Final: Red Sox 12, Rangers 10

It was neither easy nor pretty, but Eduardo Rodriguez kept alive his bid to win 20 games alive Tuesday night, earning his 19th win of the season in a 12-10 slugfest victory over the Texas Rangers.

Rodriguez had perhaps his worst start of the season, pounded for seven runs on 11 hits in just five innings. It seemed Rodriguez was on the verge of being lifted from the game several times, but managed to get through the fifth and get credit for the win.

As they have all season, the Sox gave him plenty of support, racing out to a 12-5 lead before the Rangers made it interesting.

Six different members of the Red Sox starting lineup knocked in at least one run.

WHO: Red Sox (81-75) vs. Texas Rangers (75-81)
WHEN: 8:05 p.m.
WHERE: Globe Life Park
SEASON SERIES TO DATE: 2-2
STARTING PITCHERS: LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (18-6, 3.53) vs RHP Edinson Volquez (0-1, 5.02)
TV/RADIO: NESN; WEEI 93.7 FM

IN-GAME OBSERVATIONS:

11:02  Ball deflect off the glove of Marcus Walden and into right field for a run-scoring single for Heineman. Had Walden not gloved it, it's likely that Marco Hernandez could have fielded the ball behind second base. It's been that kind of night.

10:33 This is officially the saddest bid for a 20-win season ever.

10:19   The pounding continues as J.D. Martinez drills a single to left, scoring two more.

10:14  Gorkys Hernandez delivers a bases-loaded sacrifice fly to deep center.

9:40  Sox keep adding on -- as they often do with Rodriguez on the mound. Run-scoring double for Devers and a sacrifice fly for Bogaerts.

9:25 Betts is out of the after in the bottom of the third, replaced in right field by Gorkys Hernandez. Guessing it had something to do with Betts running into the wall in the wall in the bottom of the second.

9:11   Back-and-forth we go, as Mitch Moreland leads off with a double, moves to third on a groundout and scores on an error charged to Rougned Odor. Let's see if it holds up this time.

9:08 For the second straight inning, Rodriguez gives away a lead.

9:01  Mookie Betts smoked No. 29 to straightaway CF. That also ties the club record for most homers for the Red Sox in a season with 238, set in 2003.

8:50  Very quickly, the Rangers are within a run -- and Rodriguez has nobody but himself to blame. Staked to a 4-0 lead, Rodriguez failed to get over on a grounder to the right side, then, after a strikeout, walked two consecutive hitters, the last of which forced in a run. Then, a ground single up the middle by Scott Heineman scores two more.

8:39   It wouldn't be an Eduardo Rodriguez start without him failing to get over to first to cover on a groundball to the right side. And there's tonight's example.

 8:24 Jackie Bradley Jr., who's been hot of late (three hits Monday night) lines a changeup to center with the bases loaded, scoring two.

8:11 Quick lead for the Red Sox as Rafael Devers singles, steals second and comes around when Xander Bogaerts steers a single to right.

LINEUPS

RED SOX



Betts RF
Devers 3B
Bogaerts SS
Martinez DH
Moreland 1B
Benintendi LF
Vazquez C
Bradley CF
M. Hernandez 2B

RANGERS

Deshields CF
Andrus SS
Calhoun LF
Solak DH
Santana 1B
Odor 2B
Heineman RF
Kiner-Falefa 3B
Trevino C

WHAT'S UP: The Red Sox have dropped five of the last seven after going just 1-3 at Tropicana Field over the last series...Since the start of the 2011 season, the Red Sox and Rangers have split 60 games down the middle, but the Red Sox are 14-4 in the last 18 and have gone 5-0-1 in the last six series....Brandon Workman is a native of Arlington and has pitched in every other ballpark in the American League other than the one in his hometown...The Sox are 24-8 in the 32 starts made by Eduardo Rodriguez this season...He can become the first Red Sox lefty to win as many as 19 games since Jon Lester won 19 in 2010...Over his last seven starts, Rodriguez has a 1.00 ERA...He's thrown at least five innings in his last 26 starts, dating back to May...J.D. Martinez reached 100 RBI Monday night, and in eah of the last three seasons, has hit 35 or more homers, knocked in at least 100 RBI....Mookie Betts (10), Jackie Bradley Jr. (10) and Andrew Benintendi (9) have combined for 29 outfield assists...The last time a Red Sox outfielder with all three outfielders registering nine or more assists was 1992 when Jim Rice had 10 and Dwight Evans and Reid Nichols each had nine...The last time they had three outfielders in double digits in assists was 1980 with 1980, when Evans had 11 and Rice and Fred Lynn has 10 each...Bradley, Rafael Devers and Mitch Moreland come into Tuesday night with three-game hitting streaks...Rodriguez has recorded 10 or more strikeouts in each of his last two starts and needs one strikeout to reach 200 for the season for the first time in his career. He also is 8.2 innings shy of hitting the 200-inning mark for the first time in his career....Delino Deshields is 2-for-10 with a homer lifetime against Rodriguez while Elvis Andrus is 0-for-5....Bradley is 3-for-5 with a homer in his career against Edinson Volquez while Martinez is just 4-for-19.