Red Sox Drop Series Despite Strong Days By Buchholz, Gonzalez

Tampa Bay Rays

Carlos Pena 1B (.213)
B.J. Upton CF (.303)
Matt Joyce LF (.282)
Ben Zobrist RF (.210)
Luke Scott DH (.236)
Sean Rodriguez SS (.234)
Drew Sutton 3B (.400)
Will Rhymes 2B (.250)
Chris Gimenez C (.200)

Boston Red Sox

Mike Aviles SS (.265)
Dustin Pedroia 2B (.295)
David Ortiz DH (.309)
Kevin Youkilis 1B (.234)
Adrian Gonzalez RF (.269)
Jarrod Saltalamacchia C (.274)
Will Middlebrooks 3B (.306)
Daniel Nava LF (.311)
Scott Podsednik CF (.375)

1:31– Game going to start shortly on TBS, Red Sox going for .500 with Clay Buchholz on the hill today. First three for the Rays will be Carlos Pena, B.J. Upton, and Matt Joyce. Stay tuned for the live blog, go Sox!

1:45– Pretty good start to the game for Buchholz, got a Carlos Pena flyout and B.J. Upton groundout to start off the inning. Matt Joyce had a bloop single to center, but nothing hurt as Ben Zobrist flew out. Buchholz only threw 11 pitches, had a really nice slider to Upton. Aviles, Pedroia, and Ortiz coming up for the Sox. Let’s go!

1:51– Tough inning for the Red Sox as they went down 1-2-3. Mike Aviles flew out to Upton on the warning track to start the inning, Pedroia lined a ball to left. He went for two, but was “thrown out” despite avoiding the tag by second baseman Will Rhymes. The inning ended when Ortiz popped up to the third baseman. Scott, Rodriguez, and Sutton coming up for the Rays.

1:58– Very good inning for Buchholz here in the second inning. He struck out Luke Scott on a change low and away, Sean Rodriguez then grounded out hard to third baseman Will Middlebrooks before Buchholz struck out Drew Sutton on an outside pitch to end the inning. Youkilis, Gonzalez, and Saltalamacchia coming up for the Sox.

2:10– Red Sox strand one in the inning after Youkilis led things off by hitting a grounder past the third baseman. Adrian Gonzalez popped out for one out and Jarrod Saltalamacchia grounded to first. Pena got the lead runner at second base but Salty beat out the back end; unfortunately, Will Middlebrooks struck out to end the inning. Rhymes, Gimenez, and Pena up next for the Rays.

2:21– Another strong inning for Clay Buchholz. Will Rhymes started off the inning with a broken bat single into right field but was quickly erased when he was caught stealing on a beautiful throw by Salty. Buchholz quickly disposed of Gimenez and Pena on a strikeout and groundout, respectively. Nava, Podsednik, and Aviles up for the Sox.

2:32– Red Sox strand another runner in the bottom of the third. Daniel Nava struck out looking to start the inning, but Scott Podsednik then lined a ball over second baseman Will Rhymes’ head for a single. He would advance to second on a groundout by Mike Aviles, but would be stranded when Dustin Pedroia flew out to right field. Upton, Joyce, and Zobrist coming up next for the Rays.

2:47– Tough inning for Buchholz as he got into his first spot of trouble with one out when Matt Joyce doubled down the first base line, then advanced to second on a bad throw by Adrian Gonzalez. He would score on a groundout by Ben Zobrist. Luke Scott kept the rally going with a two-out single to left, but would be cut down when Sean Rodriguez grounded out. Ortiz, Youkilis, and Gonzalez due up for the Sox as they are down 1-0.

2:54– Quiet inning here for the Red Sox as the middle of the order went down 1-2-3. Ortiz popped up to second, Youkilis flew out to right, and Gonzalez grounded out to the third baseman playing on the right side of the infield to end the inning. The Rays will look to add to 1-0 lead with Drew Sutton, Will Rhymes, and Chris Gimenez due up.

