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May 10, 2016 - 4:47 AM Sean Manaea's first two major league starts have come with some promise that's eventually been turned sour by a few big innings.

The Oakland Athletics' No. 2 prospect will try to smooth things out Tuesday night in Boston, where the Red Sox are also starting a pitcher who's out to prove himself.

Manaea (0-0, 7.20 ERA) gave up four runs and seven hits with six strikeouts in five innings of Wednesday's 9-8 home loss to Seattle. He gave up all four in the fifth before his teammates hung six on the Mariners in the bottom half of the inning to take a four-run lead they couldn't hold.

"Outside of four pitches in that last inning, he did outstanding," catcher Stephen Vogt told MLB's official website. "They took advantage of getting a good opportunity. Wow, that happened quick. His slider was sharp and his fastball command was better. We should have gotten him deeper into that game."

It followed a five-inning, four-run effort in a 7-4 home win over Houston on April 29 in which he gave up three runs in the sixth and was removed before recording an out. After the latest outing, he admitted he's still working on his routine at this level, particularly when things start to get difficult.

"I should have done a better job of slowing things down," Manaea said. "I felt like I was trying to rush things, get through the fifth inning, get things done quick. I got those two quick outs. That's kind of what I was thinking. I should have stepped back a little bit and taken a deep breath."

Sean O'Sullivan is making his first start with the Red Sox after signing a minor league contract in December. He was called up Friday and is taking the spot of Henry Owens, who was sent to Triple-A Pawtucket after walking 13 batters in 12 1/3 innings of three starts.

O'Sullivan gave up a run and two hits in an inning of relief work in Saturday's 8-2 loss at the New York Yankees. The right-hander was 2-2 with a 3.00 ERA and 0.88 WHIP in five starts with Pawtucket. His control has been substantially better than Owens' with just five walks in 34 combined innings between the majors and minors.

The 28-year-old spent the past two seasons with Philadelphia and went 1-6 with a 6.08 ERA in 13 starts with the Phillies last season. He's 0-2 with a 3.31 ERA in two starts and two relief appearances against the Athletics.

He'll be just fine if the Red Sox (19-13) can carry over some offense from Monday's 14-7 series opening win. Over a 13-6 span, they've averaging 5.8 runs per game and batting .307. David Ortiz was 3 for 5 with two doubles and two RBIs, and the designated hitter is batting .366 with six home runs and 13 RBIs in his last 10 games. Jackie Bradley Jr., however, has been the real story lately.

Bradley extended his career-high hitting streak to 15 games with a two-run single in Boston's six-run fourth and added a grand slam two innings later. Bradley currently owns the majors' longest streak, hitting .382 (21-for-55) during the stretch.

"You feel confident. You want to swing it more," he said. "It's one of those things that you want to keep it going as long as possible."

The A's (14-19) have lost three straight and seven of eight with a 7.80 ERA. They've also lost the last five games against Boston with the Red Sox batting .327.