Rays starter Nathan Karns was hardly effective but Mr. Mookie Betts made his life easier with a ground out to third to begin the top of the first. Dustin Pedroia flied out to right but David Ortiz walked. Hanley Ramirez jacked one to the centerfield wall but Kiermaier tracked it down for the third out. Sox starter Joe Kelly got David Dejesus to strike out but allowed Steven Souza Jr to bash one over the left field fence to give Tampa a quick lead. Asdrubal Cabrera took strike three and Evan Longoria struck out swinging but the damage was done with the Rays leading 1-0.
Mike Napoli walked to open the top of the second but was erased on the Pablo Sandoval fielder's choice. Shane Victorino watched strike three go by and Xander Bogaerts struck out swinging to end the inning. Desmond Jennings grounded out to Kelly to begin the bottom of the second before Allan Dykstra struck out looking. Logan Forsythe singled to right but Kiermaier grounded out to second to end the inning.
The Sox struck back in the top of the third although Ryan Hanigan grounded out to third to start. Mr. Mookie walked and Pedroia then swatted a pitch up in his eyes for a 2 run home run to give the Sox the lead. Pedroia didn't have his fourth home run until June of last year. Ortiz grounded out to second but Ramirez walked. Napoli singled and Ramirez motored all the way around, blowing past Brian Butterfield's stop sign to increase the lead. Napoli advanced to second but was stranded when Sandoval grounded out to second to end the inning with the Sox ahead 3-1.
Rene Rivera flied out to center to begin the bottom of the third. Dejesus struck out looking but Souza Jr doubled down the third base line. Cabrera flied out to left to end the inning.
Victorino was hit with a pitch to begin the top of the fourth but Bogaerts flied out to right. Hanigan also flied out to right but Victorino stole second base. He was stranded when Mr. Mookie grounded out to short to end the inning. Longoria grounded out to short to start the bottom of the fourth but Jennings beat out an infield single to third. Dykstra popped up to second and Forsythe popped up to third to end the inning.
The Sox tacked on another one in the top of the fifth. Pedroia lined out to center but Ortiz crushed a 430 foot bomb to right to increase the lead. The homer moved Ortiz passed Chipper Jones on the all-time home run list and past Joe Dimaggio on the all-time RBI list. Ramirez singled to right and Napoli hit a ground rule double, but this is where the Sox lost the game. Sandoval grounded out to second and pinch hitter Allen Craig (for Victorino) flied out to left to end the threat. A base hit would have probably put the game out of reach but the Sox still led 4-1.
Kelly showed no signs of struggle when he struck out Kiermaier looking to begin the bottom of the fifth. Rivera whiffed but Dejesus was hit by a pitch. Souza Jr grounded into a force to end the inning.
The Sox struck again in the top of the sixth although Bogaerts went down hacking to start. Hanigan doubled to left and advanced to third on a wild pitch before Mr. Mookie singled him home Hanigan to increase the lead. Betts then got doubled off of first on the line drive out by Pedroia to right to end the inning. Who would have known how big that out was as the Sox still enjoyed a 5-1 lead?
Suddenly the Rays came alive in the bottom of the sixth as Cabrera singled to center to start. Longoria singled to left and Jenning singled to center to load the bases. Dykstra dumped a base hit to center to score Cabrera and Forsythe walked to score Longoria. Sox manager John Farrell had seen enough of Kelly and pulled him before it could get any worse after just 5 innings and 3 runs (and counting) allowed.
Craig Breslow came in to pitch and Jake Elmore pinch ran for Dykstra. Brandon Guyer pinch hit for Kiermaier and hit an 0-2 fastball into center to tie the game. Breslow got Rivera to pop up to first and pinch hitter Tim Beckham (for DeJesus) to strike out swinging. Edward Mujica relived Breslow and Souza Jr struck out swinging to end the inning with the game tied 5-5.
