Red Sox starter Joe Kelly needed a couple Houdini acts to escape unscathed Wednesday night against Cleveland, but in the end he emerged with his fourth consecutive victory.
The double play was his best friend. He induced three in the first five innings to prevent any earned runs from scoring against him. He allowed five hits in six innings with three walks and five strikeouts. The lone run he gave up was unearned and scored, ironically, on a double play.
Kelly has been far from sensational in his four wins. He has surrendered eight runs over 22 1/3 innings during that time. But he has evened his record to 6-6 in the process.