NEW YORK — James Paxton struck out 12 in his first stab at baseball’s biggest rivalry, Red Sox ace Chris Sale found his fastball but not better results, and the New York Yankees three-hit Boston, 8-0, on Tuesday night in the first game this season between the struggling AL East foes.
Paxton (2-2) pitched two-hit ball for eight innings, walking one and going to just two three-ball counts in a swift game that took only 2 hours, 23 minutes.
Mike Tauchman hit his first major league homer and drove in four runs, and Clint Frazier and Gleyber Torres also went deep for the Yankees. New York had dropped five of six and is 7-9 a year after winning 100 games.
Sale (0-4) reached 97.5 mph — a positive sign for Boston after his velocity sagged this spring — but still got hit around, allowing four runs and seven hits over five innings. He struck out six and walked one while the World Series champions dropped to 6-12.
The longtime rivals hadn’t played with both teams below .500 this deep into a season since 1992.
Acquired from Seattle in an offseason trade, Paxton adjusted well after Yankees special adviser Carlos Beltran informed the left-hander he was tipping pitches during a lousy start last week in Houston. Yankees manager Aaron Boone also said before the game he thought Paxton’s stuff had dulled a bit since spring training.
It all clicked Tuesday. The big left-hander reached 99 mph, striking out four of his first six batters and six straight later. Paxton saluted the cheering crowd after retiring AL MVP Mookie Betts to end his night.
Boston’s starters entered with a 7.18 ERA, worst in the majors.
Sale had some extra juice, just not enough. He retired six straight before Brett Gardner’s leadoff double in the third. DJ LeMahieu drove in Gardner with a single, then came around on Luke Voit’s smashed single to make it 2-0.
■Yankees 1B Greg Bird was placed on the 10-day injured list before the game, giving New York a dozen players on the shelf less than three weeks into the season. The oft-injured Bird is expected to miss at least a month.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Rays placed ace left-hander Blake Snell on the 10-day injured list after he broke a toe on his right foot while he was at home Sunday night.
The 26-year-old Snell got hurt when he got out of the shower and then attempted to move a large granite item. The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner said it was a “really dumb” move.
Snell is 2-1 with a 2.16 ERA in four starts this season. He is eligible to return on April 24 and thinks he might miss just one start.
CHICAGO — Major League Baseball is investigating racist messages sent to Chicago Cubs reliever Carl Edwards Jr. on Instagram this month.
Edwards was optioned to Triple-A Iowa after he had trouble with his motion and got off to a tough start this season. Lee Long, Edwards’ agent, said the messages came from a couple different people.
Philadelphia
lands All-Star Game
PHILADELPHIA — Baseball’s 2026 All-Star Game will be played in Philadelphia to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Commissioner Rob Manfred made the announcement Tuesday at Independence Hall with a cast of All-Stars past and present on stage behind him. Phillies Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt and six-time All-Star Bryce Harper were the last two speakers to address the crowd.
This will be the first All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park, which opened in 2004. The 1976 All-Star Game was played at Veterans Stadium to mark the 200th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, and the 1996 All-Star Game also was played at the Vet.