BOSTON (AP) — Romy Gonzalez singled home the winning run in the bottom of the 12th as the Boston Red Sox rallied to beat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 on Tuesday night.
Gonzalez dropped a hit to shallow right off reliever Manuel Rodríguez, who had intentionally walked Tyler O'Neill to start the inning. Instead of forcing a possible double play, the move allowed Connor Wong to easily score the game-winner after a wild few extra innings.
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Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Aaron Civale walks back to the mound after giving up a solo home run to Boston Red Sox's Ceddanne Rafaela during the fifth inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Josh Lowe dives but can't make the play on a two-RBI double by Boston Red Sox's Dominic Smith during the fourth inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox pitcher Chris Martin, center, is escorted to the dugout after fielding a line drive off the bat of Tampa Bay Rays' Josh Lowe for the final out of the top of the eighth inning during a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox shortstop Ceddanne Rafaela, left, tags out Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Amed Rosario (10) on a steal attempt during the ninth inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox's Romy Gonzalez connects on his game-winning RBI single in the 12th inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. The Red Sox won 5-4. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox shortstop Ceddanne Rafaela, right, tags out Tampa Bay Rays' Ben Rortvedt, who got caught in a rundown during the 11th inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox's Romy Gonzalez is doused with water after his game-winning RBI single in the 12th inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. The Red Sox won 5-4. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
"It's huge. Getting a walk-off win in the big leagues is unbelievable," said Gonzalez, who was overwhelmed by a swarm of celebrating teammates shortly after rounding first base.
Cedanne Rafaela homered for Boston in the fifth and delivered a sacrifice bunt in the 11th that helped atone for his throwing error, which allowed Tampa Bay to take a brief 4-3 lead. Rafaela was relieved after the game to have come through offensively after his defensive gaffe.
“I already did the error,” Rafaela said he thought as he came to the plate in the 11th. “I just have to do something to bring that run in.”
The bunt moved David Hamilton, who opened the inning on second, to advance to third and score easily when Rodríguez fielded a grounder up the middle.
"The kid makes an error and he came back and turned the page right away," Boston manager Alex Cora said. “He finished the game the way he should and he played all the way to the end.”
Boston ended a six-game home losing streak to the Rays. Brennan Bernardino (2-1) got the win and Rodríguez (0-1) took the loss.
Josh Lowe hit a solo homer in the first and Randy Arozarena got one in the sixth.
The Rays made a base-running blunder in the 11th when Ben Rortvedt, who opened the inning on second, got caught in a rundown between third and home. Arozarena made it to second and went on to score on the error by Rafaela.
Boston starter Nick Pivetta pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on four hits with eight strikeouts.
Civale, a Connecticut native who played in college nearby at Northeastern University, made his Fenway Park debut. He pitched five innings, allowing three runs on five hits.
HOT SHOT
Boston reliever Chris Martin managed to get his head out of the way and his glove in the right place to catch a screaming line drive by Lowe for the third out in the seventh. Martin then fell to the mound and laid sprawled out for several moments as trainers came out of the bullpen to check on him. Martin eventually got to his feet and got a loud round of cheers from fans who had just seen the replay.
SCOREBOARD
The Red Sox added an extra game at the end of the left field scoreboard. The Boston Bruins were playing the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of the second round of the NHL playoffs. Fans cheered when the final 2-1 score flashed and the Bruins remained alive to host Game 6 on Thursday night.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rays: Reinstated IF Jonathan Aranda (fractured right finger) from the 10-day injured list and optioned IF Austin Shenton to Triple-A Durham. … Paredes returned to the lineup as the designated hitter, two days after getting hit in the helmet by a pitch. Paredes was off Monday for the series opener.
Red Sox: RHP Garrett Whitlock (left oblique strain) is scheduled to make a rehab start with Triple-A Worcester on Wednesday. Manager Alex Cora said Whitlock was able to throw in the mid-90s recently and could rejoin the rotation by next week.
UP NEXT
Rays: RHP Taj Bradley (0-1, 1.50 ERA) gets his second start following an early stint on the injured list with a strained pectoral. Bradley, who was 2-0 against Boston as a rookie last year, pitched six innings against the Yankees in his season debut May 10, allowing four hits and one run in his season debut.
