The Red Sox' brief road trip got off to an ugly start with a 10-3 thrashing by the streaking Tampa Bay Rays, who won their sixth in a row.
The Rays jumped on starter Hector Velazquez for three runs in the second and five more in the third. In the third, they strung together six consecutive hits.
The Sox managed two runs on a sharp single to left by Xander Bogaerts and added a solo run in the fifth on an RBI-single from J.D. Martinez, but that was it. They banged out 13 hits, but every one of them was a single.
IN-GAME OBSERVATIONS
9:41 Kevin Kiermaier is having a rough week with the Red Sox. Last weekend, he was robbed of extra bases by Jackie Bradley Jr.; tonight, Kiermaier loses a hit in the shortstop hole when Xander Bogaerts made a find backhand stop and a strong throw across his body to nab Kiermaier at first.
8:56 Impressive at-bat for J.D. Martinez, who lunged at a pitch down and away and drove it just to the right of second and into the outfield, scoring a run.
8:45 It's officially ugly at the Trop, following a two-run homer by Willy Adames, boosting the Rays' lead to eight after four innings. A poor pitch from Pomeranz, who throws a fastball over the heart of the plate and pays the price.
8:24 It sure seemed like Alex Cora was slow to get someone up in the bullpen as Hector Velazquez is knocked around for five runs on six consecutive singles in this inning. Drew Pomeranz is on with the Sox suddenly finding themselves down by six in the early going.
7:52 Costly mistake from Hector Velazquez, who throws a fastball down the middle of the plate while ahead of Michael Perez, and Perez drives it to right-center, scoring two runs.
7:34 Thanks to the Rays' unique pitching plan, Diego Castillo is coming out after just an inning and two-thirds. He showed a lively fastball that touched 101 mph and fanned four of the seven hitters he faced, so the Sox won't be sorry that he's out. It will be interesting to see how they fare against Jalen Beeks, who pitched four scoreless innings against them last Sunday.
7:25 This is the second year that MLB has had "Players Weekend'' with nicknames on the back of jerseys. The idea behind the promotion is to engage younger fans and give the players an opportunity to show more of their personalities. I'm all for promoting and marketing the game to younger fans, so any effort toward that goal is a good one. I'm just not sure this is doing it. And in its second year, it's starting to feel a little contrived.
WHO: Red Sox vs. Tampa Bay Rays
WHEN: 7:10 p.m.
WHERE: Tropicana Field
WHAT'S UP: The Red Sox have won two in a row since bouncing back to gain a split of their series with the Cleveland Indians. Overall, they were 4-3 on their just-concluded homestand, which featured a meeting with the Rays last weekend. The Sox took two of three then. The Rays are strong at home, with a record of 38-24at Tropicana Field. This season, the Sox are 11-5 in head-to-head meetings with Tampa.
STARTING PITCHERS: RHP Hector Velazquez (7-1 2.74) vs. RHP Diego Castillo (3-2, 3.47)
TV/RADIO: NESN/WEEI 93.7 FM
LINEUPS
RED SOX
Betts DH
Benintendi LF
Pearce 1B
Martinez RF
Bogaerts SS
Kinsler 2B
Nunez 3B
Swihart C
Bradley CF
RAYS
Wendle 2B
Duffy 3B
Bauers 1B
Choi DH
Adames SS
Kiermaier CF
Gomez RF
Lowe LF
Perez C
NEWS AND NOTES
- Steven Wright threw 35 pitches during a live batting practice session at Tropicana Field Friday afternoon and manager Alex Cora told reporters that the knuckleballer was impressive. "His stuff was good,'' said Cora. "Everybody was very impressed with the way he threw the ball.'' The Sox will evaluate how Wright feels over the next few days, but the tentative plan is for him to begin a minor league rehab assignment sometime later in the week.
- Mitch Moreland, who suffered a knee contusion when he banged into the protecting railing in front of the Red Sox dugout Thursday, felt some improvement Friday. Cora was undecided as to whether Moreland would be available Saturday or Sunday.