The Red Sox have taken a 3-1 lead over the Tampa Bay Rays after three innings thanks to a three-run shot from Jacoby Ellsbury.
So far Jon Lester has had some difficulty with command, falling behind in the count a bit too often and having his pitch count run up towards 60 by long at bats. The Sox ace has only allowed one run, though, coming thanks to the first batter of the game in Desmond Jennings. The exciting young rookie led things off with a double down the line in left, eventually scoring on a ground out from Evan Longoria.
The Red Sox, meanwhile, had been putting up some big contact on James Shields but to little avail, sending fly balls to the warning track or deep into foul territory, but never gone. That all changed in the third. Josh Reddick gave Boston their first baserunner of the game with a line drive single, and then with one out Mike Aviles followed suit, putting a runner in scoring position for Jacoby Ellsbury. It wouldn't end up mattering where the baserunners were standing, however, as Ellsbury opened up on a changeup that caught far too much of the zone, blistering it into the stands in right field for the three-run shot.