Red Sox Break 5-Game Losing Streak At Fenway Park With 7-5 Win Vs. Indians

It wasn't pretty but Clay Buchholz and the Red Sox (13-19, 5-11 home) bounced back tonight from the disaster that was Josh Beckett on Thursday night as they beat the Indians 7-5 in a long (3:57), ugly game at Fenway Park.

Boston jumped out to a 7-1 lead in the fifth inning but they had to sweat it out a bit as Cleveland scored three runs in the seventh and one in the ninth before finally being subdued for good.

Buchholz (4-1) continued to benefit from stellar run support from his teammates. He actually pitched well except for the fact that he departed in the sixth with one out and the bases loaded. Cleveland (18-14, 10-4 away) was able to plate all three of those runs against Rich Hill and Andrew Miller but it could have been worse. Buchholz went 6.1 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits with no strikeouts and three walks. Bobby V left him in too long (as he's prone to do) but you can't fault him that much since the bullpen has been fried the last few weeks. Buchholz was lucky he didn't get hit harder since in 111 pitches, he only got three swings and misses.

The shell of the pitcher they call Ubaldo Jimenez (3-3) continued to suck for the Indians. He only lasted 4.1 innings, allowing seven earned runs on nine hits with four strikeouts and five walks.

Dustin Pedroia (3 for 4, 3 RBIs, run) led Boston's offense while Ryan Sweeney (2 hits, run, RBI) and Adrian Gonzalez (2 doubles) also had multiple hits. Nick Punto got a rare start at shortstop and he scored two runs.

Michael Brantley (2 hits, 2 RBIs) led four Indians with multiple hits: Jason Kipnis (2 hits, run), Travis Hafner (2 hits, RBI) and Jack Hannahan (2 hits) all had good evenings at the plate.

Santana gave the Indians a 1-0 lead in the first with an RBI single but Will Middlebrooks answered with a two-run double in the home half of the first. Pedroia added a two-run double in the second then Boston scored three times in the fifth on Cody Ross's RBI double, Sweeney's RBI single and Pedroia's sacrifice fly.

Hill walked Hafner with the bases loaded in the seventh and Kipnis scored on Middlebrooks's error. Brantley had RBI singles in the seventh and ninth.

Alfredo Aceves got his first save attempt in nearly two weeks so it was no surprise that it was rocky. He had runners on first and third with one out but struck out Hannahan and retired Johnny Damon on a lazy fly ball to center for his sixth save of the season.

Felix Doubront (2-1) faces Josh Tomlin (1-2) tomorrow night (7:10 p.m., NESN) as the Red Sox try to win their second straight game for the first time in two weeks (they haven't done it yet in May).

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Josh Beckett Cements His Place In The Boston Sports Scumbag Hall Of Fame

It is hard to believe how far both the Boston Red Sox and Josh Beckett have fallen off the map in the last few months (going back to September). The ringleader of last season's chicken and beer fiasco, who should have been traded over the winter, has completely given up on his career. Or so it seems. There's no other way to explain it since a guy with his talent should never be this consistently awful.

The Cleveland Indians (18-13, 10-3 away) beat the Red Sox (12-19, 4-11 home) 8-3 tonight in the series opener at Fenway Park. Boston has now lost three games in a row and eight out of nine overall plus 11 of its last 12 games at Fenway.

Beckett (2-4) had his shortest start in nearly four years as he couldn't make it out of the third inning, against a weak hitting team. In the first start since his golf trip last week, the Texas Toughguy showed his true colors by folding easier than anyone could have possibly imagined. In 2.1 innings, he allowed seven earned runs on seven hits with two strikeouts and two walks.

The best part was that Bobby Valentine had to take him out of the middle of the third so that allowed the crowd to really get on Beckett. If the Red Sox are going to go down in flames like this, at least we can all enjoy booing the hell out of a worthless piece of shit like him.

Cleveland scored two runs in the second and four in the third. Former Red Sox first baseman Casey Kotchman opened the floodgates with a sacrifice fly. Jack Hannahan (3rd of the season) hit a two-run homer to right.

It only got worse for Beckett as Jason Kipnis (6th of the season) hit a solo homer to right in the third, followed by Shin-Soo Choo's RBI double and Michael Brantley's (4 hits) double that scored two.

Former Red Sox pitcher Derek Lowe (5-1), who is a few weeks away from his 39th birthday, proved that some guys are winners and never lose the desire to compete in MLB. The sinkerballer went six easy innings, allowing two earned runs on nine hits with three strikeouts and a walk. And to think, the Red Sox easily could have picked him up with a throwaway trade to the Braves.

Daniel Nava had an RBI double in the fifth, his first game in 2012 with Boston, then Dustin Pedroia (5th of the season) homered to right in the seventh. Pedroia actually came to the plate as the tying run with two outs in the eighth and the bases loaded but he popped up.

Carlos Santana tacked on one more Indians run in the ninth with a sacrifice fly.

The main reason that the Red Sox have been so brutal is that their starting rotation is nothing less than a nightmare. You keep waiting for somebody to step up and throw a gem but other than Lester's win in Chicago, that has been severely lacking. I've said the bullpen has sucked (and it has at times) but who can blame them when they've been forced to throw 3+ innings every single game.

Ubaldo Jimenez (3-2) faces Clay Buchholz (3-1) tomorrow night (7:10 p.m., NESN) and if you want to make some money: bet against Boston. I'm serious, for whatever reason they were pretty big favorites tonight. We might as well get something tangible from this lost season, it's only a matter of time before Vegas figures out that this team is hopeless and changes up the lines.

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Cleveland rocks (or so I've been told)

Sooner or later in 2011, the Cleveland Indians will come back to Earth. Right? Maybe not for MLB's surprise top team.

For the fourth time this season in four games at Cleveland's Progressive Field, the Indians (30-15) beat the Red Sox (25-22). Last night, the Tribe rallied for a 3-2 win as Daniel Bard (1-4) once again failed to get the job done.

Bard deserves blame since he you know, threw the pitches. However, Red Sox manager Terry Francona should get some heat too since he had Bard face Asdrubal Cabrera (who was 5 for 5 on Sunday and had hit a solo homer earlier last night) with first base open and a struggling Shin-Soo Choo up next.

Cabrera hit an RBI double off Bard which scored Michael Brantley (who had tied it with an RBI single) with the winning run in the eighth.

Indians closer Chris Perez worked around two hits in the ninth to get his 13th save of the season. Carl Crawford ended the game by grounding into a double play.

Clay Buchholz started for Boston and yet again, he shut down the opposition enough to earn a win. He went 7.1 innings, allowing four hits, two earned runs and two walks with four strikeouts. He was pulled after 94 pitches since he threw an obscene 127 in his last start.

Former Red Sox pitcher Justin Masteron (who went to Cleveland in the Victor Martinez trade on July 31, 2009) continued to baffle his old team. He also got a no decision but he pitched well. He went 7.2 innings, allowing four hits, two earned runs with two walks and three strikeouts.

Dustin Pedroia gave the Red Sox a 1-0 lead in the third with an RBI single that scored Crawford.

Cabrera tied it up with his 10th homer of the season in the fourth inning.

Crawford answered with just his second homer of the season-solo of course-in the fifth.

Tonight figures to be another pitcher's duel as Josh Beckett opposes Fausto Carmona.