If Buchholz Pitches Like That, Red Sox Will Struggle To Win Any Games The Rest Of The Way

This season continues to punish Red Sox fans (assuming any of those still exist) as things only get worse both on and off the field for this hated ballclub.

Tonight, Jered Weaver (16-3) showed why he's one of the best pitchers in baseball as the Angels (64-60, 31-31 away) cruised to a 7-3 win against the Red Sox (59-65, 29-36 home) at Fenway Park.

Weaver went seven innings, allowing two earned runs on seven hits with five strikeouts and a walk. Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz (11-4) transformed back into his crappy self from earlier this season as he allowed a career-high 12 hits in 5.1 innings with seven earned runs (which also tied a career-high), three strikeouts and a walk.

Los Angeles pounded out 15 hits and it was the guys at the bottom of the lineup getting it done: Providence native Chris Iannetta was 3 for 4 with a triple and RBI; Maicer Izturis was 3 for 4 with two runs and an RBI; Howie Kendrick had a double, solo homer and two runs; Erick Aybar had two singles and scored twice.

Boston's futility was summed up by the fact that Scott Podsednick (3 for 5, stolen base) was the offensive star. Dustin Pedroia singled, scored a run and stole two bases.

Los Angeles scored twice in the third inning on Iannetta's RBI single and a run came home on Mike Trout's double play ball. Mark Trumbo and Izturis added RBI singles in the fourth as the Angels jumped out to a 4-0 lead.

Ryan Lavarnway and Mike Aviles had back-to-back RBI doubles in the fourth but 4-2 was as close as the Red Sox could get. After hitting a double, Albert Pujols left in the fourth with tightness in his calf but it didn't appear serious. Kendrick's solo homer (his 7th of the season) in the sixth and Torii Hunter's two-run single gave Los Angeles an insurmountable 7-2 deficit for Boston.

Cody Ross' RBI double in the eighth accounted for the final run of the game.

To illustrate how hopeless the Red Sox have become, the Mariners (61-64) have passed them in the AL wild card standings-haha not that either have a prayer of coming within five games of those. Franklin Morales (3-4) battles fellow southpaw C.J. Wilson (9-9) tomorrow night (7:10 p.m., NESN) in the series finale as the Angels go for the three-game sweep.

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I wish the Red Sox could play the Angels every day

Jered Weaver entered last night 6-0 with an ERA of 0.99 ERA. That didn't seem to matter as the Red Sox beat their second straight stud starter (Felix Hernandez on Sunday).

After last night's 9-5 win over the Los Angeles Angels (16-13) at Fenway Park, the Boston Red Sox (13-15) are 5-0 against the Halos this season and 14-1 in their last 15 games.

Clay Buchholz (2-3) went 6.2 innings, allowing eight hits, two earned runs, two walks and two strikeouts in what was his best start of the season (not exactly a high bar).

Weaver (6-1) lasted six innings, allowing six hits, three earned runs, one walk and six strikeouts.

With nine runs and 11 hits, Boston's offense finally performed like it was expected to more regularly in 2011 not once every couple weeks.

Jacoby Ellsbury led the Red Sox with three runs, two hits and two stolen bases. Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz both had two hits and two RBIs while Adrian Gonzalez had three RBIs.

Los Angeles banged out 13 hits which is somewhat misleading since they added three garbage runs in the eighth and ninth.

Maicer Izturis led the Angels with three hits, Bobby Abreu added two hits and two RBIs while Howie Kendrick and Torii Hunter had two hits and Vernon Wells knocked in two runs.

Boston took a 1-0 lead in the first on Youk's RBI single that scored Ellsbury.

The Angels grabbed a 2-1 lead thanks to Abreu. He had an RBI single in the third which plated Izturis and he drove in Erick Aybar in the fifth with a groundout.

Pedroia had the at-bat of the game and the season so far as he battled Weaver for 13 pitches (9 foul balls) before lining a two-run single up the middle in the fifth for a 3-2 Red Sox lead.

Gonzalez delivered his first wall ball of the year, a three-run double off the Monster in the seventh, giving Boston a 6-2 advantage. Youkilis followed him with an RBI double and then Ortiz cranked a two-run homer over the Monster (9-2 Boston).

Wells hit a two-run homer off Dan Wheeler (who is about as Bobby Jenks right now) in the eighth and Izturis had an RBI double in the ninth.

Boston faces its third straight ace tonight as Dan Haren takes on Jon Lester in what should be a nice pitcher's duel.