The Boston Red Sox are back on a losing path.
Josh Hamilton launched two home runs Friday as the Texas Rangers earned a 7-4 win at Globe Life Park. It was a vintage performance by the veteran outfielder, who continues to endear himself to those Rangers fans who felt betrayed by him signing with the Los Angels Angels before the 2013 season.
The Red Sox have lost four of five on their current seven-game road trip.
GAME IN A WORD
Exasperating.
The Red Sox again couldn’t build on a positive performance. Eduardo Rodriguez tossed a gem in his major league debut Thursday, giving Boston something to feel good about going into Friday’s contest, yet the club responded with a disappointing effort in another difficult road loss.
The Red Sox’s frustration was obvious. Several players took issue with home plate umpire Todd Tichenor’s strike zone, which prompted Tichenor to eject both manager John Farrell and first baseman Mike Napoli in the eighth inning for arguing balls and strikes from the vistiors’ dugout.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
The Rangers scored two runs in the eighth inning to open a 7-4 lead.
Hanley Ramirez clubbed a two-run homer in the top of the frame to cut Boston’s deficit to one run, but Robinson Chirinos’ two-run double in the bottom half put the nail in the coffin.
ON THE BUMP
— Steven Wright again lived the life of a knuckleballer in what was a rather typical outing for the right-hander.
Wright allowed three earned runs on five hits over 5 2/3 innings. He struck out four and walked one while throwing 82 pitches (55 strikes).
Wright was victimized by two homers and a wild pitch — again, the life of a knuckleballer — while surrendering one run in the second, third and fourth innings. Hamilton smoked two homers — one in the second, one in the fourth — against Wright, who is competing for a spot in Boston’s rotation.
— Tommy Layne retired Hamilton to end the sixth inning.
— The seventh inning turned sloppy with Ogando on the mound against his former team.
Ogando surrendered a leadoff double to Mitch Moreland. He picked off Moreland at second base — the initial safe call was overturned — but then gave up a one-out single to Chirinos and a two-out, RBI triple to Hanser Alberto. Alberto’s hit was the first of his major league career.
Craig Breslow entered and yielded a single to Leonys Martin. The run was charged to Ogando, whose ERA now stands at 3.79 after being taxed for two runs in the seventh.
— Breslow walked Hamilton and surrendered a single to Moreland with two outs in the eighth inning. The Red Sox turned to Matt Barnes, who failed to escape the jam.
Barnes gave up the two-run double to Chirinos. The ball bounced around in left field after scooting past Carlos Peguero, allowing Moreland to score from first base with Texas’ seventh run.
IN THE BATTER’S BOX
— The Red Sox scored two runs in the fourth inning, yet it could have been a bigger frame.
Boston loaded the bases with no outs, as Ramirez singled, Napoli walked and Brock Holt reached when Rangers starter Yovani Gallardo threw a forceout attempt into the dirt at second base.
Xander Bogaerts put Boston on the scoreboard with a sacrifice fly to right field and Blake Swihart tied the game 2-2 by slapping a perfectly executed hit-and-run down the left field line. But Rusney Castillo grounded into a double play with runners at the corners to end the threat.
— Castillo grounded into two double plays. He finished the game 1-for-4 and is hitting .217 since his recall.
— Dustin Pedroia extended his hitting streak to nine games with an opposite-field single. It was a textbook piece of hitting from the red-hot Pedroia, who reached out and poked a 91-mph fastball the other way.
— Mookie Betts extended his hitting streak to five games with a single in the eighth inning. He added his seventh stolen base of the season with Boston trailing by three runs.
— Ramirez launched his second homer in as many nights.
Ramirez, who snapped an 85-at-bat homerless drought Thursday, lifted a two-run, opposite-field homer in the eighth inning to cut Boston’s deficit to one run. It wasn’t enough.
TWEET OF THE GAME
Because you probably could use a pick-me-up.
[tweet https://twitter.com/PawSox/status/604455406774194176Â align=’center’%5D
UP NEXT
The Red Sox and Rangers will continue their four-game series Saturday night. Wade Miley will toe the rubber for Boston in a contest scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET.
Thumbnail photo via Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports Images
