Sox Summary: Sweet sixth propels Red Sox in Oakland finale

The A's could not get the sweep against the Sox as Boston used a big sixth inning for a victory. (Ben Margot/AP)

OAKLAND, California (Sunday, September 12, 2010) - Down three runs, the Red Sox were led by four two-out hits in the sixth inning for a 5-3 victory on Sunday at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. With the victory, the Sox salvaged the three-game series against the A’s, despite dropping the overall season series, 5-4.

With the bases loaded in the third inning, Jack Cust drew a one-out walk for the game’s first run. The A’s added two more in the fifth on a two-out, two-run double to center field by Mark Ellis, giving Oakland a 3-0 lead, thanks to Daric Barton and Kurt Suzuki coming into score.

In the sixth, the Sox took a 4-3 lead as J.D. Drew and Ryan Kalish each hit two-run doubles to left field. Adrian Beltre and David Ortiz came around to score first, while Drew and Mike Lowell scored later.

Drew hit a single back to the pitcher in the eighth, scoring Beltre with one out.

Josh Beckett dug the Sox into an early hole, but came back to earn his fifth win of the season. He allowed five hits and three runs over six innings, but struggled with control by issuing five walks. Jonathan Papelbon was lights out in the ninth as he fanned the side in order, 1-2-3. Dallas Braden fell to 9-12 on the season as he allowed six hits and four runs over 5.2 innings.

The Red Sox send Jon Lester to the hill on Monday night as they open a three-game series with the Mariners at Safeco Field. Doug Fister will start for the M’s.

Sox Summary: Sox can’t back Lackey, fall to A’s again

John Lackey threw seven solid innings, but the offense could not get the job done. (AP)

 

OAKLAND, California (Saturday, September 11, 2010) – The Red Sox grabbed an early lead, but could not hold on in a 4-3 loss to the Oakland Athletics on Saturday at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. With two wins over Boston, Oakland wins the series and clinches the season match-up heading into the final meeting on Sunday afternoon. The A’s have now won three games in a row and six of eight, while the Sox have lost three in a row and four of five. 

Marco Scutaro made it 1-0 as he belted a solo home run to left field (11) with no outs in the third.

It was not until the sixth when the Sox doubled the lead to 2-0 with two outs. Ryan Kalish hit a two-out single into right field, scoring Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

Oakland answered with three runs in the seventh on one-out singles by Jack Cust and Mark Ellis, while Rajai Davis tripled for the go-ahead run with two outs.

In the eighth, Cust singled to right field with one out, while the Sox made it 4-3 on an Adrian Beltre two-out double.

Brett Anderson allowed eight hits and two runs over seven innings to improve to 5-6. John Lackey was a tough-luck loser, allowing six hits and three runs over seven solid innings, but fell to 12-10. Andrew Bailey made things interesting by surrendering two hits and a run in the ninth, but earned his 23rd save, striking out the side.

The Sox look to salvage the final game of the series on Sunday afternoon as Josh Beckett faces Dallas Braden.

Sox Summary: Buchholz throws worst start in career, Sox shut-out by A’s

Terry Francona pulls Clay Buchholz out of the game and realistically out of Cy Young contention. (AP)

OAKLAND, California (Friday, September 10, 2010) - In the worst start of his Major League career, Clay Buchholz did not make it past the second inning as the Red Sox fell 5-0 on Friday night in the series opener at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. This was his career-worst by far as his previous record was a 2.1-inning effort at Baltimore on August 20, 2008. Oakland now leads the season series, 4-3, and can clinch the series for the first time in four years with a win.

The A’s mustered all their scoring with a three-run first inning and two-run second.

In the first, Kurt Suzuki hit a two-run double to center field, scoring Coco Crisp and Daric Barton with nobody out. With one out, old friend Jeremy Hermida grounded into a double play to score Kurt Suzuki for the third run.

Oakland added two more in the second as Barton hit a two-run double to right field to give the A’s a 5-0 lead that they would not relinquish.

Trevor Cahill was superb, allowing just three hits over seven innings for his 16th win.

Buchholz fell to 15-7 as he allowed five hits, five runs, and four walks in just one inning. The Red Sox bullpen (Dustin Richardson, Michael Bowden, Robert Coello, and Robert Manuel) combined for seven three-hit innings the rest of the way.

The Sox and A’s play game two of the series on Saturday at 9 p.m. John Lackey will face lefty Brett Anderson.

