Boston, MA (Sports Network) - Stymied by Jon Lester early, the Tampa Bay Rays
finally got to him in the fifth.
Carlos Pena and Ben Francisco hit back-to-back homers in the three-run fifth
as the surging Rays downed the Boston Red Sox, 4-2, in the finale of a
brief two-game set.
The red-hot Rays have won seven straight and sit 2 1/2 games behind the
Oakland Athletics for the AL's second wild card spot. The A's are currently
taking on the Texas Rangers in Arlington.
Alex Cobb (10-9) struck out five and allowed a run on three hits and three
walks over five frames to pick up the win, while Fernando Rodney fired a
scoreless ninth and notched his 45th save of the season.
Lester (9-14) held the Rays hitless over the first 4 1/3 innings until
Jeff Keppinger lined a single into left field. In all, Lester fanned five and
surrendered three runs on four hits and a walk over six frames for Boston,
which has dropped six of its last seven contests.
Following Keppinger's base hit, Pena smashed a two-run shot off the back wall
in dead center field and Francisco then launched a solo blast over the Green
Monster in left field for a 3-1 Rays advantage.
The Red Sox got a run back in the sixth when James Loney lifted a sacrifice
fly to right field, but Tampa Bay regained its two-run cushion in the seventh
on a Jose Lobaton one-hop, ground-rule RBI double over the short wall in
right-center field.
Wade Davis fanned two during a 1-2-3 seventh, while Joel Peralta spun a
scoreless eighth.
Earlier, the Red Sox struck first in the second when Daniel Nava slapped two-
out RBI single to right field.
Game Notes
Boston's Dustin Pedroia stole two bases, which gave him 100 for his career ...
To conclude the season-long 100th anniversary celebration of Fenway Park,
Boston unveiled its 40-man, All-Fenway team as part of a pregame ceremony ...
The Red Sox finished 34-47 at Fenway this year, their worst home mark since
1965.
The Sports Network