Twins rally again, but settle for Fenway split

BOSTON — Two of the biggest constants of the season for the Red Sox — Rick Porcello winning at home and the Boston bats hitting at home — intersected nicely in Sunday’s 8-7 victory over the Twins that salvaged a split of a four-game series at Fenway Park.

Hanley Ramirez and Travis Shaw both smashed three-run homers while Dustin Pedroia added a tiebreaking solo shot. The long balls by Pedroia and Shaw came during a five-run fifth.

Over 6 2/3 innings, Porcello (10-0, 3.21 in 11 Fenway Park starts) gave up six hits and four earned runs, walking one and striking out eight. Porcello is 13-2 with a 3.57 ERA, one win behind Chris Sale and Chris Tillman for the American League lead.

 Things got interesting late, as the Twins rallied for two in the seventh and two more in the eighth. But Boston’s bullpen buckled down. The win kept the Red Sox 1 1/2 games behind the Orioles in the AL East.

For the second straight day, the Twins didn’t get much from their starter. Tommy Milone allowed 10 hits and eight runs over 4 2/3 innings. Four of the runs were unearned, thanks to an error by Miguel Sano. Most of Minnesota’s production came from the bottom of the order, as Juan Centeno had three RBIs and Byron Buxton had two.

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