Red Sox: RHP Tanner Houck (3-4, 2.24) gets the start for Boston, where he has an ERA of 2.54 through four starts this season.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Aaron Civale walks back to the mound after giving up a solo home run to Boston Red Sox's Ceddanne Rafaela during the fifth inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Josh Lowe dives but can't make the play on a two-RBI double by Boston Red Sox's Dominic Smith during the fourth inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox pitcher Chris Martin, center, is escorted to the dugout after fielding a line drive off the bat of Tampa Bay Rays' Josh Lowe for the final out of the top of the eighth inning during a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox shortstop Ceddanne Rafaela, left, tags out Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Amed Rosario (10) on a steal attempt during the ninth inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox's Romy Gonzalez connects on his game-winning RBI single in the 12th inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. The Red Sox won 5-4. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox shortstop Ceddanne Rafaela, right, tags out Tampa Bay Rays' Ben Rortvedt, who got caught in a rundown during the 11th inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox's Romy Gonzalez is doused with water after his game-winning RBI single in the 12th inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park, Tuesday, May 14, 2024, in Boston. The Red Sox won 5-4. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — The Texas Supreme Court halted Thursday night’s scheduled execution of a man who would have become the first person in the U.S. put to death for a murder conviction tied to a diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome.
The late-night ruling to spare for now the life of Robert Roberson, who was convicted of killing his 2-year-old daughter in 2002, capped a flurry of last-ditch legal challenges and weeks of public pressure from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers who say he is innocent and was convicted based on flawed evidence.
For hours on Thursday night, Roberson had remained in a prison holding cell a few feet from America's busiest death chamber at the Walls Unit in Hunstville.
"He praised God and thanked supporters,” said Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesperson Amanda Hernandez, who spoke with Roberson after the court stayed his execution.
Although Texas' highest court normally does not weigh in on criminal cases, how it got involved in Roberson's case in the final hours underlined the extraordinary maneuvers used by a bipartisan coalition of state House lawmakers who have come to his defense.
Blocked by courts and Texas' parole board in their efforts to spare Roberson's life, legislators on Wednesday took a different route: issuing a subpoena for Roberson to testify before a House committee next week, days after he was scheduled to die by lethal injection.
Less than two hours before Roberson's execution, a judge in Austin granted the lawmakers an order upholding the subpoena, putting the execution on pause. An appeals court then briefly reversed that decision but was overruled by the high court's order.
“We're deeply grateful to the Texas Supreme Court for respecting the role of the Texas legislature in such consequential matters," Democratic Rep. Joe Moody and Republican Rep. Jeff Leach wrote in a joint statement.
Roberson, 57, was convicted of killing of his daughter, Nikki Curtis, in the East Texas city of Palestine. His lawyers and some medical experts say his daughter died not from abuse but from complications related to pneumonia.
Gov. Greg Abbott had authority to delay Roberson’s punishment for 30 days. Abbott has halted only one imminent execution in nearly a decade as governor and has not spoken publicly about the case.
Earlier Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to halt the execution, although Justice Sonia Sotomayor — in a 10-page statement about the case — urged Abbott to grant a 30-day delay.
Roberson’s lawyers had waited to see if Abbott would grant Roberson a one-time 30-day reprieve. It would have been the only action Abbott could take in the case as the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on Wednesday denied Roberson’s clemency petition.
The board voted unanimously, 6-0, to not recommend that Roberson’s death sentence be commuted to life in prison or that his execution be delayed. All board members are appointed by the governor. The parole board has recommended clemency in a death row case only six times since the state resumed executions in 1982.
The one time Abbott halted an imminent execution was when he spared the life of Thomas Whitaker in 2018.
The Texas committee on Wednesday held an all-day meeting on Roberson's case. In a surprise move at the end of the hearing, the committee issued a subpoena for Roberson to testify next week.
During its meeting in Austin, the committee heard testimony about Roberson’s case and whether a 2013 law created to allow people in prison to challenge their convictions based on new scientific evidence was ignored in Roberson’s case.
Anderson County District Attorney Allyson Mitchell, whose office prosecuted Roberson, told the committee a court hearing was held in 2022 in which Roberson’s attorneys presented their new evidence to a judge, who rejected their claims.
“Based on the totality of the evidence, a murder took place here. Mr. Roberson took the life of his almost 3-year-old daughter,” Mitchell said.
