The Tampa Bay Rays opened the second half of the season with a 3-1 loss to the division rival Boston Red Sox. Jeremy Hellickson was a little amped up at the start of the game as the Red Sox forced him to throw plenty of pitches. Hellickson still battled through four walks and allowed just five hits and three runs in six innings. David Ortiz opened the game with a solo shot in the top of the first to spot Boston a one-run lead. The Red Sox quickly turned around a mounted a threat in the top of the second, and the last man in the order, Pedro Ciriaco singled home two making it 3-0.
That's all the Sox would get and that's all they would need. Hellickson settled in but Franklin Morales and the Boston bullpen were up to the task and held the Rays to one measly run. A Sean Rodriguez double to left scored Ben Zobrist in the bottom of the sixth to cut the lead to two, but the Sox pen would pitch three-plus shutout innings to seal it.
All-Star David Price will take the hill in the second game of the series on Saturday.
Stay with this StoryStream throughout the weekend for more updates on the Rays series against Boston. For more on the Rays as they start the second half of the season, visit DRaysBay. For more on the Red Sox, visit Over The Monster. And for all your baseball news coming out of the All-Star break, visit Baseball Nation.