Red Sox Today: September 10 at Athletics

RED SOX (78-62)
55 Ryan Kalish CF
7 J.D. Drew RF
41 Victor Martinez C
34 David Ortiz DH
29 Adrian Beltre 3B
12 Jed Lowrie SS
46 Josh Reddick LF
22 Bill Hall 2B
33 Lars Anderson 1B

11 Clay Buchholz RHP

ATHLETICS (69-70)
4 Coco Crisp CF
10 Daric Barton 1B
8 Kurt Suzuki C
32 Jack Cust DH
14 Mark Ellis 2B
45 Jeremy Hermida RF
11 Rajai Davis LF
19 Jeff Larish 3B
2 Cliff Pennington SS

53 Trevor Cahill RHP

* The Red Sox took two of three from the Rays with an 11-5 win on Wednesday. This current series concludes the season series between the Sox and A’s as the teams are tied at three in that series. Boston has won or split the season series with Oakland for four straight seasons and have won seven of their last 12 games.

For the Record: The Sox are 78-62, good for third in the A.L. East and ninth-best in the Majors. The Sox have lost seven of 11, but is 23-18 since July 26. The Sox sit third in the division, nine games behind first place New York. They also sit in second place in the Wild Card race, 6.5 games behind first-place Tampa Bay.

Hitting a home stretch: The Red Sox open a six-game, six-day West Coast road trip with the first of three in Oakland. Following this weekend series, the Sox travel to Seattle from Monday through Wednesday. Following this roadtrip, Boston rounds out its regular season schedule with one final roadtrip and two homestands. The Sox have won just six of ten road contests, but are 28-22 since May 22, third in the Majors.

On the road to the playoffs: Low-A Greenville won the first game of their South Atlantic League Southern Division Championship series with an 8-3 win over Savannah (NYM) on Wednesday. Chris Balcom-Miller is making the start for the Drive in tonight’s second game.

Sox Summary: Buchholz returns, but no help to Sox

Clay Buchholz suffered the loss in his first outing after being taken off of the disabled list. (Ben Margot/AP)

Clay Buchholz returned to the Red Sox rotation for the first time since June 26 yesterday, but lasted just three innings in a 6-4 Oakland win at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Wednesday afternoon. The A’s have won seven of their past eight games and 14 of 21 since losing 10 of their previous 12 games, while the Sox have lost 10 of their past 14 games.

The Sox jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning on an Adrian Beltre RBI single to center field in the first inning. The base knock scored Jed Lowrie, who was playing in his first game at shortstop since the final day of the 2009 season.

In the second, the A’s squared the score on a Matt Watson solo home run to right-center field, while Jack Cust hit a two-run shot into center field (6) in the third to give Oakland a 3-1 lead.

Lowrie made it 3-2 in the top of the fifth on a single to left field, but Mark Ellis drove in a run with a base hit to left in the bottom of the frame.

Still in the fifth, Connecticut native Rajai Davis drove in a couple on a single to center field, but Davis was gunned down by Mike Cameron to end the threat.

Adrian Beltre made it 6-4 with two-run shot to left-center field (16) in the sixth, but that was all the Sox could get.

Southpaw Gio Gonzalez was the winner as he allowed seven hits and four runs over six innings, improving to 9-6. Michael Wuertz threw a clean ninth for the save.

Buchholz struggled and allowed six hits and five runs over just four innings, while walking three and fanning two to fall to 10-5.

The Sox head back out on the road as they continue the season-long trip with a four-gamer in Seattle, beginning Thursday. John Lackey will face another southpaw, Ryan Rowland-Smith.

NOTES

* Daniel Nava was optioned back to Pawtucket to make room for Jeremy Hermida on the active roster. Hermida is set to return to the team in Seattle on Thursday, while Nava joins the PawSox for the final game against Toledo (DET) at McCoy Stadium.

* Celtic F.C. won the first-ever Fenway Football Challenge, 6-5 in penalty kicks, after ending regulation in a 1-1 draw on Wednesday. Paul McGowan scored the game-winner in the sixth round of the shootout to give Celtic the friendly win.

