Final: Orioles 9, Red Sox 5 - Orioles capitalize on walks in win over Sox

A sloppy effort all around cost the Red Sox dearly in a 9-5 loss to the Baltimore Orioles.

Red Sox pitchers issued eight walks, their fielders committed two errors and their hitters produced just six hits all afternoon.

Rick Porcello lasted just four innings-plus and walked five. The bullpen didn't fare any better with both Colten Brewer and Marcus Walden cuffed around and showing erratic command (three walks between them).

Chris Davis, who came into the game 0-for-33 this year, collected three hits and knocked in four runs.

Four of the five Red Sox runs were produced by Christian Vazquez, who had a two-run homer and a two-run double.

WHO: Red Sox vs. Baltimore Orioles
WHEN: 1:05 p.m.
WHERE: Fenway Park
SERIES TO DATE: Red Sox won the opener of the series, 6-4
STARTING PITCHERS: RHP Rick Porcello (0-2, 13.50) vs. RHP Andrew Cashner (2-1, 5.28)
TV/RADIO: NESN/WEEI 93.7 FM

IN-GAME OBSERVATIONS:

4:19   Spectacular, sprawling play by Pedroia, who dives to glove a hard grounder by Cedric Mullins, saving a run in the process.

4:01   Christian Vazquez's big day at the plate continues with a two-run, Wall-scraping double.  He's 2-for-3 and has knocked in four of the five Boston runs. Those four RBI represent a career high for the catcher.

3:10    Looked like Pedroia inadvertently screened Xander Bogaerts on a sharply hit ball to the right of second, resulting in a two-run single for Rio Ruiz. It's been that kind of afternoon for the Red Sox.

3:08   Just as happened with Porcello, walks are doing in Colten Brewer. He walked two of the first three hitters he faced, loading the bases, then yielded a run-scoring single to left by Renato Nunez. Bases still loaded, no out.

2:55    Red Sox worked Cashner for a 30-pitch third and had his count at 58 after three innings. But in the last two, Cashner has retired them in order both times and needed just 18 pitches to get the last six outs.

2:47   Hembree had terrific success in stranding runners last year, which is probably one of the reasons Cora went to him with two on and no out in the fifth. Davis crushed a double on the first pitch before Hembree dug in and got three more outs, stranding two.

2:25   That's it for Porcello, who lasts just four-plus. Battled out of jams and stranded seven over the first four frames, but five walks and an inflated pitch count (90, to get just a dozen outs) proved his undoing. Heath Hembree on. The fact that only slightly more than half of Porcello's pitches (48 of 90) were for strikes highlights his control issues.

2:19   Porcello bails out of a runner-on-third, two-out jam, but it costs him 23 pitches to get out of the inning. He's thrown 82 after four and would seem to be good for just one more.

2:03  Christian Vazquez flicks a hanging curveball off the light standard in the Monster Seats in left and the Red Sox have tied the game. Second homer of the year for Vazquez; came on 3-1 pitch.

2:00 Red Sox put Devers in motion to stay out of the double play and thanks to the bobble by Hanser Alberto on a sharp grounder up the middle, Devers is safe at second. Dustin Pedroia out at first, but Sox have a runner in scoring position for the first time today.

1:35  Rafael Devers didn't give up a tough shot, tracked it down to his left and still had time to make the play at first to just nab Trey Mancini.

1:21  Meanwhile, the troubles continue for Rick Porcello. He walked two in the first, giving him nine walks in 8.1 innings. Mystifying for a guy who averaged 2.3 walks per nine innings last year and as recently as 2016, averaged 1.3 walks per nine innings.

1:18 The long national nightmare for Chris Davis is over. He came into the game 0-for-33 and 0-for-54 dating back to last September, singles to right, scoring two.

LINEUPS



RED SOX

Benintendi LF
Betts CF
Moreland DH
Martinez RF
Bogaerts SS
Pearce 1B
Devers 3B
Pedroia 2B
Vazquez C

ORIOLES

Villar SS
Mancini RF
Smith LF
Nunez DH
Ruiz 3B
Davis 1B
Alberto 2B
Severino C
Mullins CF

WHAT'S UP: The Red Sox have a modest two-game winning streak after beating the Orioles 6-4 Friday night..It marked the first time they've won back-to-back games...The Sox have scored at least five runs in each of their last three games and homered in seven of their last eight...The Red Sox have cleaned things up defensively of late: after committing nine errors in their first nine games, they've made just one in the last five....Xander Bogaerts has reached in each of his last 10 games, and has been on base three times or more in each of his last three games...Mitch Moreland has 13 hits this season and 10 have gone for extra bases...Mookie Betts saw a 14-game hitting streak against Baltimore stopped Friday night, but has stilled reached base against them in 25 straight....The Sox have won 20 of their last 23 head-to-head meetings with the Orioles, their best 23-game stretch against them since 2009-2010...J.D. Martinez has reached base in all 14 games this season and has hit safely in 13 of those...He's doubled and scored a run in each of the last three games...Matt Barnes has faced 20 batters this season and struck out half of them. He's also yet to issue a walk. Overall, the Red Sox bullpen has a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3.50-to-1, good for fifth best in the major leagues...Rick Porcello was 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA in his two starters against the Orioles last year, with 15 strikeouts in 12 innings...Chris Davis has four career homers off Porcello, but is also hitting .200 (10-for-50 against him...Trey Mancini is 3-for-7. Meanwhile, Jesus Sucre is 1-for-8 against Porcello...Bogaerts has the most success against Cashner, going 3-for-6 and a homer...Moreland is 2-for-5...Mookie Betts and Steve Pearce are each 1-for-6 facing Cashner.