Could the Sox strike back in the top of the seventh with Bobby Wilson taking over for Souza? Rays manager Kevin Cash made the bold move by bringing in his closer to get the heart of the order. Brad Boxberger punched out Ortiz, Ramirez and Napoli all swinging just like that. The Rays took the lead for good in the bottom of the seventh as Cabrera singled to right to start. Allen Craig misplayed a single to right by Longoria, allowing Cabrera to reach third. Jennings banged into a double play but the go-ahead run scored. Elmore then crushed a solo home run for insurance to increase the lead. Forsythe walked and that was it for Mujica. Anthony Varvaro was brought in and Forsythe was gunned down trying to steal to end the inning but the Rays had iced it 7-5.
Kevin Jepsen was brought in to pitch the top of the eighth and Sandoval struck out swinging to start. Allen Craig made it to second on an error by Longoria but Bogaerts struck out swinging too. Hanigan grounded out to second to end the inning. Varvaro returned for the bottom of the eighth and walked Guyer to start. Guyer advanced to second on the Rivera ground out to third.....but was thrown out at third trying to stretch it. Rays managed Kevin Cash challenged the out call at third but the call upheld. Beckham struck out looking to end the inning.
Steve Geltz was brought in to close out the game in the top of the ninth. Mr Mookie popped to first but Pedroia singled to left to bring the tying run to the plate....only for Ortiz to fly out to left. Ramirez ground out to second to end the game. The Rays stormed back to win it 7-5.
Jackass of the Night is a tough one but I'll go with Edward Mujica. Yes Joe Kelly fell apart and Craig Breslow served up the 0-2 base hit, but Mujica gave up the go-ahead runs including a home run to Jake Elmore.
The Good:
Dustin Pedroia was 2 for 5 with a run scored and a two run bomb.
Mike Napoli was 2 for 3 with a walk and an rbi.
Shane Victorino was hit and stole second before leaving the game.
Anthony Varvaro pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings.
Anthony Varvaro pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings.
The Bad:
Pablo Sandoval was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.
Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.
Allen Craig was 0 for 2 after coming in for Victorino.
Pablo Sandoval was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.
Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.
Allen Craig was 0 for 2 after coming in for Victorino.
Joe Kelly allowed 5 runs in 5 innings of work, getting knocked out in the sixth inning.
The Ugly:
Mookie Betts was just 1 for 5 but walked, scored and drove in a run.
Mookie Betts was just 1 for 5 but walked, scored and drove in a run.
David Ortiz was just 1 for 4 with a walk but the one hit was a home run.
Hanley Ramirez was just 1 for 4 with a walk and a run scored.
Craig Breslow allowed the tying runs to score but gave up none of his own in 2/3 of an inning.
Final Thoughts:
This one hurt. The Sox had the game in the bag and give the Rays credit for not rolling over and dying. Still, Sox pitchers continue to struggle after the fifth inning and the team is not going to win too many games if this keep up. Kelly was cruising until the sixth and the normally reliable Breslow coughed up the lead. The Sox wasted a golden chance to put some early distance between themselves and the Rays in the AL East race by losing this one, hopefully it doesn't come back to bite them in September. Victorino left the game due to a hamstring pull and Xander Bogaerts looks lost at the plate...again. Pablo Sandoval has ONE extra base hit this season and the bullpen isn't going to last long at this rate. Still, its only April and these guys have plenty of time to get back in gear. The Sox are now in danger of dropping their first series of the year unless they can win tomorrow night. The Sox turn to staff "ace" Clay Buchholz to right the ship when he faces Jake Odorizzi at 7:10 PM at Tropicana Field.
This one hurt. The Sox had the game in the bag and give the Rays credit for not rolling over and dying. Still, Sox pitchers continue to struggle after the fifth inning and the team is not going to win too many games if this keep up. Kelly was cruising until the sixth and the normally reliable Breslow coughed up the lead. The Sox wasted a golden chance to put some early distance between themselves and the Rays in the AL East race by losing this one, hopefully it doesn't come back to bite them in September. Victorino left the game due to a hamstring pull and Xander Bogaerts looks lost at the plate...again. Pablo Sandoval has ONE extra base hit this season and the bullpen isn't going to last long at this rate. Still, its only April and these guys have plenty of time to get back in gear. The Sox are now in danger of dropping their first series of the year unless they can win tomorrow night. The Sox turn to staff "ace" Clay Buchholz to right the ship when he faces Jake Odorizzi at 7:10 PM at Tropicana Field.
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