Red Sox Today: July 21 at Athletics

3:30 p.m., NESN/WEEI

RED SOX (53-41)
54 Darnell McDonald LF
12 Jed Lowrie SS
34 David Ortiz DH
20 Kevin Youkilis 1B
29 Adrian Beltre 3B
7 J.D. Drew RF
23 Mike Cameron CF
22 Bill Hall 2B
68 Dusty Brown C

11 Clay Buchholz RHP

ATHLETICS (47-47)
2 Cliff Pennington SS
10 Daric Barton 1B
8 Kurt Suzuki C
32 Jack Cust DH
5 Kevin Kouzmanoff 3B
14 Mark Ellis 2B
26 Matt Watson LF
11 Rajai Davis RF
4 Coco Crisp CF

47 Gio Gonzalez LHP

* The Sox lost 5-4 in 10 innings last night and look for the series win in the rubber game against the Oakland Athletics this afternoon. Oakland continues a hot streak of winning five of their last seven games, while the Sox are fading with four losses in six games.

Lowrie and Buchholz return: Jed Lowrie makes his first start at shortstop since October 4, 2009 this afternoon. He had been on the DL since March 31 with mono and went 11-for-30 in ten rehab appearances between Short-A Lowell and Triple-A Pawtucket. Clay Buchholz makes his first start since suffering a left hamstring strain running the bases on June 26 in San Francisco. To fill roster spots, LHP Dustin Richardson was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket and first baseman Ryan Shealy was designated for assignment.

Lowell on the right track: Mike Lowell will begin a rehab assignment with Pawtucket on Thursday night when they host Toledo (DET) at McCoy Stadium.

East meets West: The Red Sox play each of their first 14 games after the break against American League West opponents from July 15-28, going 2-4 thus far. The Sox are 10-6 this season against A.L. West opponents.

On the road again: The Red Sox have lost 10 of their last 16 games away from Fenway Park but are
15-11 in their last 26 road tilts beginning May 22. With a win today giving the team the series victory, the Sox will have won or a split eight of their last ten series away from Fenway Park, losing only June 22-24 at Colorado (1-2) and July 5-7 at Tampa Bay (0-3). Of Boston’s 27 games from July 19-August 15, 20 are on the road, going 1-1 thus far. The Sox have just two off days in the next 36 days (July 29 and August 16) through August 25.

Remy signs extension: The New England Sports Network and longtime Red Sox color analyst Jerry Remy have agreed to a multi-year contract extension. “I am truly fortunate to have been part of the NESN family for the past 23 years and that relationship will continue into the future,” Remy told NESN.com. “I feel I have the best job in the world broadcasting Red Sox baseball.”

Young stars to shine at Fenway: For the second year in a row, the Cape Cod Baseball League will hold their annual All-Star Game at Fenway Park next Wednesday. $10 general admission tickets are still available, but the game will be televised on the CBS College Sports Network if you can not make it. Gates open at 4:30 p.m. with autograph sessions and the ever-popular Home Run Hitting Contest. The East and West Division rosters as well as Home Run Hitting participants will be announced in the next few hours.

Not quiet at the Fens: While the Sox embark on their longest roadtrip of the season to date, Fenway is all but quiet as Celtic FC and Sporting CP will face off in the first-ever Fenway Football Challenge tonight at 8 p.m. Following Sunday’s game, the grounds crew got to work by flattening the pitcher’s mound and covering the field with turf for the match. Yesterday, the teams got on the field for the first time at Fenway and a press conference was held with Fenway Sports Group president Sam Kennedy, NESN announcer Tom Caron, and soccer executives in anticipation of the event. Tickets are still available, but NESN will have live coverage beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Sox Summary: A’s square series in 10-inning walkoff

The A's celebrate a walkoff win. (Ben Margot/AP)

The Red Sox opened an early 4-0 lead in the first two innings, but gave it right back as they fell to the Oakland Athletics, 5-4 in 10 innings on Tuesday at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Oakland continues a hot streak of winning five of their last seven games, while the Sox are fading with four losses in six games.

Kevin Youkilis opened the scoring in the first on a one-out double to left field. David Ortiz attempted to score from first base, but was gunned down by shortstop Cliff Pennington to keep the score at 1-0.

The Sox tacked on three more in the second inning. Bill Hall singled to right to score Mike Cameron, while he reached second on a throwing error. Hall scored on double to center field by Marco Scutaro and he came around on a Darnell McDonald double to center field.

Oakland mounted a comeback in the third inning, scoring four times off of Tim Wakefield. Jack Cust smashed a two-run double to right field with one out. Kurt Suzuki scored on a passed ball by Kevin Cash for the second run, while one more scored on a Kevin Kouzmanoff sac fly for the second out.

In the tenth, Kouzmanoff singled to right off of Michael Bowden for the game-winning run in the form of Daric Barton.

