Josh Beckett had his second straight strong start, holding the Blue Jays to one run over seven innings, and Jed Lowrie provided a spark at the top of Boston’s lineup with a two-run homer to lift the struggling Red Sox to a 4-1 victory yesterday at Fenway Park.
The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Red Sox, who have the majors’ worst record at 3-10.
Lowrie, inserted into the leadoff spot to replace struggling outfielder Carl Crawford, went 3 for 5 to raise his average to .500.
Beckett (2-1), coming off a dominant outing in which he shut out the Yankees with 10 strikeouts over eight innings in a win last Sunday, looked sharp from the start. He used a nasty curveball to go with his fastball to hold the Blue Jays to a pair of singles and a double. He struck out nine and walked two.
Crawford, off to a .137 start after signing a seven-year, $142-millon contract during the offseason, was taken out of the lineup for the day.
Rays 4, Twins 3
In St. Petersburg, Fla., Ben Zobrist led off the ninth with a tying home run and Johnny Damon won the game for the Rays with a two-out single.
Indians 8, Orioles 3
In Cleveland, Josh Tomlin (3-0) delivered yet another quality start for the first-place Indians.
Angels 7, White Sox 2
In Chicago, Tyler Chatwood pitched seven impressive innings for his first major league win to lead the Angels.
Giants 5, D’backs 3
In Phoenix, Freddy Sanchez doubled in the tying run in the sixth inning and hit a go-ahead two-run single in the seventh and the Giants won their fourth in a row. San Francisco starter Barry Zito sprained his right foot lunging for a bunt in the second inning and left the game.
Cubs 8, Rockies 3
In Denver, Casey Coleman scattered four hits while working into the sixth inning as the Cubs snapped the Rockies’ seven-game winning streak.
Reds 11, Pirates 2
In Cincinnati, Ramon Hernandez broke open a close game in the fifth inning with his sixth career grand slam.
Cardinals 9, Dodgers 2
In Los Angeles, Allen Craig hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning and the Cardinals defeated the Dodgers.
