Rangers explode in sixth inning to beat Sox, 11-4

By Maureen Mullen
CSNNE.comFollow @maureenamullen
BOSTONThe Red Sox dropped the finale of their three-game set with the Rangers at Fenway Park, 11-4. With the loss, they also lost the season series, 4-6.

John Lackey took the loss, falling to 12-11 with a 6.11 ERA. He went five innings (plus four batters in the sixth), giving up six runs on eight hits and three walks with a strikeout, a wild pitch, and a hit batter (extending his major league lead in batters-plunked to 18).

The Rangers were up by two runs when they scored seven in the sixth, sending 12 batters to the plate. Lackey gave up three consecutive singles and a walk in the inning before he was replaced by left-hander Felix Doubront, who had the unenviable task of entering with no outs and the bases loaded.

Doubront allowed all three of his inherited runners to score and was charged with three runs of his own. A three-run triple by Josh Hamilton, the ninth batter of the inning and the fifth batter Doubront faced, ended the day for the Sox lefty. Matt Albers entered and, after a walk to his first batter, Michael Young, got the last two outs to end the Rangers outburst.

Texas lefty Matt Harrison was the beneficiary, earning the win to improve to 11-9. He went seven innings, giving up two runs on seven hits and two walks with five strikeouts and a wild pitch.

The Sox got two runs in the seventh on Marco Scutaros single scoring Carl Crawford, who singled and Jarrod Saltalamacchia who hit a ground-rule double to left.

The Sox, who were outscored, 28-16, in the three-game series, have lost each of the last three season series to the Rangers, the first time since 1990-92.