Baltimore Orioles at Boston Red Sox

There was a lot on Kyle Bradish's mind this week as he prepared for his next start -- first pushed back from Sunday to Tuesday, then delayed until Wednesday night due to rainy conditions in Boston. Only four days ago, Bradish signed a five-year, $90 million extension with the Orioles that made him the highest-paid pitcher in franchise history. He felt joy and excitement, and he knew the next time he took the mound -- which would have been Sunday in Houston, had he not had such an eventful weekend -- wouldn’t be like any other start. “It was a long week, but it was amazing,” Bradish said. “I thought about this start, first one back, I just wanted to make it a good one.” But Bradish is also a fierce competitor. And once the 29-year-old right-hander knew he’d have an opportunity to end a 15-game winning streak for the Red Sox, that became where he channeled his emotion. “I definitely went out there with that on my mind,” Bradish said, “trying to end it.” Mission accomplished. Bradish tossed six stellar innings as Baltimore snapped Boston’s historic run with a 5-1 victory at Fenway Park. The O’s became the first team to beat the Red Sox since the Nationals did so on July 1. It was a much-needed win for the Orioles (50-53), who denied the Red Sox (52-49) both a sweep and the opportunity to break the record for the longest win streak in their long history. Baltimore lost the first two games of the series, including a 6-3 defeat in the opener of Wednesday’s split doubleheader. Bradish has been the O’s ace for much of his five-year MLB career, and he’s been among the American League’s premier starters over that span, except when he was sidelined for more than a year after undergoing Tommy John surgery in June 2024. He provided another example of why the Orioles wanted to invest so much into him this time out.