The Boston Red Sox are still in good shape to get to October, but the way they’re getting there is making things a lot messier than they need to be.
Wednesday’s 7-3 loss to the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field pushed Boston to 82-70 and left its playoff magic number sitting at five. With 10 games left, the Red Sox are running out of runway to wake up an offense that has gone quiet at exactly the wrong time.
Through the first two games in Texas, Boston has scored just five runs. Nick Sogard’s two-run homer accounted for all of the offense in Tuesday’s 4-2 loss, and on Wednesday Willson Contreras supplied two of Boston’s three runs with a first-inning homer.
That opening blast gave the Red Sox an early jolt. Contreras turned on a 403-foot, two-run shot in the first inning for his 27th homer of the season and his first since coming off the injured list. After that, Boston barely made a dent.
The Red Sox managed only three hits in the game: one each from Contreras, Sogard and Trevor Story. Roman Anthony, Wilyer Abreu, Adley Rutschman, Caleb Durbin, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Nate Eaton, Mickey Gasper and Jarren Duran all went without a hit.
Boston’s other run came on a fifth-inning balk, and that was about as much offense as it could squeeze out. The club didn’t get another hit over the final four innings, while former Red Sox starter Nathan Eovaldi shut the door by retiring the last 11 batters he faced. Eovaldi worked four scoreless relief innings and allowed just one hit, keeping Texas in control of the game’s rhythm until its lineup finally broke through.
Jake Bennett gave Boston a chance to stay in it, but he couldn’t get through the fifth. The left-hander gave up three runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out seven over 4 2/3 innings.
The game was tied 3-3 when Erik Miller took over in the seventh, and that’s when things unraveled. Miller hit Corey Seager and walked Jake Burger before Brandon Nimmo ripped the go-ahead double.
Ezequiel Duran then added a two-run single to stretch the Rangers’ lead to 6-3.
Miller was charged with three runs in one inning.
Boston is still holding the second American League Wild Card spot, but the recent stretch isn’t exactly a confidence builder. The Red Sox have been outhit 21-6 over the first two games of the series, while Texas has won four straight and moved into a tie with the Houston Astros for first place in the AL West.
The Red Sox will try to avoid a sweep Thursday before heading into a three-game road series against the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays on Friday. Boston doesn’t need a miracle to lock up its playoff berth. It does need more than one or two bats carrying the load every night.
The Red Sox still control their postseason fate. Right now, though, they’re making that road feel a lot less secure.
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