Red Sox lose first game to Yankees

Apr 10, 2014; Bronx, NY, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher

(11) sits in the dugout during the fifth inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

Was there something illegal on Yankees starting pitcher Michael Pineda‘s hands? Maybe. Did that something hold the Red Sox to only four hits, even after he left the game after 6 innings? Probably not.

A decided lack of offense gave the Sox their first loss of the young season to the dreaded Yanks. Clay Buchholz started the game. He lasted six innings and allowed only seven hits, leading to two earned runs, four runs overall. The offense knocked just four hits, only two of which for extra bases. Daniel Nava was responsible for the Sox’s only run when he hit a solo home run off Pineda in the seventh inning.

Leaving men on base had been a problem for the Sox the last few games. Not so in this game. You can’t have LOBs if you don’t have anyone on base. Errors do continue to plague the Sox. In this game, Jonathan Herrera had one in the fourth. Are the Sox still getting back into the swing of things? Perhaps with the weather warming up, the Sox bats will follow.

Two small bright spots, in addition to Buchholz’s decent line, were Jackie Bradley Jr. stealing a base in the third inning and Nava’s impressive catch in the outfield in the fourth.

Jon Lester takes the mound tomorrow at 7:05 in Bronx.