 were knocked out during the ninth inning when Cleveland beat Philadelphia, around the time Mitch Moreland hit his second two-run homer.Boston lost eight of its opening 10 games and 13 of its first 19, then struggled to recover. After moving into second place on July 27 at 59-47, the Red Sox skidded to a season-worst eight-game losing streak.''We were very inconsistent from the get-go and it just carried over throughout the season,'' manager Alex Cora said. ''We never put (together) one of the stretches that we knew we could, but other teams were better - New York and Tampa in our division. They did an outstanding job.'' There has not been a repeat World Series champion since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees. Ten of the last 18 champions failed to reach the playoffs in the year after their title.''That's kind of the question we've been asking ourselves, why is it so difficult?'' Boston starter Rick Porcello said. ''It takes a lot out of you to make a run and win the World Series. Maybe some carryover to that. Also, you've got a bullseye on your back. All those things are things you think you should be able to deal with, so it's hard to answer that really.'' Tampa Bay (91-63) remained tied with Cleveland for the second AL wild card, trailing Oakland. While the Red Sox have the highest payroll in the major leagues at $228 million, the Rays have the lowest at $66 million.''We're learning a lot about ourselves right now in this environment,'' Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said. ''It's the best environment that we can be in going forward.'' Mike Brosseau and Daniel Robertson drew two-out walks in the 11th from Trevor Kelley (0-3), and Adames lined a single to left that scored pinch-runner Johnny Davis from second base.Diego Castillo (4-8) struck out Moreland with a runner on first to end the top of the 11th.Moreland put the Red Sox ahead 2-0 with his seventh-inning homer off Charlie Morton on an 0-2 pitch, then tied the score against Emilio Pagan with an opposite-field drive to left.''It's just been an uphill battle the whole year,'' Moreland said. ''We got off to a tough start and it seems like it kind of snow-balled on us.'' Porcello gave up three hits over six scoreless innings. After a pair of walks by Darwinzon Hernandez in the seventh, pinch-hitter Nate Lowe grounded into a run-scoring forceout, Adames hit an RBI double off Marcus Walden and Josh Taylor threw a run-scoring wild pitch.Ji-Man Choi made it 4-2 on an eighth-inning RBI double off Andrew Cashner.Morton, bidding for a career-high 16th win, allowed two runs and five hits over 6 1/3 innings.''For us to be down by a couple runs late in the game and comeback, it's gritty,'' Morton said.Mookie Betts went 0 for 5 as a designated hitter in his return to Boston's lineup after missing a week with left foot inflammation. Red Sox left fielder Andrew Benintendi came out in the third due to a bruised left thumb and will likely be sidelined for a few days.Tampa Bay's Austin Meadows was hitless in four at-bats, ending a 16-game hitting streak.REMEMBERING ROBERTOThe Rays took part in Roberto Clemente Day. The team wore T-shirts honoring Clemente during batting practice and Clemente's son, Luis, threw the ceremonial first pitch.TRAINER'S ROOMRed Sox: OF J. D. Martinez (left groin tightness) could start Saturday night. ... Cora doesn't have a date for when LHP Chris Sale (left elbow inflammation) will resume throwing. Sale, rehabbing in Florida, spent time with teammates before the game. ... INF Michael Chavis (sprained left shoulder) will mostly likely be shutdown for the season.Rays: CF Avisail Garcia left after six innings after feeling dizzy. Cash had no update postgame. ... INF Brandon Lowe, out since July 3 with a bruised right shin and later a strained left quadriceps, is to play in an instructional league game Saturday.UP NEXTRed Sox RHP Travis Lakins (0-1) will start a bullpen day Saturday night against Rays RHP Tyler Glasnow (6-1), who will be making his third start since returning from a right forearm strain.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Rays step up wild-card push against Red SoxFLMThe Tampa Bay Rays are in a three-team race for the American League's two wild-card playoff berths.But the road for the Rays (90-63) is decidedly tougher than that of their wild-card competitors, the Oakland Athletics and Cleveland Indians. The opponents' winning percentage for the Rays the rest of the way is .535, while the Indians face teams with a .483 winning percentage and the Athletics' opponents are playing .441 ball.The Rays will open a four-game series against the reigning World Series champion Boston Red Sox on Friday in St. Petersburg, Fla."We've got to win," outfielder Tommy Pham told reporters. "We've got to play that right now is important. You never know when you're in this situation again." Pham tied a franchise record with five hits Wednesday, and Austin Meadows hit a deciding home run as the Rays rallied to beat the host Los Angeles Dodgers 8-7 in 11 innings to maintain their hold on the second wild-card berth.The Rays are two games behind Oakland and are level with Cleveland, which beat the Detroit Tigers 7-0 on Thursday."We were playing on the West Coast, so you recognize that Oakland had a day game (Wednesday) and we saw that they walked off Kansas City, and Cleveland, obviously watching that, it looked like it walked off Detroit," Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "So we needed to find a way, (and) we did. It's going to go down to the wire, but it's nice when the other two teams you're competing with win, it's really nice when we win." And a victory against the Dodgers, who lead the National League with 98 victories, provided another boost."Just shows that we can compete with those guys and we can compete with anybody out there," Meadows told MLB.com. "We're going to continue to prove that and go into the homestand with some motivation and get some wins." The Red Sox (80-72) avoided playoff elimination with a 5-4 victory at home Thursday against San Francisco, with left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez earning his team-high 18th victory.Right-hander Rick Porcello (13-12, 5.77 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Red Sox in the series opener against Rays right-hander Charlie Morton (15-6, 3.16). Porcello is 14-12 with a 3.67 ERA in 31 career starts against the Rays but 0-2 in three tries this season. Morton is 5-1 with a 4.26 ERA in eight career starts against Boston, including 2-0 in four games this season.A day after Red Sox left-hander David Price was shut down for the season, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said second baseman Michael Chavis might be in the same situation.Chavis was expected to return this weekend, but he experienced more discomfort in his right oblique."We'll talk about it in the upcoming days, but I don't think that's moving where we thought it would go," Cora said. "He was looking good early in the week, and (then) he felt soreness. If that's the case, we're probably going to shut him down." Chavis hasn't played for the Red Sox since Aug. 11, first because of a sprained AC joint in his left shoulder and then because of the oblique, which he injured while on a minor league rehab assignment. In 95 games this season, the rookie is batting .254 with 18 home runs and 58 RBIs.Mookie Betts, who has missed the past week with inflammation in his left foot, should return for the Red Sox this weekend, while J. D. Martinez, who has sat out the past two games with tightness in his left groin, is considered day-to-day.--Field Level Media
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