A short night from Drew Pomeranz along with a four-run fourth inning from the Baltimore Orioles played a part in the Boston Red Sox’s 7-4 loss at Fenway Park on Friday night.
Pomeranz made it through just four innings for the second consecutive start, giving up seven hits, four earned runs, three walks and collecting two strikeouts.
Boston’s bats were highlighted by Mookie Betts, who hit his 14th home run of the 2018 campaign in the third and drove in another run in the fifth. Christian Vazquez, J.D. Martinez and Eduardo Nunez each had two hits.
But the O’s proved to be too much through nine innings, despite the Red Sox having 13 hits.
With the loss, the Red Sox slip to 30-15, while the Orioles climb to 14-30.
Here’s how it all went down:
GAME IN A WORD
Irritating.
Boston left 11 men on base, including leaving the bases loaded with Betts at the plate in the eighth inning. The Sox also had 13 hits to Baltimore’s 10.
ON THE BUMP
— Pomeranz fell into some trouble early in the first inning after he loaded the bases with just one out. He escaped by giving up one run, and ended the potential of any further damage when he got Chris Davis to fly out to end the inning.
The left-hander again found himself in a jam in the fourth when he loaded the bases, but Pomeranz wasn’t so lucky this time around as he was in the first. Adam Jones drove in two runs to break the 1-1 tie before Manny Machado upped the O’s lead to four with a two-RBI single.
— Steven Wright pitched two scoreless innings, including a 1-2-3 sixth with two strikeouts.
The knuckleballer’s scoreless innings stretch ended in the seventh, however, when he surrendered a towering solo shot to Jonathan Schoop as the Orioles took a 6-3 lead.
Wright would pitch into the ninth inning and collected two quick outs, but a walk to Schoop proved costly as Mark Trumbo drove him in with an RBI double to deep right for a 7-4 lead.
— Heath Hembree relieved Wright and got Davis to strike out looking for the third out.
IN THE BATTER’S BOX
— Down by one in the third, Mookie Betts crushed his 14th home run of the season into the Green Monster to tie the game.
— With Boston down 5-1 in the fifth, the team scored two more runs thanks in part to an RBI double by Betts and an RBI single from Andrew Benintendi. The fifth inning rally came to an end after Hanley Ramirez grounded into a double play.
— The Red Sox threatened to tie the game in the seventh with two on and two out with Ramirez at the dish, but the designated hitter flied out to right field for the third out.
— Boston attempted to rally in the eighth after Xander Bogaerts reached on a fielding error before being plated by an Eduardo Nunez single to bring the score to 6-4.
— Pinch hitter Mitch Moreland drew a walk to juice the bases, bringing Betts to the dish, but the right fielder popped out to end the inning.
— Ramirez, Jackie Bradley Jr. and pinch hitters Blake Swihart and Moreland all went hitless on the night.
TWEET OF THE GAME
But he is, indeed, that good.
UP NEXT
Boston will continue its four-game set with Baltimore with the third game of the series Saturday. Rick Porcello will be on the mound for the Red Sox as he opposes Dylan Bundy. First pitch from Fenway Park is set for 7:10 p.m. ET.
