Pelfrey Solid In Twins' 1-0 Loss To Red Sox
BOSTON (AP) — Mike Pelfrey thought he would be tossing and turning all night, replaying one pitch that didn't move nearly enough.
Pelfrey gave up a two-out double off the wall in center field to Xander Bogaerts on a hanging splitter before Rusney Castillo hit a grounder up the middle in the seventh inning, sending the Boston Red Sox to a 1-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night.
"Usually I have a hard time sleeping, but being 0-2 and two outs and hanging a split, it's going to kind of eat at me," Pelfrey said. "I'm going to have to take something so I can get to sleep and get up early tomorrow."
Pelfrey (4-2) was solid in defeat despite the one hanger to Bogaerts, allowing six hits and the one run, walking two and striking out one over seven innings.
Clay Buchholz pitched eight innings and got all the run support he needed on Castillo's RBI single as the Red Sox ended a three-game skid.
"It was well pitched obviously on both sides," Twins manager Paul Molitor said. "Buchholz was good. We didn't have many opportunities to get a hit with runners in scoring position and Mike was solid throughout."
Minnesota lost for just the fifth time in 14 road games.
Buchholz (3-6) struck out eight and scattered three hits before Koji Uehara took over in the ninth and picked up his 11th save to preserve the shutout.
Sandy Leon, who walked after Bogaerts' double, was thrown out at third to end the inning, but the run counted and Buchholz put the Twins down in order in the eighth. Castillo saved a run in the top of the eighth with a catch on Aaron Hicks' long fly to the base of the wall in right.
"We saw some balls that were hit pretty well that didn't have much carry in them," Molitor said. "Aaron's was certainly one of them. We just needed a couple of feet. It just didn't work out."
Buchholz got his first win since Boston beat Toronto 6-3 on May 10.
The Red Sox ended a dismal month of May by going 1-6 on a road trip, which included a three-game sweep by the Twins in Minneapolis last week.
DON'T DO THAT AGAIN
It was the Twins' first time being shut out since three in the initial 16 games, two coming in the first two games of the season.
"We've been good at bouncing back, hopefully we will," Molitor said.
WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE
In their last four games in Fenway Park, the Twins have lost 1-0, 2-1, 2-1 and 1-0.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Twins: Molitor said an MRI on RHP Ricky Nolasco's right ankle showed no damage, but his return to the rotation remained uncertain. Molitor said Nolasco will do some throwing Thursday and the Twins will see how it goes.
Red Sox: RHP Justin Masterson (right shoulder tendinitis) is scheduled for his second rehab start Friday for Double-A Portland.
UP NEXT
Twins: RHP Phil Hughes (4-4) makes his team-high 11th start to open a double-header set up when heavy rain Monday caused the series opener to be postponed. RHP Trevor May (3-3) starts the night game.
Red Sox: LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (1-0) makes his second big-league start after throwing 7 2/3 shutout innings against Texas and winning his debut. Rodriguez scattered three hits and didn't allow any runs.
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