Boston Red Sox pitcher Chris Martin watches the flight of the ball on a three-run home run by Baltimore’s Jordan Westburg during the seventh inning Wednesday night in Boston. Charles Krupa/Associated Press
BOSTON — Jordan Westburg hit a go-ahead homer in the seventh inning and the Baltimore Orioles erased a five-run deficit to beat the Boston Red Sox 7-5 on Wednesday night.
Jackson Holliday, baseball’s top-rated prospect, made his major league debut for the Orioles and went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts and an RBI groundout. The 20-year-old infielder, selected first in the 2022 amateur draft, started at second base and batted ninth.
Boston wasted a strong start by Kutter Crawford, who threw five scoreless innings. He allowed two hits and four walks with six strikeouts and a hit batter.
Cole Irvin started for Baltimore, giving up five runs on seven hits and three walks in five innings. He struck out four.
Triston Casas hit a two-run homer to give the Red Sox a 5-0 lead in the fifth.
The Orioles scored three times in the sixth, with four consecutive hits off reliever Isaiah Campbell to open the inning. Holliday snapped the streak with a groundout that drove in a run.
Baltimore added four runs in the seventh off Chris Martin (1-1), including Westburg’s three-run shot that gave the Orioles a 7-5 lead. It was his second homer of the season.
Mike Baumann (1-0) struck out three in a scoreless inning and Craig Kimbrel fanned two in the ninth for his second save.
NOTES: The Boston Red Sox finalized an eight-year contract with 23-year-old Ceddanne Rafaela, the youngest player on their roster.
The deal includes a team option for 2032.
Rafaela has played 39 major league games, batting .233 average with two homers, playing center field, shortstop and second base. He was twice recognized by the organization as the minor league defensive player of the year, and he was also the club’s baserunner of the year last season.
He began this season with 35 days of major league service and likely would have been eligible for salary arbitration after the 2026 season and for free agency after the 2029 season.
The long-term agreement supersedes a one-year contract agreed to last month that called for a $743,500 salary while in the major leagues and $120,600 while in the minors.
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