Sox Summary: Lackey stymies Mets through four, but bullpen falters

John Lackey gave up just two hits in four innings, as the Red Sox fell to the New York Mets, 4-2, at City of Palms Park on Wednesday.

The bullpen took away the loss, as Ramon S. Ramirez blew the save and eventually took the loss, thanks to a shaky start to the eighth inning.

Jeremy Hermida was 1-for-3, with a run for the Red Sox, while former Sox infielder Alex Cora was 0-for-3 for the Mets.

The Red Sox are off until Friday, when they will face Pittsburgh in Bradenton.

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Daisuke Matsuzaka threw 54 pitches in the bullpen this afternoon. Peter Abraham reported that he had trouble locating in the early going, but improved in the last 20 throws.

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Jed Lowrie’s illness was officially announced as mono. There was lots of news on both the injured and non-injury fronts today.

Mets at Red Sox starting lineups

Here are today’s lineups, thanks to Peter Abraham.

RED SOX
Marco O’Scutaro SS
Dustin O’Pedroia 2B
Victor O’Martinez C
Kevin O’Youkilis 1B
David O’Ortiz DH
Adrian O’Beltre 3B
Jeremy O’Hermida LF
Mike O’Cameron CF
Josh O’Reddick RF

Pitching: RHP John O’Lackey followed by RHP Jonathan O’Papelbon, LHP Hideki O’Okajima, RHP Ramon O’Ramirez, RHP Manny O’Delcarmen and RHP Daniel O’Bard.

METS
Angel Pagan LF
Alex Cora SS
Gary Mathews Jr. RF
Daniel Murphy 1B
Fernando Tatis 3B
Frank Catalanotto DH
Omir Santos C
Fernando Martinez CF
Ruben Tejada 2B

Pitching: RHP Mike Pelfrey followed by RHP Tobi Stoner, RHP Bobby Parnell, RHP Kiki Calero and RHP Jenry Mejia.

Sox Summary: Long trip pays off with win; Sox look for a winning streak in Jupiter Friday

J.D. Drew chatted with former Sox outfielder Jason Bay prior to his new team's meeting with the Red Sox. (AP)

John Lackey pitched three scoreless innings to lift the Red Sox to an 8-2 win over the New York Mets on Thursday at Tradition Field.

Lackey allowed just three hits in his three innings, while Darnell McDonald went 3-for-3, with a run and an RBI for the Red Sox.

Former Red Sox Alex Cora went 1-for-1 in the Orange and Blue, while Jason Bay was hitless in two at bats. Starter Mike Pelfrey took the loss.

The Red Sox close the week with another long trip to take on St. Louis in Jupiter on Friday.

Spring Training Game Notes: Sox make long trek to Port St. Lucie

Step right up and meet the Mets: The Red Sox make a long journey to Port St. Lucie, where they face the New York Mets on Thursday. John Lackey and Mike Pelfrey are the starters for the game.

Red Sox
Marco Scutaro SS
Dustin Pedroia 2B
Victor Martinez C
David Ortiz DH
J.D. Drew RF
Mike Cameron CF
Jeremy Hermida LF
Jed Lowrie 3B
Lars Anderson 1B

Pitching: RHP John Lackey followed by LHP Felix Doubront, RHP Joe Nelson and RHP Junichi Tazawa.

Mets
Angel Pagan CF
Luis Castillo 2B
David Wright 3B
Mike Jacobs 1B
Jason Bay LF
Frank Catalanotto DH
Jeff Francoeur RF
Alex Cora SS
Chris Coste C

Pitching: RHP Mike Pelfrey followed by LHP Pedro Feliciano, RHP Tobi Stoner, LHP Hisanori Takahashi and RHP Ryota Igarashi.

The newest Met…Jason Bay: Jason Bay will face his former team for the first time on Thursday.

Up Next: The Red Sox hit the road again for an afternoon contest against Florida in Jupiter.