Red Sox K record 11 straight, win 11th in row

Mookie Betts initially gets around the throw from Luke Maile at first, but the Rays use a challenge and the call is overturned in the 5th

The win also moved Boston's magic number to clinch the American League East to two. The Blue Jays defeated the Yankees, 4-3.

The Red Sox made history with a prodigious strikeout streak on Sunday, striking out 21 batters in the first nine innings. The Major League record before that was 20 strikeouts in a nine-inning game. Boston had a stretch of 17 outs in a row recorded via strikeout -- including the record 11 consecutive plate appearances. Starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez tied a career high with 13 strikeouts. Heath Hembree came in and struck out all five batters he faced.

A Mookie Betts RBI single and a Pedroia home run was all the offense Boston had in the first nine innings. Richie Shaffer had a second-inning sac fly for the Rays, and Brad Miller tied the game with an RBI single in the eighth.

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Stealing the show: For the second straight game, Pedroia used his power to boost the Sox. He crushed a towering home run to left field in the top of the third inning to break a 1-1 tie before scoring the crazy go-ahead run. On Saturday, he turned a deficit into a three-run lead with a seventh-inning grand slam that gave Boston a win.

The Rays challenged in the top of the fifth inning when Betts was called safe at first base on a pickoff attempt by Maile. After a review of one minute, 18 seconds, the call on the field was overturned.

Red Sox: David Price (17-8, 3.91 ERA) leads the Red Sox in innings, and will have a chance to add to that when he faces the Yankees at 7:05 p.m. ET on Tuesday in New York. Since Aug. 17, Price has a 2.78 ERA and a 0.85 WHIP in eight starts. Before that, he had a 4.29 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP in 25 starts.

Rays: The Rays travel to Chicago, where they will begin a seven-game road trip with a four-game series against the White Sox on Monday at 8:10 ET. Drew Smyly (7-11, 4.86 ERA) will start hoping to extend his streak of 11 consecutive games without taking a loss.

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Bill Chastain has covered the Rays for MLB.com since 2005.

This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.