The Boston Red Sox have dropped their first series since their first of the season.
The Rangers earned a 5-3 lead over the Red Sox at Globe Life Field on Sunday. Texas won the four-game series 3-1.
Boston lead by as many as two runs during the game thanks to a solid start from Garrett Richards and the bat of Xander Bogaerts, but the bullpen couldn’t hold on to the narrow advantage.
The Red Sox fell to 17-12 on the season with the loss while the Rangers improved to 13-16.
Here’s how it all went down:
GAME IN A WORD
Disappointing.
Boston could have had this one, but Texas made a strong late effort.
ON THE MOUND
— After a breakout performance for the Red Sox in his last start, Richards pulled together another nice outing against the Rangers.
Things got hairy for a moment in the first, where a wild pitch saw two runners advance to scoring position with one out. But Richards struck the next two batters out consecutively to get himself out of the jam.
Entering the game with a 4.94 ERA, he brought it down further to 4.00 after five innings of work Sunday. He gave up four hits and a walk with seven strikeouts and was relieved after giving up one earned run during the fourth.
— Darwinzon Hernández had yet another nice inning in relief, facing four batters and striking out two of them. He gave up an infield single, but nothing came of it for Texas.
— Garrett Whitlock gave up a run, but Boston maintained its small lead by the time he was done on the mound.
The first batter he faced took him yard to center field to make it a 3-2 game, and the third got on with a single. But he got out of the inning by forcing a fly ball and a K.
— A leadoff walk burned Adam Ottavino. in the eighth. Nate Lowe watched four balls go by him and then stole second, eventually rounding the bases to tie it up with an RBI single from Dave Dahl.
Ottavino came out of the game after recording two outs and was credited with three earned runs and two walks.
— Matt Barnes entered the game early to get the last out of the eighth, but Brock Holt singled off his old teammate and Dalh and Kiner-Falefa managed to take a 5-3 lead thanks partially to a fielding error from Alex Verdugo.
That was it for the closer, though, as the bottom of the ninth inning wasn’t necessary to determine the game.
IN THE BATTER’S BOX
— After almost getting into a first-inning deficit, Boston responded well in the top of the second.
Bogaerts reached on what was credited as an infield single as a pop-up got lost in the sun. The Red Sox capitalized with a Marwin González double one batter later, and Hunter Renfroe’s sacrifice ground ball scored Bogaerts to put Boston up 1-0.
— Bogaerts gave his team some more insurance in the fourth by smoking a 435-foot homer to center to lead off the inning. It was his fifth of the season, and he finished the day 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI.
— More of a buffer came along in the seventh after Renfroe put the ball in play with a base hit. A sacrifice from Franchy Cordero helped advance him, as did Kevin Plawecki grounding out to center.
With Renfroe on third, Kiké Hernández brought him home with a single of his own to make it a 3-1 game.
TWEET OF THE GAME
This we like. A lot.
UP NEXT
Back to Boston we go, as the Red Sox begin a three-game series with he Detroit Tigers after a day off Monday.
First pitch from Fenway Park on Tuesday is at 7:10 p.m. ET.
