Lester pained by events in third
HOUSTON - The ball hit off of Jon Lester's left ankle and bounced all the way to first base. The wicked grounder off the bat of Miguel Tejada that went for a single must have stung. But not as much as the next pitch he threw in the third inning, the first one to Mark Loretta that left the park for a three-run home run.
Though it was early in the 11-10 comeback win by the Astros last night, the three-run homer by the former Red Sox infielder was a blow for Lester. And, more than that, it ended his stretch of 11 straight starts allowing three earned runs or fewer. Loretta's blast brought Lester's run total to five, which would expand to six by the end of his outing.
"Like everybody else [who pitched for the Sox last night], he made some mistakes and long-ball extra-base hits really hurt him," manager Terry Francona said. "He shook it off, we gave him a couple pitches, and Loretta was over there waiting for the first pitch. I always hated him."
Francona, of course, was joking. It's hard to hate the genial Loretta. Though Lester might harbor some resentment toward the second baseman, whose blast off a pitch catcher Jason Varitek termed "decent," added to a Lester stat line that included 9 hits, 6 runs, 2 home runs, and 5 innings of work. It was the most runs the lefthander has allowed this season.
Over his last 11 starts, Lester had been dominant, earning a 5-1 record and compiling a 2.13 ERA. And he had been even better in his last four starts, allowing just five runs and pitching fewer than seven innings just once. His control was better, too, with a combined three walks in those starts.
But not last night. Through two innings, Lester had allowed three hits (one, a bunt single) and narrowly averted allowing a run in the first when Michael Bourn got caught between third and home on a single by Carlos Lee. But that was nothing compared with the third.
With the Sox leading, 4-0, Lester started the inning by hitting pitcher Brandon Backe on the foot. He then allowed another bunt single to Bourn, this time down the third-base line. Lee then rocketed a 2-and-2 pitch into right field for a two-run single. Tejada followed with his shot off Lester's ankle, then came Loretta.
"He put a good swing on it, hit it out," Lester said. "I've got to do a better job, just in that overall inning, of controlling the damage and not letting it get out of hand. But it was the one inning that hurt me tonight."
That, and the ball off the bat of Tejada.
"It's one of those things where it gets you in the right spot and just kind of knocks you for a loop," Lester said. "Got some instant pain, but it went away. It was fine after that."
He remained in the game for two more innings, allowing an infield single to Backe in the fourth and a solo home run to Lee in the fifth. He yielded to the bullpen to start the sixth, but the relievers did little better than he had.
"It [stinks] because I thought I threw the ball better than the line," Lester said. "You come out of that game and you look up at the scoreboard and it's 6-4 at the time. I thought I threw the ball a [heck] of a lot better than what the score said. In the fifth inning, I hang a ball to Carlos Lee. So what? It's a solo home run, no big deal. But I felt great, physically felt great. You've got to tip your hat to the Astros."
Amalie Benjamin can be reached at abenjamin@globe.com.
