Astros End Red Sox' 5-Game Winning Streak
BOSTON -- George Springer hit a tie-breaking two-run homer off former University of Connecticut teammate Matt Barnes in the sixth inning as the Houston Astros charged from four runs down and ended the Boston Red Sox' five-game winning streak with a 7-6 victory in the rain at Fenway Park on Friday night.
Springer, who had a two-run double in a four-run fifth that erased a 5-1 deficit created by Boston's five-run second against Lance McCullers, connected on a 3-2 pitch in his second big-league at-bat against Barnes (2-2).
Springer, whose homer was his eighth of the year, and Jose Altuve both stroked three hits and scored twice to help the struggling Astros to their fourth win in their last six games. Marwin Gonzalez delivered a pair of RBI singles.
McCullers, making his 2016 debut after a shoulder problem landed him on the disabled list, went 4 2/3 innings and left with the game tied. Scott Feldman (2-2) got the win despite allowing a solo homer to Travis Shaw.
Luke Gregerson, the sixth Houston pitcher, worked a perfect ninth with two strikeouts for his eighth save after Will Harris struck out three in a one-hit eighth.
Ryan Hanigan's two-run double highlighted the Red Sox' five-run second. Hanigan was chased home by a double by Jackie Bradley Jr., who extended his career-best hitting streak to 19 straight games -- the high in the majors this season -- with the first of his three hits.
Bradley is batting .431 with 26 RBIs during the streak. The RBI was his 15th in the last five games and he has raised his batting average from .222 to .341.
Rain fell from start to finish but the game was not delayed at any point in a contest that saw the Red Sox score in single digits for the first time in five games.
Altuve led the game off with a single and wound up scoring on a two-out single by Gonzalez. The hit lifted Altuve to 17-for-34 leading off games this season.
McCullers struck out two in a one-hit first but the first six hitters reached for Boston in the second. Hanley Ramirez singled and McCullers then walked the bases loaded.
Hanigan, 3-for-4 against McCullers coming in, delivered two runs with his double. A wild pitch scored the third run before an RBI double by Bradley and single by Mookie Betts made it 5-1.
Red Sox starter Steven Wright entered the game having allowed two runs and six hits or less in each of his last nine starts dating to last season -- the longest such streak by a Red Sox pitcher in the last 100 years. That held up until the fifth inning.
Jason Castro, back from paternity leave, opened the fifth with a double and Josh Marisnick beat out a bunt. Altuve drove in one with a single and Springer then delivered his two-run double. A groundout put runners at second and third and Gonzalez tied it and KO'd Wright with a single.
Barnes entered with men on first and third. He induced Valbuena to pop out to third and struck out Carlos Gomez to end the inning.
Xander Bogaerts doubled and David Ortiz was walked intentionally with two out in the bottom of the inning. That was all for McCullers. Feldman relieved and retired Ramirez to end the threat.
NOTES: RHP Lance McCullers (shoulder) and C Jason Castro (paternity leave) were activated before Friday night's game and served as Houston's starting battery. ... Boston LHP Eduardo Rodriguez, slated to make his fourth rehab start for Triple-A Pawtucket Friday night as he makes his return from a knee injury, was pushed backed to Saturday by a rainout. He will pitch one game of a double-header, which calls for two seven-inning games. That could affect his first 100-pitch outing. "We would expect still the ability to get up to 100 pitches and looking forward to further progression on his part," Red Sox manager John Farrell said Friday. Both Rodriguez and Joe Kelly are rehabbing in Triple-A. ... Astros Class A OF Marc Wik was suspended for 50 games for failing a second drug test. ... Through their first 36 games, the Astros starters had an average velocity on their pitches of 89.4 mph, lowest in the major leagues. The hard-throwing McCullers is likely to raise that number.