Gray and Boston bullpen blank Guardians 1-0 after Monasterio's RBI single

Sonny Gray and three Boston relievers held Cleveland scoreless Wednesday night, and Andruw Monasterio's sixth-inning single gave the Red Sox a 1-0 win at Fenway Park. The result ended the Guardians' six-game winning streak and turned a 12-hit Boston night into a one-run decision.

The game stayed scoreless through five innings despite traffic for both clubs. Gray allowed four hits and one walk in six innings, striking out three on 77 pitches. Cleveland starter Foster Griffin gave up 10 hits but just one run over six innings, with seven strikeouts and no walks. Boston stranded 11 runners overall.

Jarren Duran reached in the sixth and scored when Monasterio lined a single to left. It was the only scoring play in MLB's game log. Boston's early chances had not produced a run, but the sixth-inning hit finally made the advantage in baserunners count. MLB's official video of Gray's outing shows the pitching side of the shutout. MLB's official September 23 full-game highlights show the key plays from this matchup.

Tyron Guerrero struck out three in the seventh, Garrett Whitlock worked the eighth, and Aroldis Chapman finished the ninth for his 35th save. Gray improved to 18-5. The Associated Press reported that his 18 wins tied Philadelphia's Cristopher Sánchez for the major-league lead at the end of Wednesday's game.

There was an injury concern inside the win. Ceddanne Rafaela, activated from the injured list earlier Wednesday after a right-quadriceps strain, left after two innings. Boston.com reported that manager Chad Tracy described hamstring tightness; the club had not announced a new injured-list decision. Rafaela's status matters as Boston approaches its final regular-season series and postseason preparations.

Boston moved to 85-73 with the win. Cleveland fell to 82-76 and remained in a close American League Central race. The teams finish their series Thursday; Wednesday's margin came down to one sixth-inning single and nine scoreless innings from Boston's staff.