A’s starter Dallas Braden, the author of a May 9 perfect game, exited after 4.2 innings. He allowed ten hits and four runs, but just one earned.

Tim Wakefield threw six innings, allowing three hits and three earned runs, while walking two and fanning five for a no-decision. Ramon Ramirez suffered his third loss as he allowed a hit and a run over 1.1 innings.

The rubber game is set for Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 when Clay Buchholz faces Oakland lefty Gio Gonzalez.

Red Sox Today: July 20 at Athletics

RED SOX (53-40)
16 Marco Scutaro SS
54 Darnell McDonald LF
34 David Ortiz DH
20 Kevin Youkilis 1B
29 Adrian Beltre 3B
7 J.D. Drew RF
23 Mike Cameron CF
22 Bill Hall 2B
36 Kevin Cash C

49 Tim Wakefield RHP

ATHLETICS (46-47)
4 Coco Crisp CF
10 Daric Barton 1B
8 Kurt Suzuki C
32 Jack Cust DH
5 Kevin Kouzmanoff 3B
14 Mark Ellis 2B
18 Gabe Gross RF
11 Rajai Davis LF
2 Cliff Pennington SS

51 Dallas Braden LHP

* The Red Sox look for their second win in a row at Oakland on Tuesday night as they send Tim Wakefield to the mound. Last night’s win broke the A’s five-game winning streak, while the Sox have dropped three of the last six. The Sox have also won three of the first four against Oakland.

Injury/Rehab Updates: Mike Lowell will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Pawtucket on Thursday night when they host Toledo (DET) at McCoy Stadium. Jed Lowrie continued his rehab last night, going 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI. He has rejoined the team in Oakland and could be activated within a day or two. Jeremy Hermida had his rehab transferred to Triple-A Pawtucket last night and went 0-for-4 as the PawSox’ DH.

East meets West: The Red Sox play each of their first 14 games after the break against American League West opponents from July 15-28, going 2-3 thus far. The Sox are 10-5 this season vs. A.L. West opponents.

On the road again: The Red Sox have lost 9 of their last 15 games away from Fenway Park but are 15-
10 in their last 25 road tilts beginning May 22, the fourth-best road record in the Majors in that time behind the Rangers (16-9), White Sox (17-10) and Yankees (15-9). The Sox have won or a split seven of their last nine series away from Fenway Park, losing only June 22-24 at Colorado (1-2) and July 5-7 at Tampa Bay (0-3).

Red Sox Nation cracks the record books: Sunday’s sellout crowd of 37,431 marked the 600th consecutive sold out Red Sox game at Fenway Park dating back to May 15, 2003, extending the club’s all-time Major League record.

Not quiet at the Fens: While the Sox embark on their longest roadtrip of the season to date, Fenway is all but quiet as Celtic FC and Sporting CP will face off in the first-ever Fenway Football Challenge tomorrow. Following Sunday’s game, the grounds crew got to work by flattening the pitcher’s mound and covering the field with turf for the match. Fenway Sports Group president Sam Kennedy and executives from both soccer clubs were on hand at Fenway for media interviews, while the teams practiced tonight. Former World Cup announcer and current Boston Bruins play-by-play man Jack Edwards will have the call on NESN coming up on Wednesday night at 8 p.m. Tom Caron hosts a 30-minute pre-game show, beginning at 7:3o p.m.

Sox Summary: Dice-K, Sox take opener out west

Daisuke Matsuzaka earned his seventh win in another strong outing. (AP)

Daisuke Matsuzaka allowed just two hits over 6.2 innings to earn his seventh victory of the season as the Red Sox topped the Oakland Athletics, 2-1, at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Monday. The Sox have now broken the A’s five-game win streak and marks Oakland’s first loss since July 9 against the Angels. Despite the win, Boston has still lost three of the last six.

The A’s got on the board first in the third inning on a Rajai Davis solo home run to left field (4) off of Matuzaka, giving Oakland a 1-0 lead.

A David Ortiz sacrifice fly to center field in the fourth scored Eric Patterson and squared the score at 1-1. Then with two outs, Adrian Beltre belted the eventual game-winning home run to left-center field (15), giving the Red Sox a 2-1 lead they would never relinquish.

Matuzaka earned the win over 6.2 innings, while Jonathan Papelbon came in for a perfect ninth and his 21st save of the season.

Ben Sheets was a tough-luck loser as he suffered his ninth of the season, allowing just seven hits and two runs over the same time span.

