TORONTO — Chris Sale put on a masterful performance while reaching a MLB-record milestone and Hanley Ramirez hit his 20th home run of the season as the Boston Red Sox edged the Toronto Blue Jays 3-0 on Tuesday.

Sale (15-6) pitched seven-plus scoreless innings, allowing just two hits and striking out 11 batters.

The left-hander got Kevin Pillar swinging in the second inning to record his 1,500th career strikeout. Sale, a front-runner for this year's American League Cy Young Award, needed just 1,289 2/3 innings to reach that plateau — the quickest in MLB history.

But the accomplishments didn't stop there.

Sale struck out the side in the third inning, earning his 259th strikeout of the year and surpassing Smoky Joe Wood for fourth place on Boston's franchise list for most K's in a single season. Pedro Martinez holds the Red Sox record with 313.

Eduardo Nunez hit two doubles and drove in a run for the AL East-leading Red Sox (75-57) and Andrew Benintendi added an RBI. Former Toronto outfielder Rajai Davis stole two bases and scored twice.

Craig Kimbrel pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 31st save.

Kendrys Morales had two of Toronto's three hits against Sale. The Blue Jays (61-71), who have won just twice in the last 11 games, fell to 3-9 against the Red Sox this season and 1-8 versus Boston at Rogers Centre.

Brett Anderson (2-3), selected from triple-A Buffalo before the game to make his first start in a Toronto uniform, went 5 2/3 innings, allowing one run on six hits while striking out three.

Anderson pitched just 22 innings with the Cubs earlier this year, racking up an 8.18 earned-run average before being released earlier this month. He signed a minor-league deal with Toronto two weeks ago.

Much of the night went smoothly for Anderson, who matched Sale through five scoreless innings and retired 12 in a row after a second-inning single from Rafael Devers. But Davis snapped that streak with a two-out single in the sixth before stealing second and scoring on Nunez's double for the first run of the game.

Ramirez doubled Boston's lead in the seventh, sending a 1-2 fastball from reliever Dominic Leone over the centre-field wall.

Benintendi drove in Davis with a single off Ryan Tepera in the eighth.

The Blue Jays had the bases loaded with two out in the bottom of the eighth — with back-to-back batters reaching off Sale — but Addison Reed got a ground out from Steve Pearce to displeasure of the 34,674 in attendance.

NOTES: Anderson was the 14th starter used by the Blue Jays this season, fourth most in the majors. ... Goins extended his hit streak to eight games. ... Toronto gave outfielder Nori Aoki his unconditional release before the game.