Most of the members of the committee are part of a bipartisan group of more than 80 state lawmakers, including at least 30 Republicans, who had asked the parole board and Abbott to stop the execution.
Roberson’s case has renewed debate over shaken baby syndrome, known in the medical community as abusive head trauma.
His lawyers as well as the Texas lawmakers, medical experts and others including bestselling author John Grisham say his conviction was based on faulty and now outdated scientific evidence. The diagnosis refers to a serious brain injury caused when a child’s head is hurt through shaking or some other violent impact, like being slammed against a wall or thrown on the floor.
Roberson’s supporters don’t deny head and other injuries from child abuse are real. But they say doctors misdiagnosed Curtis’ injuries as being related to shaken baby syndrome and that new evidence has shown the girl died from complications related to severe pneumonia.
Roberson’s attorneys say his daughter had fallen out of bed in Roberson’s home after being seriously ill for a week.
Roberson’s lawyers also suggested his autism, then undiagnosed at the time of his daughter’s death, was used against him as authorities became suspicious of him because of his lack of emotion over her death. Autism affects how people communicate and interact with others.
Follow Juan A. Lozano on X at https://x.com/juanlozano70.
Dani Allen, an anti-death penalty advocate, speaks during a protest outside the prison where Robert Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Dani Allen, center left with microphone, an anti-death penalty advocate, speaks during a protest outside the prison where Robert Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Thomas Roberson, older brother of condemned prisoner Robert Roberson, protests with others outside the prison where Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Ann Dorn, a local Catholic parishioner opposed to the death penalty, protest outside the prison where Robert Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Thomas Roberson, right, older brother of condemned prisoner Robert Roberson, and Jennifer Martin, center left, holds signs with others as they protest outside the prison where Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Jennifer Martin, left, and Thomas Roberson, older brother of condemned prisoner Robert Roberson, right, holds signs as they protest outside the prison where Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Texas State Rep. John Bucy III speaks to reporters on the pending execution of Robert Roberson during an impromptu press conference outside of the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Gloria Rubac, left, an anti-death penalty activist, speaks during a protest outside the prison where Robert Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Jennifer Martin, center, and Thomas Roberson, right, older brother of condemned prisoner Robert Roberson, holds signs with others as they protest outside the prison where Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Prison staff gather at the main entrance of the building housing the execution chamber as Robert Roberson awaits his execution, at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Texas state representatives Lacey Hull, left, and John Bucy III, speak to reporters on the pending execution of Robert Roberson during an impromptu press conference outside of the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Prison staff gather at the main entrance of the building housing the execution chamber as Robert Roberson awaits his execution, at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Texas State Rep. John Bucy III speaks to reporters on the pending execution of Robert Roberson during an impromptu press conference outside of the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Texas state representatives Lacey Hull, left, and John Bucy III, speak to reporters on the pending execution of Robert Roberson during an impromptu press conference outside of the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Huntsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke)
Elizabeth Ramirez, center, Casandra Rivera, center right, and Anna Vasquez, second from right, of the "San Antonio 4" group, deliver boxes with petitions in the Texas State capitol for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott seeking the pardoning of Robert Roberson's execution, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024, in Austin, Texas. Roberson, 57, is scheduled to receive a lethal injection on Oct. 17, for the 2002 killing of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki Curtis, in the East Texas city of Palestine. Roberson has long proclaimed his innocence. (AP Photo/Nadia Lathan)
Casandra Rivera, left, Anna Vasquez, second from left, and Elizabeth Ramirez, center, of the "San Antonio 4" group, hold boxes with petitions being delivered in the Texas State capitol for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott seeking the pardoning of Robert Roberson's execution, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024 in Austin, Texas. Roberson, 57, is scheduled to receive a lethal injection on Oct. 17, for the 2002 killing of his 2-year-old daughter, Nikki Curtis, in the East Texas city of Palestine. Roberson has long proclaimed his innocence. (AP Photo/Nadia Lathan)
Texas man set to be first in US executed over shaken baby syndrome makes last appeals
FILE - Texas lawmakers meet with Robert Roberson at a prison in Livingston, Texas, Sept. 27, 2024. (Criminal Justice Reform Caucus via AP, File)
Texas man set to be first in US executed over shaken baby syndrome makes last appeals
