NEW YORK — CC Sabathia won his fifth consecutive start by allowing five hits in eight outstanding innings, leading the New York Yankees to an 8-0 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday night.
Chris Carter drove in four runs with a three-run homer and an RBI single, and he was robbed of another potential home run by Mookie Betts. Didi Gregorius hit a solo homer, and Gary Sanchez, Matt Holliday and Brett Gardner added RBI singles.
Those runs were more than enough as Sabathia (7-2) became the American League’s fifth seven-game winner and turned in his longest outing since April 20, 2015, in Detroit. He struck out five without a walk and threw 64 of 95 pitches for strikes.
The left-hander recorded his 230th career victory by retiring the last 12 hitters he faced and getting key outs all night.
He gave up a two-out single to Xander Bogaerts in the first but retired Hanley Ramirez. He allowed two-out hits in the second and third but got a strikeout and a groundout to end those innings.
In the fourth, Sabathia allowed an infield single to Sam Travis when it was still a 1-0 game. Facing Sandy Leon, who hit a long homer off him last July, Sabathia ended the inning with a double play.
He did not allow a batter to reach after Josh Rutledge opened the fifth with a triple. Sabathia got out of that unscathed, starting by spearing a comebacker by Jackie Bradley Jr. with his bare hand on a ball clocked at 97.9 mph.
The Yankees took a 5-0 lead against Rick Porcello (3-8) thanks to Gregorius’ fifth homer, Sanchez’s run-scoring hit and Carter’s sixth homer. Carter nearly hit a second homer in the sixth, but Betts made a leaping catch in front of the right field wall after the ball hit the arm of a fan.
Manager Joe Girardi appeared to want a replay while Sabathia warmed up for the seventh. The slight delay did not hurt Sabathia, who needed only 11 pitches to finish the seventh, and the Yankees added a run on a single by Holliday.
After Sabathia accepted handshakes in the dugout from teammates, Carter and Gardner upped the lead to 8-0 with RBI singles.
Porcello allowed six runs (five earned) and eight hits in 6 1/3 innings. He lost his third straight start as the Red Sox were blanked for the fourth time this season.
The Yankees took a 1-0 lead when Gregorius opened the third by lifting a 1-0 changeup over the right-center-field fence.
New York scored four times during a lengthy fourth.
Starlin Castro opened the inning with a triple and scored on Sanchez’s bloop single. After Chase Headley singled, Carter sent a 2-2 fastball well over the left field wall for his sixth home run of the season.
NOTES: Yankees manager Joe Girardi said struggling RHP Masahiro Tanaka would make his next scheduled start Sunday against the Baltimore Orioles. … The Red Sox announced RHP Brian Johnson will start Friday against Detroit. … Boston LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (right knee subluxation) made throws from 120 feet without any physical issues. … RHP Carson Smith, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, threw about 20 pitches in a simulated game to 2B Dustin Pedroia and OF Andrew Benintendi. Smith will throw again Saturday and could start a rehab assignment sometime next week. … New York LF Brett Gardner stole a base for the first time since April 10.