Having run into a buzz-saw of a team, the Red Sox have lost five of their last seven, following a 5-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays, who won their seventh straight.
With the game tied at 1-1 in the sixth, the Rays chased starter Rick Porcello and then pushed two runs in off reliever Ryan Brasier. They soon added solo runs off both Brandon Workman (seventh inning) and Tyler Thornburg (eighth).
Offensively, the Sox managed just five hits -- none after the fifth inning. Their only run came in the second when J.D. Martinez doubled, took third on a single by Xander Bogaerts and Mitch Moreland bounced into a double-play.
IN-GAME OBSERVATIONS:
8:55 Another run for the Rays off the Red Sox bullpen. The Sox have used three relievers tonight -- two allowed runs and the third allowed two inherited runners to score.
8:18 Tough situation for Ryan Brasier, inherting a first-and-third situation with no outs - a hard jam to get out of, but the kind you have to be able to handle in high leverage spots. Alas, Brasier couldn't. He threw a wild pitch, walked a hitter and, with the infield in, allowed a sacrifice fly to produce two runs, both charged to Porcello.
8:04 Over the course of the season, Andrew Benintendi has occasionally been reckless on the bases. He got caught leaning the wrong way at first, and got himself picked off.
7:35 Mookie Betts, who has slumped of late, seems to be far more passive at the plate recently. That's resulted in him falling into pitcher's counts early and having defensive at-bats.
7:22 Don't think I can remember any major leaguer dropping as many relay throws in the infield as Eduardo Nunez this season. He's played far better at third base than second this season, but even when he moved over to third, the problem in dropping throws from the outfield follows him.
7:08 Rick Porcello does a nice job wiggling out of trouble in the bottom of the third. He issued two walks and loaded the bases with one out, but then caught both Ji-Man Choi and Tommy Pham looking at a called third strike. With Choi, he got some great movement with the pitch darting back over the inside of the plate; with Pham, he delivered a pitcher's pitch, dotting the outside of the strike zone with a fastball.
6:27 Nice hustle by J.D. Martinez, who hit a groundball through the box and was thinking double right out of the box, catching the Rays outfield sleeping a bit.
WHO: Red Sox vs. Tampa Bay Rays
WHEN: 6:10 p.m.
WHERE: Tropicana Field
WHAT'S UP: The Red Sox dropped the opener of the three-game series, the final set between the teams this season, on Friday night, suffering their fourth loss in the last six games. They'll turn to Rick Porcello to try to turn things around Saturday night. One good thing about the loss, as Alex Cora noted: the Sox preserved their bullpen in the loss Friday, using only Drew Pomeranz and Joe Kelly in relief. The Rays, meanwhile, are streaking, with six wins in a row and are a season-high seven games above .500. ... J.D. Martinez leads the majors in RBI (110). His 38 HR are 1 behind Khris Davis (39), and his .335 average is only 3 points behind Mookie Betts (.338) for the MLB lead. ... Xander Bogaerts has recorded an RBI in 5 straight games (10 RBI total), matching his longest career streak. In his last 13 games, he is 19-for-51 (.373) with 10 XBH. ... The Red Sox have won eight of Rick Porcello's last 11 starts and 10 of his last 15. ... Gave up five runs in seven innings in his last start, a loss to Cleveland. Surrendered a season-high three home runs, all to left-handed hitters: Michael Brantley, Melky Cabrera, Greg Allen.
STARTING PITCHERS: RHP Rick Porcello (15-6, 4.14) vs. LHP Ryan Yarborough (12-5, 3.84).
TV/RADIO: NESN/WEEI 93.7
LIVE BOX: MLB Gameday
LINEUPS
RED SOX
Betts CF
Benintendi LF
Pearce DH
Martinez RF
Bogaerts SS
Moreland 1B
Kinsler 2B
Núñez 3B
Leon C
RAYS