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Slide Continues: Sox Lose Third Straight, Seventh in Last Ten

July 13

Kevin Plawiecki has been reinstated from the COVID list, so Connor Wong has been optioned to Triple-A Worcester. McClanahan pitches for the Rays against Winckowski. Story is not in the lineup, even though his hand is not broken. J.D. Martinez is, on the other hand. The first two batters reach for the Rays in the bottom of the third. A force out puts runners at the corners for Choi, who singles to left-center to score Lowe and make it 1-0 Rays. Of course, that run comes courtesy of a leadoff walk. The old saying still holds: "Nothing good ever comes of a leadoff walk." Ramírez then hits a bloop single to shallow center to score Díaz and make it 2-0. That is all they get. With one out in the top of the fourth, Devers doubles to right, Boston’s first hit of the night. He squanders it by trying to take third on a pitch in the dirt and is thrown out. With one out in the bottom of the inning, that "what might have been" feeling is even worse when Taylor Walls homers to right to make it 3-0. This is his fourth of the year.

The Sox look to rally in the top of the fifth, beginning the frame with back-to-back singles to put runners at the corners with nobody out. Bogaerts scores on a double play to finally get to McClanahan and make it 3-1. Overall, despite what the score says, this has been a pitching duel. Jackie Bradley Junior robs Aranda of a double to the gap in right-center, making him the second out of the sixth. With two out in the top of the seventh, Bogaerts doubles to right and quickly steals third, but the tying run grounds out to end the inning. With a runner at first and two out in the bottom of the seventh, Lowe scores from first on a single to right, catching the Red Sox napping and making it 4-1 Tampa Bay. That is the most peculiar RBI single I’ve seen in a while. The Sox seem intent on shooting themselves in the foot in the last couple of days! A walk puts two on before a groundout ends the inning. Rays win again, 4-1.