The Boston Red Sox fell to the Texas Rangers 10-1 on Saturday in what manager Alex Cora called an "embarrassing" and "unacceptable" loss. The team now is 15-19 since the All-Star break.
But as September nears and the postseason comes into view, both Cora and starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez believe the team is capable of getting back on track.
"I know where we're at, I know what we have in front of us, and we have to get better," Cora said. "We put ourselves in a position to make the playoffs and we still have a chance to make the playoffs. Obviously we have to be better. We have to start now, to be honest with you."
Rodriguez offered a more optimistic approach than Cora when he was asked about the road ahead:
"It's just up to us to change the way we played today and the way we played the last couple weeks," Rodriguez said after an abbreviated outing that saw him scatter eight hits and earn five runs. "It's 100 percent up to us. (And I) 100 percent think we can (change it). We still have 30-something games to go."
The formerly first-place Red Sox are now in third place in the American League East standings, and are now chasing the streaking New York Yankees for a Wild Card spot. There are 37 games left in the regular season, with crucial AL East series against the Tampa Bay Rays and Yankees among them.
