20 of 22 games, catapulting itself into wild-card contention even while still trailing Tampa Bay by six games atop the division.

Much of the credit has gone to interim manager Chad Tracy, who took over the club and has guided it to one of the sport’s most dramatic in-season reversals. The turnaround has invited comparisons to his father, longtime big-league manager Jim Tracy, who orchestrated a similarly stunning resurgence with the Colorado Rockies back in 2009.

With the winning streak fueling speculation about Tracy’s future, some in the game have already begun floating his name for American League Manager of the Year honors, along with growing chatter about whether the interim tag might eventually come off entirely.

Boston had a chance to set an outright franchise record in Wednesday’s Game 2 nightcap, with first pitch set for 7:10 p.m. ET.