It is one down and nine more to go on the season-long roadtrip. The Sox look for two in a row on Tuesday night in Oakland as Tim Wakefield faces lefty Dallas Braden.

NOTES

* The College Baseball Blog is reporting that Anthony Ranaudo will not pitch the rest of the summer with the Brewster Whitecaps. He had an excellent summer, going 3-0 in five starts and 29.2 innings.

* Jeremy Hermida continued his rehab along with Jed Lowrie in Pawtucket last night. The PawSox fell to Toledo (DET), 4-1. Hermida finished 0-for-4, while Lowrie was 1-for-3.

* Mark Holliman was called up from Advanced-A Salem for the start last night at McCoy. He pitched very well, allowing four hits and two runs over six innings, while walking one and fanning eight.

Red Sox Today: July 19 at Athletics

RED SOX (52-40)
16 Marco Scutaro SS
3 Eric Patterson 2B
34 David Ortiz DH
20 Kevin Youkilis 1B
29 Adrian Beltre 3B
7 J.D. Drew RF
60 Daniel Nava LF
54 Darnell McDonald CF
36 Kevin Cash C

18 Daisuke Matsuzaka RHP

ATHLETICS (46-46)
4 Coco Crisp CF
10 Daric Barton 1B
8 Kurt Suzuki C
32 Jack Cust DH
5 Kevin Kouzmanoff 3B
14 Mark Ellis 2B
18 Gabe Gross RF
11 Rajai Davis LF
2 Cliff Pennington SS

15 Ben Sheets RHP

* The Red Sox open their longest roadtrip of the season on Monday night with the first of a three-game series against the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Boston took two out of three in the first series of June at Fenway Park as the teams will close the season series with six games in the Bay Area. The Sox have lost four of the last six games, while the A’s come in as winners in three of their last four and six of ten.

Rehab Updates: Jeremy Hermida is slated to have his rehab transferred to Triple-A Pawtucket tonight as the PawSox face Toledo (DET) at home. In 3 rehab games with Double-A Portland, he went .273 (3-for-11) with 2 doubles, 3 RBI, a run and a walk, playing left field and DH. Jed Lowrie continued his rehab yesterday, going 0-for-3 while playing second base in Pawtucket’s 3-0 loss at Syracuse (WSH). In 9 rehab games overall with Pawtucket and Short-A Lowell, he’s hit .370 (10-for-27) with 8 RBI, also playing shortstop, third base and DH.

On the Injury Front: Mike Lowell received a cortisone shot today and will DH with Pawtucket on Thursday against Toledo. He will also travel to Columbus (CLE) for some action this weekend.

East meets West: The Red Sox play each of their first 14 games after the break against American League West opponents from July 15-28, going 1-3 thus far. The Sox are 9-5 this season vs. A.L. West opponents.

On the road again: The Red Sox have lost 9 of their last 14 games away from Fenway Park but are 14-10 in their last 24 road tilts beginning May 22, the fourth-best road record in the Majors in that time behind the Yankees (15-9), Rangers (15-9) and White Sox (16-10). The Sox have won or a split seven of their last nine series away from Fenway Park, losing only June 22-24 at Colorado (1-2) and July 5-7 at Tampa Bay (0-3).

Red Sox Nation cracks the record books: Yesterday’s sellout crowd of 37,431 marked the 600th consecutive sold out Red Sox game at Fenway Park dating back to May 15, 2003, extending the club’s all-time Major League record.

Old friend gets another shot: Former Red Sox outfielder and Rhode Island native Rocco Baldelli agreed to a minor league contract with the Tampa Bay Rays Monday. He was assigned to Class-A Charlotte in the Florida State League. He rejoined the Rays as a special instructor during spring training and had been taking batting practice and participating in drills before most home games at Tropicana Field.

Not quiet at the Fens: While the Sox embark on their longest roadtrip of the season to date, Fenway is all but quiet as Celtic FC and Sporting CP will face off in the first-ever Fenway Football Challenge. Following Sunday’s game, the grounds crew got to work by flattening the pitcher’s mound and covering the field with turf for the match. There will be media availability with players, coaches and Fenway Soirts Group president Sam Kennedy tomorrow night as the teams will be greeted at Fenway in anticipation of Wednesday night’s match. Former World Cup announcer and current Boston Bruins play-by-play man Jack Edwards will have the call on NESN coming up on Wednesday night at 8 p.m.