I wrote on Monday afternoon that this week’s series between the Red Sox (81-65) and Athletics (66-80) was a must-win situation for Boston.

With the way their schedule shakes out once they head back east for their last five series of the regular season, this was one they had to have. They needed to build in some cushion. It had to happen.

It turns out they didn’t need to hear it from me.

The Red Sox dominated for a second straight night out in Sacramento, beating the A’s 6-0 to clinch a much-needed series win against the last place team in the AL West.

The offense mashed. The rookie threw a gem in his debut. It was awesome.

If you stayed up for this one, you were treated to one of the more enjoyable nights of baseball the Red Sox have had in 2025.

Make sure you brag about it in your group chat tomorrow. You deserve it.

Anyways, here’s nine takeaways from a memorable night at Sutter Health Park:

1. Offense early, offense often for Boston

Before Connelly Early even threw his first major league pitch, he was working with a 4-0 lead.

After hanging 7 runs on Oakland in game one of the series on Monday, Boston picked up right where they left off to get things going on Tuesday.

On the third pitch of the game, Romy Gonzalez hit a solo shot 426 feet, extending his hitting streak to 12 games and setting the tone for the rest of the inning (more on this later).

The next two batters were Alex Bregman and Trevor Story. Both men singled, giving Rob Refsnyder two men with no outs as he walked to the plate.

Five pitches later, Refsnyder was hitting a three-run bomb that might be the most impressive home run of the season (more on this later).

Four batters. Four runs. No outs. That’s how you start a ballgame.

Good for the Red Sox for taking advantage of old friend Jeffrey Spring (10-11), who didn’t have it on Tuesday and really hasn’t had it all season long.

2. A loud 12-game hitting streak for Romy Gonzalez

If they gave out a lefty-hitting specific MVP Award, Gonzalez might just be the guy.

His solo shot in the first to extend his hitting streak to 12 games isn’t even the most recent reminder of how consistent the 29-year-old has been while facing left handed pitching in 2025.

One inning later, with a man on second and one out, Gonzalez knocked in an RBI double to give Boston a 5-0 lead.

After no extra base hits over the course of his hit streak, he had two in consecutive innings on Tuesday.

55 games vs. LHP: .336 BA, .386 OBP, .597 SLG, .983 OPS in 119 at bats

Beast.

Early in the season, fans and media laughed as Alex Cora continually talked about the importance of keeping Gonzalez’s bat in the lineup. Turns out, the manager was more than right.

With Gonzalez’s incredible ability to hit lefties along with his positional flexibility in the infield, he’ll continue to be an integral part of everything Boston is doing during the stretch run of this season.

3. …with that said, get well soon?

After an awkward slide into second on his RBI double, Gonzalez appeared to be walking with a bit of a limp as he came off the field after the top half of the second.

And with how important Gonzalez is going to be for Boston come October, Cora was taking no chances with his red-hot infielder.

Nathaniel Lowe was out at first base for the bottom of the second, and we saw Gonzalez walk gingerly from the dugout to the outfield clubhouse at Sutter Health Park ahead of the third inning.

With Wednesday’s series finale slated for a 12:35 local time first pitch, it’s safe to say we won’t see Gonzalez looking to extend his hit streak to 13 games until he’s back at Fenway this weekend.

4. 463 for Ref! Holy crap!

The cool thing about Gonzalez’s amazing ability to hit lefties is that Refsnyder is right there with him.

He saw that solo shot and said “I’ll do you one better,” absolutely smoking a ball to left center for the longest hit of the season for the Red Sox.

And when I say longest hit of the season, I don’t just mean any old home run.

463 feet for the 34-year-old journeyman.

Four hundred and sixty-three feet, people.

463!

For a guy that has been one of the real leaders in Boston’s clubhouse since arriving in 2022, moments like this matter a little bit more for the dugout.

The less you need to lean on the phrase “do as I say, not as I do,” the more effective your voice will be within the leadership structure of any organization.

An extremely cool moment for a great guy.

5. Oh yeah, there was a rookie debut on the mound tonight. And he was awesome.

Let’s talk about Connelly Early, shall we?

Heading into Tuesday, most casual Red Sox fans had no idea who this kid was as news broke that he was being called up after Dustin May was added to the 15-day injured list.

When they wake up on Wednesday morning, they’ll see an all-time great stat line for a rookie debut, as the 23-year-old was dealing in his first big league game.

His 11 strikeouts on Tuesday tied a franchise record for the most strikeouts by a Red Sox pitcher in his MLB debut. He retired the first eight batters he faced, looking like an old pro as he ran through an Oakland lineup that had no answers.

Early lasted 90 pitches across 5 innings of work, only walking one batter and allowing just five hits on the night.

It was truly a special performance from a kid who once upon a time was pitching for West Point before transferring to Virginia to finish his college career.

