Mourning grandmother, Wilyer hits 2 HRs: ‘I was playing for her’

With a heavy heart and a big bat, Wilyer Abreu stole the show for the Red Sox in a big getaway day performance on Sunday against the Rangers, mashing a pair of homers to lead his team to a 7-2 victory in the rubber match of a three-game series at Globe Life Field.

Mourning the loss of his grandmother — which he learned about after Saturday’s defeat — Abreu dedicated Sunday to her.

And what a dedication it was, as Abreu drove in four runs in the first multi-homer game of his career.

“I was playing for her,” Abreu said. “I dedicated this game to her and I was playing with my heart in my hands. So for me to be able to go out there and perform, it was very special.”

It first became clear that Abreu was going through something off the field when he unloaded for his first homer of the day, a solo shot to left-center against Nathan Eovaldi in the top of the fourth to tie the game.