3:01– Another solid inning for Buchholz– he got Sutton to ground out back to him to start the inning. Will Rhymes had a nice hit to left field but was erased on a double play for Chris Gimenez. The Red Sox will be looking to tie the game with Saltalamacchia, Middlebrooks, and Nava coming up.

3:10– Jeremy Hellickson continues to dominate the Red Sox’ bats as the Red Sox offense is quieted once more. Salty started off the inning with a flyout before Will Middlebrooks singled up the middle on a curve. He would be gone on a double play ball by Daniel Nava though in a 1-2-3 inning. Top of the Rays’ lineup coming up with Carlos Pena, B.J. Upton, and Matt Joyce.

3:23– Clay Buchholz got into another jam in the sixth, but luckily he was able to escape this one. With one out, B.J. Upton singled down the line and Matt Joyce walked to put two on base with one out. Buchholz was able to get a double play ball, however, when Ben Zobrist hit a grounder to Dustin Pedroia to end the inning. Still with a 1-0 deficit in the sixth, the Sox will look for some runs with Podsednik, Aviles, and Pedroia going here.

3:28– Once again, the Red Sox bats failed to make a mark. A trio of weak fly balls by Scott Podsednik, Mike Aviles, and Dustin Pedroia keeps the score here at 1-0 heading to the seventh. Luke Scott, Sean Rodriguez, and Drew Sutton are due up for the Rays.

3:44– Another jam for Buchholz, and this one he couldn’t quite get out of. After a leadoff groundout by Luke Scott, Sean Rodriguez doubled off the monster and was safe at second on a very questionable call. Drew Sutton worked a long at bat before hitting a line drive caught by Will Middlebrooks on a dive, however, Will Rhymes hit a blooper into left on the first pitch to score Rodriguez and make it 2-0. Gimenez would strike out to end the inning, and Ortiz, Youkilis, and Gonzalez will lead off the seventh looking to get two or more runs.

4:00– They did it! The Sox led off the inning with a walk by David Ortiz and a single for Kevin Youkilis. Adrian Gonzalez then made Hellickson pay by lifting a home run into the monster seats to give the Red Sox a 3-2 lead! We’ll likely see a reliever entering the game as Buchholz had thrown 110 pitches, and facing that reliever will be Carlos Pena, B.J. Upton, and Matt Joyce.

4:15– The Red Sox bullpen put together a strong eighth as Franklin Morales came in to start the inning. Pena worked a full count but struck out and Morales was pulled in favor of Vicente Padilla. Padilla recorded a strikeout and groundout to get out of the inning with a 3-2 lead intact. Podsednik, Aviles, and Pedroia will be up for the Sox.

4:40– Tough inning for the Red Sox as Scott Podsednik singled to lead things off. He got to second on a bunt by Mike Aviles and to third on a sacrifice fly by Dustin Pedroia. David Ortiz was intentionally walked and Youkilis walked to load the bases with two outs for Adrian Gonzalez. Gonzalez lined a ball up the middle but it was caught in the shift and the side was retired. Heading to the ninth with a 3-2 lead and Zobrist, Scott, and Rodriguez coming up.

4:53– The Red Sox’ bullpen has failed for the first time in a while. Ben Zobrist led off the inning with a walk and Luke Scott with a pop up to put a runner at first with an out for Sean Rodriguez. On a 3-1 pitch, Rodriguez absolutely crushed a home run over the monster to give the Rays a 4-3 lead. The Sox got out with minimal damage and Saltalamacchia, Che-Hsuan Lin (who entered in the seventh), and Nava will be up.

Well, the Sox went down 1-2-3 in the ninth to closer Fernando Rodney. They lost a tough 4-3 game to the Rays despite numerous things going their way. Clay Buchholz pitched a great game, allowing just two runs and striking out six in seven strong innings– unfortunately he would not earn the win. Adrian Gonzalez had a huge three-run homer in the seventh to give the Red Sox a 3-2 lead. However, Sean Rodriguez would have an even bigger two-run homer to put the Rays up 4-3 for good. The Red Sox drop to 23-24 on the year and drop a 1-2 series to the Rays.

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