Here’s what Andrew Mahoney of The Boston Globe wrote on Tuesday about the newest member of the Red Sox ahead of his first career start:

“In his start for Worcester last week, Early elicited 20 swings and misses — the most by any Red Sox pitcher in Triple A this year — and struck out 10 over six innings of one-run ball. The 23-year-old has a 2.83 ERA and 31 percent strikeout rate in six Triple A starts.

“He was selected by the Red Sox in the fifth round of the 2023 draft out of the University of Virginia.”

That 10 strikeout performance described above by Mahoney was Early’s only 10 strikeout game this season until Tuesday night.

I guess the kid is peaking at the right time.

This electric debut for Early comes earlier than expected (pun intended), as the conventional wisdom around the player was that he wouldn’t be making an impact on the big league roster until 2026.

But after a game we’ll all remember for a long time, it feels like Early isn’t done having an impact on 2025.

Just 11 days ago, 22-year-old top pitching prospect Payton Tolle (0-1, 7.56 ERA) made a statement in his MLB debut, striking out eight in 5.1 innings with NL Cy Young favorite Paul Skenes throwing for Pittsburgh.

First Tolle. Now Early.

The future is bright in Boston.

6. Trevor Story closing in on history on the base path

We led yesterday’s column with just how good Story has been at the plate.

Now let’s talk about just how good the guy has been on the base path.

With another stolen bag tonight, Story is now 28 for 28 on the season. The MLB all-time record is 30 for 30.

Story’s emergence at the plate has been such a revelation, his historic season stealing bases is being lost in the fold.

It’s no surprise that his 28 stolen bags leads the team, along with his 24 home runs, 90 RBI and 141 games played.

He’s durable. He’s money in the field. He’s a leader in the clubhouse.

Trevor Story is the MVP of the 2025 Boston Red Sox. Period. End of story.

I thought this nugget from Lou Merloni on the NESN broadcast put Story’s bounce back in perfect perspective:

7. I’ll say it again: “Stay hot, Sogard.”

I wrote last night that there was a chance a big two days for Nick Sogard might’ve just been the result of a hometown kid getting to play in the park he grew up going to just one day after his ninth inning, pinch hit, 2-run double broke a 4-4 tie with Arizona that ultimately led to a Boston win at Chase Field.

What I didn’t realize at the time was that Sogard was one day away from playing on his 28th birthday in his hometown in front of his friends and family.

And at the top of the second, Sogard socked a hard-hit double to center, putting himself in scoring position with no outs and his team already up 4-0. Two batters later, Sogard scored on an RBI double from Gonzalez to make it a 5-0 game.

I’m not saying Sogard is going to be the difference between this team making an ALDS or an ALCS. But having a depth piece like Sogard playing this well as the postseason gets closer and closer can only be a value-add for Cora down the home stretch. 

8. Lou Merloni’s 2007 Sacramento River Cats PCL championship ring is sick

As a former Mut and Merloni intern from the summer of 2013, I’m obviously completely biased when it comes to all things Sweet Lou in the booth. I think he’s by far and away the best color guy NESN has had since Remy and Eck, and I hope he’s there for many years to come.

Sacramento is somewhat of a homecoming for Lou, as he ended his professional baseball career with a Pacific Coast League Championship playing for the Triple-A River Cats in 2007 (minor league affiliate of the San Francisco Giants).

They showed a picture of his PCL championship ring on the broadcast, and it was way nicer than I thought it would be. The thing was absolutely dripping with diamonds.

It got me thinking, how was Lou in his final pro season?

I asked Google Gemini:

In 2007, Lou Merloni played for the Sacramento River Cats, the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. He served as the team captain and was a key contributor to their success. 

During his season in Sacramento:

- He hit .254 with three home runs and 39 RBIs in 110 games

- He was voted the team's Defensive Player of the Year and received the Best Teammate Award, which is voted on by the players

- Merloni helped the River Cats win both the Pacific Coast League (PCL) championship and the Triple-A championship, known as the Bricktown Showdown

- In the Bricktown Showdown, his final professional game, Merloni was named the Most Valuable Player after hitting a three-run homer and driving in four runs to lead Sacramento to a 7–1 victory

- His season was hampered by a head injury from spring training that caused vertigo and sidelined him until June

Sweet Lou is a Sactown legend! Who knew?

9. A big boy win for Boston

Yankees lost tonight 12-2 in Detroit, which means Boston and New York are now tied atop the AL Wild Card standings.

Blue Jays are well within shouting distance at the top of the AL East.

Boston has one more game against Oakland/Sacramento/Las Vegas on Wednesday.

They got the series win they needed. Now go get the sweep.

Keep the vibes high and get the job done heading into this weekend against New York.

First pitch for Wednesday is set for 3:35 p.m. ET.

Tolle is currently slated to take the mound for Boston, but we’ll see if Cora opts for Kyle Harrison (1-1, 4.56 ERA) instead as the team remains extra careful with their rookie’s pitch count ahead of the postseason.

Righty Mason Barnett (1-1, 9.00 ERA) is scheduled to throw for the A’s.

Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He's a digital content producer for WEEI.com, and a native of Lincoln, RI.