BOSTON (AP) - David Ortiz had four hits and five RBI, and Dustin Pedroia had four of Boston's 16 hits Tuesday night to lead the Red Sox to a 13-9 victory over the Kansas City Royals, their 18th win in 22 games.
Hours after the teams took a 1-1 pitcher's duel into the 14th inning and finished up at 1:59 a.m., they combined for 31 hits and 22 runs against nine pitchers - including Royals outfielder Mitch Maier, who threw a scoreless inning.
Alfredo Aceves (6-1) threw 31â„3 scoreless innings in relief to improve to 20-2 in his career.
Nathan Adcock (1-1) got just one out for the Royals, allowing three earned runs, three hits and three walks as Boston scored six times in the fifth inning to turn a back-and-forth game into a blowout.
Batting cleanup for the third time this season - Kevin Youkilis sat out with a hamstring injury - Pedroia had a triple, double and single in his first three at-bats but singled his next time up, in the fifth inning, walked in the sixth and hit a high fly ball to the base of the Green Monster in the eighth. Ortiz had three doubles, and Jason Varitek homered for Boston.
Alex Gordon and Billy Butler homered for the Royals, and Butler and Mike Aviles both had three hits. Kansas City scored twice in the ninth before Franklin Morales struck out Alcides Escobar to end it.
The Royals, who used six pitchers in Monday night's extra-inning game, used five more Tuesday, turning to Maier in the eighth. It was the 10th time in franchise history that a position player has pitched for Kansas City.
It was 2-2 after one inning, 4-2 Royals after two, 5-4 Boston after three and 7-6 Kansas City after four. But the Red Sox broke it open with six runs in the fifth inning, when they sent 11 batters to the plate.
Josh Reddick and Jacoby Ellsbury singled before recent callup Drew Sutton bunted them along and reached safely when Aviles, the second baseman who was covering first, couldn't handle the throw from Adcock. Two runs scored, and Sutton made it around to third on the error.
After Marco Scutaro walked, Blake Wood replaced Adcock and gave up consecutive singles to Adrian Gonzalez, Pedroia, Ortiz and Carl Crawford. Varitek struck out before Reddick, batting for the second time, hit a sacrifice fly to make it 12-7.
Notes: Boston reached double digits in hits for the 10th straight home game. ... It was Varitek's sixth homer of the season, but his first from the right side of the plate. ... Both benches were warned after Wood hit Gonzalez in apparent retaliation for Aceves' plunking of Butler. ... Ellsbury wasn't in the starting lineup; he was supposed to get a night off as Darnell McDonald started in center. He pinch-hit in the fifth. ... Boston manager Terry Francona on the July 31 trade deadline: "I like our team, (but) I've been around here long enough to know that (general manager Theo Epstein) is going to be on the phone. Theo's going to make us better if he can." ... Kansas City's 14-inning win Monday night marked its 18th win (of 43) in its final at-bat. The Royals lead the majors with 11 walk-off wins.