Gleyber Torres hit a first-inning grand slam, left-hander James Paxton cruised after that and the Yankees three-hit the visiting Boston Red Sox in a 4-2 victory on Friday night.

Boston has lost five straight for the first time since 2015 and dropped 11½ games behind the first-place Yankees in the American League East.

The Red Sox’ J.D. Martinez hit a two-run homer during yet another rocky first inning by Paxton, but Torres bailed him out with his slam off Eduardo Rodriguez (13-5). Paxton (6-6) struck out the side in the second and completed six innings on 100 pitches, allowing two hits and two runs with six strikeouts.

The Yankees earned their major-league-leading 35th comeback win and improved to 23-21 when their opponents score first. They are the only team in baseball with a winning record in such games.