Ryan Jeffers went 3-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs, and the first-place Minnesota Twins coasted to a 13-6 win over the Boston Red Sox on Monday night in Minneapolis.Victor Caratini also homered and drove in three runs for the Twins, who won for the seventh time in their past eight games. Minnesota and Cleveland are tied for first in the AL Central, 1.5 games ahead of the Tigers.Byron Buxton and Ryan Kreidler also homered for the Twins.Jarren Duran hit a two-run homer to lead Boston at the plate. Wilyer Abreu and Caleb Durbin each added two hits and one RBI.Twins right-hander Bailey Ober (2-0) allowed four runs on seven hits in six innings.

He fanned seven, walked one and hit a batter.Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet (2-2) surrendered 11 runs (10 earned) on nine hits in 1 2/3 innings. He walked three and struck out none.The Twins pounced on the southpaw for 11 runs in the first two innings.Minnesota started its damage with a four-run first. Austin Martin hit a one- out double, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on Luke Keaschall's double to left.

Moments later, Jeffers singled to drive in Keaschall and make it 2-0.An error by Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story opened the door for the Twins to make it 4-0. Brooks Lee reached on an RBI infield single that scored Jeffers, and Story's errant throw allowed Caratini to sprint home for another run.Guardians outslug CardinalsBrayan Rocchio hit a two-run homer while Daniel Schneemann and Steven Kwan added two RBIs apiece as the Cleveland Guardians defeated the host St. Louis Cardinals 9-3 on Monday.Guardians starter Gavin Williams (2-1) went five-plus innings, giving up five hits and two runs.

The right-hander walked two and struck out four on 93 pitches.Williams was chased in the sixth when Jordan Walker, who had six home runs all last season, hit his major-league-leading eighth to open the inning.Walker beat out an infield single in the eighth and scored the game's final run on Pedro Pages' sacrifice fly. Walker, 23, has a nine-game hitting streak, and he is batting .333 with 15 RBIs and 15 runs. His 46 total bases lead the majors.Cardinals starter Matthew Liberatore (0-1) went five innings, allowing six hits and four runs.

The southpaw walked three and struck out two on 105 pitches.White Sox prospect set for debutFresh off their first three-game sweep of the New York Yankees in five years, the Tampa Bay Rays will look to reverse recent struggles against the host Chicago White Sox in the opener of a three-game set on Tuesday.Chicago has gone 4-2 against Tampa Bay in each of the past two seasons after the Rays ran away with the 2023 season series 6-1.Tuesday's pitching matchup features a pair of left-handers in Shane McClanahan of Tampa Bay and Chicago's Noah Schultz, who will make his major league debut.Schultz, 22, earned a promotion from Triple-A Charlotte after starting 3-0 with a 1.29 ERA in three appearances, including two starts, with 19 strikeouts in 14 innings. Per MLB Pipeline, Schultz is the organization's No. 2 prospect.The White Sox selected the 6-foot-10 Schultz 26th overall in the 2022 draft out of Oswego East High School, about 45 minutes southwest of Chicago."He's about as nice a guy and polite a guy as can be, but he does have an edge when he goes out there and pitches, which you love to see," White Sox manager Will Venable said.Want to comment on this story?

Become a subscriber today. Click here.This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Detroit Tigers trail first-place Twins by 1.5 games in MLB standings