BOSTON — George Springer made a big return to New England with an even bigger shot off a college teammate.
Springer hit a two-run homer off former UConn teammate Matt Barnes in the sixth inning, leading the Houston Astros over the Red Sox 7-6 Friday night and ending Boston’s five-game winning streak.
SATURDAY'S GAME
WHO: Astros (McHugh 4-3) at Red Sox (Buchholz 2-3)
WHEN: 1:05 p.m.
TELEVISION: NESN
“To get that hit there is obviously big but I’m just more concerned with helping us win,” said Springer, who hadn’t played in Boston the past two seasons because of injuries.
Springer finished 3 for 5 with four RBI. His two-run drive off Barnes (2-2) over the Green Monster broke a 5-all tie and the Astros held on to win and gain a little redemption from an 11-1 loss to the Red Sox the night before.
“I don’t know if he’s too happy with me right now,” Springer said of Barnes. “But he got me the day before and I guess we’re even.”
Jose Altuve got three hits, scored twice and drove in a run for Houston. Marwin Gonzalez added two RBI for the Astros.
Jackie Bradley Jr. got three hits for the Red Sox and extended the longest hitting streak in the majors this season to 19 games.
Boston’s string of four straight games with at least 11 runs and 14 hits also came to an end. Boston got 11 hits but scored just once after tagging Lance McCullers for five runs in the second.
“We put together some quality AB’s. We just weren’t able to score more runs,” Bradley said.
Scott Feldman (2-2) won in relief. He gave up Travis Shaw’s homer to straightaway center to start the sixth.
Luke Gregerson struck out two in the ninth while picking up his eighth save.
McCullers made his first start of the year after opening the season on the disabled list because of soreness in his pitching shoulder. He pitched into the fifth before being pulled with the score 5-all.
“It felt good being back out there. Obviously I lost a little bit there in the second,” McCullers said. “I’d do anything to have a couple of those pitches back but the most important thing is we got the win and I kind of rebounded there in the next couple innings.”
A pair of walks set up Ryan Hanigan’s two-run double in the second. Bradley added an RBI double, a wild pitch brought in another run and Mookie Betts had an RBI single.
Houston tied it with four runs in the fifth, two on a double by Springer.
Shaw’s homer extended Boston’s streak to 14 straight games with a home run.
Barnes relieved knuckleballer Steven Wright in the fifth.
NOTES: LHP Eduardo Rodriguez (right knee ligament) had his fourth rehab start pushed to Saturday when Triple-A Pawtucket’s game against Gwinnett was postponed because of rain.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.