Red Sox’s Alex Cora Defends Pulling Tanner Houck Against Astros

Tanner Houck wasn't pitching at an All-Star level Friday night, but he did well enough through six innings, which made his early pull an interesting decision for Red Sox manager Alex Cora.

Boston's 3-1 lead in the top of the seventh inning evaporated when Jose Altuve hit a two-run home run off reliever Lucas Sims to even up the matchup at Fenway Park. The Houston Astros extended their lead to five runs in the ninth inning, which proved too much of a deficit for the Red Sox to return from.

Cora gave props to Altuve for stepping up in a big moment and highlighted the Astros' "fast-break offense" that proved to be the difference against a bullpen that just didn't have it Friday night. Houck tossed 82 pitches in six innings, and the right-hander showed an ability this season to extend his limits. However, Cora didn't regret pulling his ace.

"Come on, bro," Cora told reporters when asked if he thought about extending Houck into the seventh inning. "We've been talking about our bullpen for a while but where we're at right now, he has been getting hit after 80 pitches. In that situation, it was the bullpen."

Again, Houck wasn't in his top form Friday night. The 28-year-old gave up one run off four hits but only recorded one strikeout and walked three batters. Houck also hasn't been able to maintain his form late in games as he did in the first half of the season, which was why Cora wanted to roll out one of the team's newer arms.

The Red Sox will look to rebound in the middle matchup of the series Saturday. First pitch is scheduled at 4:10 p.m. ET, and you can catch full coverage on NESN, including an hour of pregame.