All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' loss to the Rangers, complete with BSJ analysis and insight:
HEADLINES
Perez quiets Sox bats: Perhaps we should have seen this one coming. First, the Red Sox traditionally, often seem to have difficulty with lefty finesse guys, of which Martin Perez, their teammate the last two seasons, is definitely one. And making matters worse, Perez seemed to exploit the Red Sox' recent weakness of expanding the strike zone. Perez wisely stayed out of the middle of the plate all afternoon and got the Sox to chase some pitches that were, at best, borderline. Other than Rafael Devers, there was very little hard contact against Perez. In the meantime, some of that newfound plate discipline and penchant for making the pitcher throw the ball over the plate seemed to disappear for the day as the Sox fell back into some familiar -- and bad -- habits.
Bullpen flops: Designed as a ''bullpen day'' after the Sox pushed back scheduled starter Garrett Whitlock an extra day, the plan seemed to be going well for the first five innings. The Red Sox got two scoreless frames from surprise starter Austin Davis, and while Tanner Houck was touched for a solo homer, he gave the Sox three solid innings, keeping the Rangers to one run over the first five innings. But in the sixth, things fell apart in a hurry as Ryan Brasier was victimized for two homers, accounting for four runs, in the span of three pitches. Tyler Danish entered in the seventh, and he, too, gave up a two-run shot as Texas stretched out the lead. It's hard to ignore that the two losses on the road trip were both the result of the bullpen tripping over itself, and Brasier, in particular, was involved both times.
TURNING POINT
Stop me if you've heard this one before, but the Red Sox had some chances in the early innings and couldn't cash in. They had first-and-third with one out in the first, but both Xander Bogaerts and Trevor Story took called third strikes, stranding two. It was more of the same in the third when a leadoff walk by Kevin Plawecki and a one-out single from Rafael Devers gave the Sox first-and-second, with just one out. But once more, the Sox couldn't produce anything as two groundouts ended the threat.
TWO UP
Rafael Devers: The Red Sox had seven hits and Devers collected three of them himself -- doubles in the first and fifth, and a single in the third.
Austin Davis: The lefty may have been a curious choice as the starter for a bullpen game, but he did his job, retiring the first six hitters he faced before issuing a leadoff walk in the third before being lifted.
TWO DOWN
Ryan Brasier: For the second straight game on this trip, Brasier couldn't keep the ball in the ballpark. After allowing a walk-off shot Wednesday night in Atlanta, he yielded two homers in the span of a few pitches in the sixth, turning a 1-1 tie into a 5-1 Texas lead.
Trevor Story: Sunday represented a step backward for the infielder, who was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts, while stranding three baserunners along the way.
QUOTE OF NOTE
"It's been getting hit around a little bit...I'm not used to not having it. It's what I pitch with, it's what I live and die by. Hopefully, I'll continue to do that, but with different results.'' Ryan Brasier on the struggles with his fastball.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
* J.D. Martinez extended his hitting streak to 16 games with a first-inning single, and has now reached base in 32 straight games dating back to last season.
* Rafael Devers had three hits and now has a nine-game hitting streak.
* The start for Austin Davis was his first in the major leagues and first as a pro in seven seasons.
* The four homers hit by the Rangers matched a season high for most homers allowed by the Sox in a single game this year.
UP NEXT: The Red Sox come home and begin a seven-game homestand, beginning with a four-game series with the Houston Astros. RHP Garrett Whitlock (1-1, 2.19), working with the benefit of an extra day, will pitch Monday, opposed by the Astros' RHP Jake Odorizzi ( 3-2, 3.38)