Phillies Falter in Boston, Lose 9-3

The setting and weather were beautiful, the game was not. The Red Sox used a 3-run first inning to slug their way to a 9-3 victory over the Phillies, who fall back to 3 games below .500.

Tyler Cloyd was tagged with his first road loss and drops to 1-1 on the year. In the first inning, Dustin Pedoria started the scoring with a 2-run homer. This was soon followed by a solo shot by Mike Napoli. Erik Kratz responded with a solo shot of his own in the third, but the Red Sox quickly responded with another three runs in the bottom of the frame. Cloyd was lifted after just 2 2/3 innings allowing 9 hits and 6 earned runs. His poor performance forced Charlie Manuel to use 5 bullpen pitchers, which is an ominous sign heading into a stretch of 14 games without a day off. Mike Adams skipped a rehab assignment to return to the team early and saw some action tonight. After hitting 92-mph on the radar gun and getting 2 outs, he allowed a single and 3 walks before exiting the game.

Offensively, the Phillies did not fare much better. Facing a pitcher with an ERA over 8.00, the Phils were only able to plate one run off the starter. The other two runs came in the form of Domonic Brown

‘s club-leading 10th home run. As a team, the Phils grounded into 3 double plays. This helps to explain how their 11 hits equated to just 3 runs. They were 0-6 with runners in scoring position.

Ben Revere made another spectacular catch, diving hard into the outfield wall. In the third inning, Dom Brown and Jimmy Rollins gunned down Jarrod Saltalamacchia at home for the final out.

Cliff Lee pitches tomorrow.