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Sox Rally Falls Short Against Rays

In the first game since the teams brawled in Fenway, the Red Sox and Rays squared off. In the previous nine meetings, the home team won each game, with the Red Sox taking six games at home and the Rays taking three at home back in April. Monday’s game followed suit with Tampa Bay winning 5-4 after fighting off a furious Red Sox rally (two runs) in the ninth inning off Troy Percival. Speaking of furious…

Manny Ramirez apologized in private and to reporters for shoving 66-year-old traveling secretary Jack McCormick to the ground. Perhaps he’s really missing the presence of David Ortiz in the lineup and it may give him the pressure to carry the team. Or…it could be that he was named in the threats made against the Red Sox…OK, enough with excuses. You don’t push a near-70-year-old man to the ground, especially when you’re a jacked 35-year-old.

Sox Stud of the Game:

Mike Lowell led the Red Sox with three hits, including an RBI single in the fourth off James Shields, and a run scored in the dramatic ninth inning. Lowell, Dustin Pedroia (1-4, R), and J.D. Drew (1-4, HR) have all stepped up lately in the absence of David Ortiz. Just imagine when Ortiz returns to the lineup…

Diamond Dud of the Game:

I never pick on Manny, but I’ll use this space to do so. Something must be going on behind the scenes in Manny’s life. His erratic behavior lately is unexplainable, considering he was always mellow and relaxed. One thing I will say is that this incident with the traveling secretary has nothing to do with Kevin Youkilis. Fights happen within teams all the time…just not between players and team officials.

Game Notes:

• B.J. Upton led off the game with a HR.
• Before relinquishing first place after losing the final game against the Astros, the Red Sox had held the top spot in the AL East for 25 days.
• David Ortiz will attend the All-Star Game but will not play if elected to rest his injured left wrist.

Tags: Dustin Pedroia, J.D. Drew, James Shields, Justin Masterson, Manny Ramirez, Mike Lowell, Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays