Red Sox defeat Rangers behind Lackey, climb above .500 for first time since April 3

John Lackey earned his fifth victory of 2014 by beating the Texas Rangers on Sunday. (Jim Cowsert/USA Today Sports)

Right-hander John Lackey, a native of Abilene, Texas, felt right at home at Globe Life Park, leading the Boston Red Sox to a series win over the Rangers. Lackey went seven innings, allowing two earned runs while striking out nine in the Red Sox’s 5-2 victory over the Texas Rangers.

Pitching in Arlington, the city where he played his college ball at the University of Texas, Lackey gave the Red Sox a quality start in the rubber match of the series. His command was extraordinary, tossing 75 of his 105 pitches for strikes with no walks allowed.

The win moved the Red Sox above the .500 mark for the first time since April 3, the fourth day of the regular season. It was Lackey’s 20^th start at Globe Life Park, breaking a tie with Seattle Mariners ace Felix Hernandez for the most as a visiting player. In earning the victory, Lackey improved his record at the Rangers’ ballpark to 8-7, though the 35-year-old has had his share of its struggles pitching in his home city.

“I like coming here. But it’s a terrible place to pitch,” Lackey said, via Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe. “I’d rather be pitching back at Fenway, trust me.”

Lackey entered Sunday’s contest with a 6.61 career ERA at Globe Life Park. His earned run average at the Rangers’ ballpark is the second-highest of any visiting pitcher with at least 15 starts and 75 innings.

The Red Sox offense provided Lackey with early run support, making the right-hander's outing a lot less stressful. Mike Napoli hit a two-run double in the top of the first and two batters later A.J. Pierzynski followed with a RBI single to give the Sox a 3-0 before Lackey had stepped on the mound.

''It's nice to go out there when you already have a 3-0 lead,'' Lackey said, via foxsports.com. ''It kind of lets you relax a little bit and pound the strike zone.''

Over .500 for the first time since their opening-series victory in Baltimore, the Red Sox trail the Orioles by just two games for first-place in the ultra-competitive AL East.

Yu Darvish falls one out shy of no-hitter as Rangers blank Red Sox

Yu Darvish is pumped after recording the final out in the eighth inning. Darvish went 8 2/3 hitless before David Ortiz singled to break up the no-hit bid. (Larry Smith/European PressPhoto Agency)

The Boston Red Sox were no match for Yu Darvish, who came one out away from throwing the first Texas Rangers’ no-hitter since 1994.

Darvish struck out 12, taking a perfect game into the eighth inning before an error with two outs ended his streak of 23 straight batters retired. The error, committed by Alex Rios on a fly ball hit by David Ortiz, became the center of controversy in the Rangers’ 8-0 victory. Ortiz's fly ball fell between second baseman Rougned Odor and the right fielder Rios on a play in which one of them should have easily made the catch.

The official scorer for the game charged Rios with an error, rather than rewarding Ortiz with a hit, as Darvish remained on pace for a no-no. Steve Weller, the official scorer, justified his decision from Friday’s contest, noting how this situation was discussed in a meeting among scorers with the Elias Sports Bureau.

“We talked about plays like this and the consensus — there were some that argued it but it was a consensus — that if a ball goes in the air and two or more players convene on the ball and under normal effort you feel like any one of them could’ve caught the ball, you’re almost obligated to award an error,” Weller said, via The Boston Globe. “And that’s what I felt happened here.”

Based upon MLB’s Rule 10.12, it appears Weller made the correct call. The rule (provided below by sbnation.com) states:

(a) The official scorer shall charge an error against any fielder:

(1) whose misplay (fumble, muff or wild throw) prolongs the time at bat of a batter, prolongs the presence on the bases of a runner or permits a runner to advance one or more bases, unless, in the judgment of the official scorer, such fielder deliberately permits a foul fly to fall safe with a runner on third base before two are out in order that the runner on third shall not score after the catch;

It is not necessary that the fielder touch the ball to be charged with an error. If a ground ball goes through a fielder's legs or a fly ball falls untouched and, in the scorer's judgment, the fielder could have handled the ball with ordinary effort, the official scorer shall charge such fielder with an error.

The official scorer shall charge an outfielder with an error if such outfielder allows a fly ball to drop to the ground if, in the official scorers judgment, an outfielder at that position making ordinary effort would have caught such fly ball.

Low and behold, Ortiz ended up breaking up Darvish’s no hit-bid in the top of the ninth with a single to right field that evaded the shift designed to counter the designated hitter.

The 27-year-old Darvish fell one out shy of a no-hitter for the second time in his career. Last August, the Japanese ace threw 8 2/3 innings of no-hit ball against the Houston Astros, before Marwin Gonzalez hit a single up the middle that went right through the legs of Darvish.  

After another masterful pitching performance, Darvish lowered his ERA to 2.33 and recorded the win, improving his 2014 season record to 3-1

John Lackey Shuts Down Rangers as Red Sox Halt Three-Game Skid

Suffering a sweep in the home opening-series at the hands of the Milwaukee Brewers was not a reason to panic for the Boston Red Sox. Nor was their 2-4 start to a 162-game season. Yet, the Red Sox needed a pick-me-up to avoid their first four-game losing streak since closing the infamous 2012 season with eight consecutive losses.

John Lackey provided the necessary boost in a dominating outing last night versus the Texas Rangers.

Lackey tossed seven solid innings in Monday’s victory, allowing just one unearned run and five hits as the Red Sox snapped their three-game losing streak. The right-hander has two wins in two starts in the 2014 season after silencing the Rangers’ hitters in the same manner in which he stymied the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday, which helped the Red Sox attain the series victory at Camden Yards.

  Accuracy was at a premium for Lackey, who threw 17 first-pitch strikes to the 27 batters he faced. He threw 95 pitches, 65 for strikes, commanding his fastball (69 percent for strikes) and his off-speed pitches, consisting of curveballs and sliders (67 percent for strikes), with precision.

“I definitely want to pound the strike zone,” Lackey said, via WEEI.com. “I want them to know that I’m going to throw strikes. If you’re going to get me, you better get me quick [in the count] because I’m coming after you for sure.”

Pitching on the same mound that he stood on for the World Series clincher versus the St. Louis Cardinals, Lackey was able to use his aggressive approach on the hill to throttle the opposing batters.

With a 3.41 and 2.77 ERA in the 2013 regular season and playoffs, respectively, Lackey was arguably the most reliable No. 3 starter in the league. Lackey resurgence came a season after leading the MLB with a dreadful 6.41 ERA.

“He's reshaped himself, he's reshaped his approach to the game,” manager John Farrell said, per CSNNE.com. “He set out to change a perception that was formed over the first couple of years here and he had to do it first by his performance on the field. Coming back from Tommy John surgery, putting himself in great physical condition, he's the one who was at the root of that turnaround.”

After two prolific starts out of the gate, Lackey is on to pace to reestablish his status as an ace in the MLB in 2014.