Boston Red Sox left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez and right-hander Heath Hembree combined to strike out 11 consecutive batters to establish a major league record on Sunday in a 3-2, 10-inning victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Petersburg, Florida.
The New York Mets held the previous mark when Tom Seaver struck out 10 in a row against San Diego on Apr. 22, 1970.
Boston also set a club record by striking out 21 batters through nine innings. Joe Kelly added two more in the 10th as the Red Sox won their 11th consecutive game.
According to Elias Sports Bureau, the 21 strikeouts would have been a major league record for a nine-inning game, but it isn't a record since the game went to extra innings.
Rodriguez struck out a career-high 13 in 5 1/3 innings. Hembree fanned five in 1 2/3 innings.
Kelly pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings to improve to 4-0 this season.
The Red Sox pushed across the eventual winning run on some nifty baserunning by second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who scored from first base on David Ortiz's double in the 10th inning. Pedroia was on base after hitting a single.
The relay throw on Ortiz's hit to right-center beat Pedroia to the plate, but he avoided Luke Maile's first tag. Pedroia's momentum carried him past the plate, and when he went back to touch it Maile was charged with an error when the ball dropped out of his glove on another tag attempt.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
