Red Sox Top Rangers
BOSTON — The Boston Red Sox didn’t play well in June and started July with a nine-game homestand leading up to the All-Star break.
The manager is said to be on the hot seat, they gave up 21 runs in a game last Saturday and they even slipped into third place. But so far, Boston has won both series while going 4-2.
“We need it,” designated hitter David Ortiz said after his home run and three RBIs paced the Red Sox to an 11-6 win over the Texas Rangers Wednesday night. “This is the time of the season where you start looking at the scoreboard standings and everything counts from here on,”
The Red Sox handed the road-weary Rangers their fourth loss in five games by capitalizing on three infield errors in a five-run second inning (four unearned) after Ortiz hit a two-run homer in the first.
“We’ve played much better baseball except for the one game this month,” Boston manager John Farrell said. “It’s nice to get back to back series wins.”
First-time All-Star Steven Wright won his 10th game, Bryce Brentz also drove in three runs as second baseman Rougned Odor, third baseman Adrian Beltre and shortstop Elvis Andrus made errors for Texas in the nightmarish second.
Left-hander Martin Perez (7-5) was the victim of errors on rather
routine grounders as the road weary Rangers, playing their 20th road game in the last 26, fell apart.
“The second inning was something we haven’t seen since last year,” Texas manager Jeff Banister. The reality is that you’re probably not going to see it again. We’ve got some outstanding defenders. They handle the ball very well.”
Wright (10-5), one of six Red Sox named to the American league All-Star team on Tuesday, won his second straight start. He worked six-plus innings in his final start before Tuesday’s All-Star Game in San Diego.
Ahead 11-1, Wright gave up a long two-run homer to Prince Fielder in the sixth inning and a booming two-run triple to All-Star Ian Desmond to knock him out in the seventh.
Craig Kimbrel, used for a second straight night in a non-save situation and coming off a Tuesday night disaster, worked a hitless ninth. He walked two after getting the first two outs before ending the game with his second strikeouts.
Ortiz, also an All-Star, now has 69 RBIs for the season.
Ryan Hanigan singled home two runs in his first game back from Triple-A rehab (neck) and All-Star Mookie Betts posted a pair of doubles and drove in his 58th run as a leadoff hitter.
Perez lost for the first time since May 18 and saw a six-game winning streak end. The first-place Rangers had been 8-0 in his previous eight starts.
Texas finished a 10-game road trip with a 4-6 record. The Rangers go home for four and then come out of the break with nine more road games.
“Obviously not the way we wanted to finish the trip,” Banister said.
Boston third baseman Travis Shaw left the game in the eighth inning with a left foot contusion suffered on a foul tip and will have x-rays on Thursday.
“He swelled up pretty good after a foul ball of the left foot,” Farrell said.
Fielder’s homer was the 319th of his career, matching the total run up by his father, Cecil.
After the game, he said he didn’t know he had tied his dad. The two have combined for 638 homers, third all-time behind the Bonds and Griffeys.
Ortiz reached the 20-home run mark for the 15th straight season when he drilled a 3-2 pitch for a no-doubter after Xander Bogaerts singled with two out in the first.
The Red Sox have scored 38 runs in their four wins on this homestand, just four in the two losses.
