BOSTON (AP) — Caleb Durbin hit a tiebreaking homer over the Green Monster with two outs in the eighth inning, and the Boston Red Sox extended the second-longest winning streak in club history to 14 games, beating Baltimore 6-5 on Monday night to snap the Orioles' season-best win streak at seven.
The Red Sox would match a club record with a win Tuesday night. Boston won 15 straight in 1946 on a team led by future Hall of Famer Ted Williams.
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Baltimore Orioles' Jeremiah Jackson watches his RBI single in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Baltimore Orioles' Christian Encarnacion-Strand connects for an RBI single in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman delivers during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox fans cheer after an RBI double by Ceddanne Rafaela during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox's Caleb Durbin celebrates after his home run in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Christian Encarnacion-Strand, recalled from Triple-A four days ago, homered and hit a run-scoring single for the Orioles, who committed four errors and allowed two unearned runs.
Durbin connected on a 1-0 cutter from Tyler Wells (2-2), setting off a celebration by teammates in front of Boston’s dugout.
Garrett Whitlock (5-1) worked a perfect eighth, and Aroldis Chapman picked up his 22nd save when Tyler O'Neill lined to short with runners on second and third to end it.
In a back-and-forth game, Baltimore took the lead for the third time in the seventh when O’Neill hit an RBI grounder that second baseman Anthony Seigler bobbled, ending a chance at an inning-ending double play.
Boston rallied in the bottom half, tying it at 5-all on Ceddanne Rafaela’s two-out RBI single.
Encarnacion-Strand homered over the Monster in the fifth, and Jeremiah Jackson and Encarnacion-Strand had RBI singles to make it 4-3 in the sixth.
Baltimore starter Shane Baz allowed four runs, two earned, with six strikeouts in six innings. Boston’s Payton Tolle gave up four runs and struck out nine in 5 2/3 innings.
RHP Kyle Bradish (6-8, 3.61 ERA) starts for the Orioles on Tuesday night, while the Red Sox will bring LHP Ranger Suárez (4-3, 3.15) off the injured list.
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Baltimore Orioles' Jeremiah Jackson watches his RBI single in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Baltimore Orioles' Christian Encarnacion-Strand connects for an RBI single in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman delivers during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox fans cheer after an RBI double by Ceddanne Rafaela during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Boston Red Sox's Caleb Durbin celebrates after his home run in the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Monday, July 20, 2026, in Boston. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon's president will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday to wrap up a four-day visit to Washington, in a bid to bring about long-term calm in the war-torn country after months of war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.
Joseph Aoun's landmark meeting with Trump comes as Lebanon and Israel continue to hold rare direct talks mediated by Washington. Lebanon hopes they will result in Israeli troops withdrawing from large swaths of southern Lebanon that they currently occupy, and for the Lebanese military to receive support to assert full control in areas where Hezbollah militants had held sway.
Lebanon and Israel announced a “framework agreement” on June 26, setting a plan for Israeli forces to withdraw from southern Lebanon as well as the disarmament of Hezbollah, which for decades had a strong presence in the area. It also lays out steps toward an eventual peace agreement between both countries, which have never held formal diplomatic ties and have been nominally in a state of war for nearly 80 years after Israel’s establishment.
The U.S. State Department announced Monday that operations in three villages deemed part of a “pilot zone” had begun, without giving details on what that entailed. Two of the three villages, Froun and Srifa, are not under Israeli military control and the Lebanese army is present there, while Israeli forces are in part of Zawtar al-Gharbieh.
The Lebanese army in a statement said it was preparing for Israel to withdraw from Zawtar al-Gharbieh and that it had begun deploying troops to the area Tuesday. The Israeli military said it “will adjust its force posture in one of the pilot areas in order to enable the Lebanese Armed Forces to carry out their mission,” without specifying the location.
An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in accordance with military guidelines said Tuesday that the withdrawal had not yet begun.
Abed Ezzeldine, Mayor of Zawtar al-Gharbieh said that they are waiting for the Lebanese military to tell him whether its safe for residents to check on their homes after they fully deploy and patrol the area. He is concerned about the safety of his village given that the Israeli military is still present in another village next door, while Israeli strikes continue nearby.
“The villages are intertwined, so we don’t feel safe because the Israelis are present there, they’re on our borders and are not very far from us,” Ezzeldine told The Associated Press, who said Zawtar al-Gharbieh is uninhabitable.
“Once the army gives us permission to enter Zawtar al-Gharbieh, we as civilians will go in, but only to check it out and see how things are and then we will leave,” he said. "We can’t stay because the infrastructure is completely damaged and houses have been leveled. They (the Israelis) have bulldozed the roads.”
Aoun met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday, who said Washington will continue to endorse the Lebanese agreement and support the agreement's full implementation. Rubio described the meeting as “very positive” and warned that Lebanon will “never be fully at peace” as long as the Hezbollah issue is not resolved.
“How do you replace Hezbollah? You defeat and replace them with a government that is strong enough to be the sole force of arms in the country,” Rubio said after the meeting. Skeptics in Lebanon fear that a military confrontation with Hezbollah could lead to a civil war, as government officials have also urged for investment into the country's battered infrastructure to empower the weakened state, which Rubio echoed.
“This is not just about military stuff," he added. "This is about how can we attract more U.S. and international investment into Lebanon.”
The Lebanese military last week increased its presence in some of the areas expected to be included in the pilot zone, including the three villages, with troops patrolling and setting up checkpoints. Though recent talks in Rome have signaled that the agreement’s implementation will begin soon, Israeli troops have not withdrawn from the areas under control.
Israeli officials, meanwhile, have said they plan to keep forces long term in a “security zone” in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah has dismissed the direct talks brokered by the United States and instead backed Washington’s talks with their key ally and patron Iran to end their war, which also includes ending the war in Lebanon as a condition to bring back calm.
Lebanon’s government came to power on a reformist platform in early 2025, vowing to disarm all non-state groups including Hezbollah. It blames Hezbollah for dragging the country into another war with Israel in March when the militant group fired several rockets toward northern Israel after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran.
Beirut's leadership, however, has condemned Israel’s subsequent ground invasion and massive aerial campaign in the country, which killed over 4,000 people and displaced 1.2 million others. While grappling with stark political opposition from Hezbollah and allies within the deeply divided country, Lebanon's leadership insists that Israeli withdrawal and international financial support for Lebanon’s cash-strapped army is crucial for a sustainable security solution.
Associated Press writer Giovanna Dell'Orto in Jerusalem contributed.
Lebanese women pass by houses that were destroyed in Israeli strikes during the war with Hezbollah in Froun village, southern Lebanon, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
A Lebanese army soldier stands at a checkpoint in Froun village, southern Lebanon, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
Lebanese army soldiers stand at a checkpoint in Froun village, southern Lebanon, Thursday, July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
