BOSTON — The rather amazing resurgence of Rich Hill continued at Fenway Park on Friday night — and ended with a rather amazing play.
The 35-year-old left-hander, who hails from nearby Milton, Mass., and is beginning his second tour with his hometown team, this time as a starter, pitched a two-hitter for his second major league shutout — his first in almost nine years — in leading the Boston Red Sox to a 7-0 win over the Baltimore Orioles.
The game ended when right fielder Mookie Betts robbed first baseman Chris Davis of what would have been his 44th homer of the season with a man on.
Hill, who had last started in the major leagues in 2009, allowed a single to center fielder Nolan Reimold leading off the game and a leadoff infield single to right fielder Dariel Alvarez in the ninth.
He delivered his first shutout since pitching one for the Chicago Cubs in 2006 — and it was the first shutout of the season for the last-place Red Sox (73-80).
Hill allowed one hit and no runs in his first start and three runs in seven innings in his second — striking out 10 in both — fanned 10 again and walked only one — in raising his record to 2-0. That gives him 30 strikeouts and two walks in 23 innings.
Designated hitter David Ortiz collected three doubles and three RBIs as the Red Sox ended a three-game loss streak. The loss snapped the Orioles’ three-game winning streak and dealt a blow to their long-shot wild card hopes.
They came into the game 11-4 in their last 15 and started play 3 1/2 games out of the second American League wild card slot and fell to 76-77.
Ortiz’s two-run double highlighted a three-run sixth inning — a play that saw second baseman Dustin Pedroia and shortstop Xander Bogaerts round third almost at the same time before both scored, a second apart.
Bogaerts, who had three hits a night after his 12-game hitting streak ended, had doubled home a run off loser Kevin Gausman (3-7) in the third inning and Brock Holt doubled home the third run of the sixth. He added an RBI infield single in the eighth.
Reimold led off the game with a single, but Davis grounded into a one-out double play to end the inning.
Hill struck out the side in the second inning, picked up another strikeout in the fourth and two more in the fifth, facing the minimum 15 batters over five innings.
Gausman worked a perfect first and pitched out of a jam created when Ortiz doubled leading off the second. Gausman used two strikeouts to help get out of the inning.
Blue Jays 5, Rays 3
TORONTO — R.A. Dickey earned his 100th career win, Josh Donaldson, Kevin Pillar and Jose Bautista homered, and the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 5-3 on Friday.
The Blue Jays (88-65) entered the opener of a three-game series with the Rays (75-79) leading the American League East by three games over the New York Yankees.
Catcher J.P. Arencibia homered in the eighth for the Rays, who entered the night five games out of a wild-card spot.
Donaldson, the designated hitter for this game, tied the score with a solo homer in the third. Pillar, the center fielder, gave the Blue Jays the lead with his solo blast in the fourth.
It was the fourth attempt at winning No. 100 for Dickey (11-11).
He allowed four hits, no walks and two runs while striking out two in seven innings. He retired the final 11 batters he faced.
Right-hander Roberto Osuna pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 18th save of the season.
Rays right-hander Jake Odorizzi allowed two home runs among seven hits, three walks and four runs in five innings. He struck out four.
Bautista, the right fielder, led off the seventh with his 37th homer of the season on a 1-2 curveball from right-hander Kirby Yates, the second Rays reliever, to increase Toronto’s lead to 5-2.
Arencibia, a former Blue Jay, led off the eighth with his sixth homer of the season on a first-pitch fastball from right-hander Mark Lowe.
The Rays scored twice in the first. Left fielder Grady Sizemore doubled with one out, third baseman Evan Longoria singled and second baseman Logan Forsythe was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
A wild pitch scored Sizemore, and shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera hit a sacrifice fly to center.
Consecutive two-out doubles by Pillar and third baseman Cliff Pennington gave Toronto a second-inning run.
Donaldson tied the game with his 40th home run of the season, hitting a 2-2 cutter to center with one out in the third.
Toronto took a 4-2 lead in the fourth.