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Red Sox hold off A's

Apr 21, 2011 - 3:27 AM Oakland, CA (Sports Network) - Jed Lowrie blasted a two-run homer, and Kevin Youkilis and J.D. Drew added solo shots, as the Boston Red Sox defeated the Oakland Athletics, 5-3, in the last of a two-game set.

Youkilis finished with two runs scored, while going 2-for-4 for Boston, which picked up its first road win of the season and has won four of its last five contests.

"It's a little late, but it feels good," said manager Terry Francona on the road win. "If we bog ourselves down with what we did two weeks ago, what we're going to do is bog ourselves down. We need to try and stay in the moment and win."

Clay Buchholz (1-2) earned the win after allowing just one earned run in 5 1/3 innings. Jonathan Papelbon picked up his third save of the young season.

Oakland, which had a three-game win streak snapped, saw Coco Crisp go 2-for-5 and knock in two runs, including a leadoff homer in the bottom of the first inning. In all, the A's were just 3-of-15 with runners in scoring position and left 15 men on base.

Gio Gonzalez (2-1) took the loss after surrendering eight hits and four earned runs in six innings. He came into the game having pitched 17 straight scoreless innings.

"This is a tough team to keep down," said Gonzalez of the Red Sox. "It's one of those things where, you make a mistake, they're going to make you pay for it and that's exactly what they did."

After Crisp's home run, Boston responded in the top of the second, as Carl Crawford singled to center to bring home Youkilis.

The Red Sox took the lead in the fourth behind a Youkilis home run over the left-center field wall -- his third of the season.

Lowrie extended the lead in the sixth, as he ripped a one-out, two-run homer, bringing in Adrian Gonzalez, who reached earlier in the inning on a single to short.

The A's loaded the bases with one out in the sixth, but Daniel Bard fanned Cliff Pennington and retired Crisp on an infield pop-up.

Drew provided Boston's final run with a solo homer to right in the seventh.

Oakland threatened in the bottom half of the eighth, loading the bases before Crisp brought home Landon Powell with a one-out single to right. The rally fizzled, however, as Daric Barton and David DeJesus struck out swinging in consecutive at bats, the last coming when Papelbon entered the contest.

In the ninth, the A's again made it interesting, placing runners on first and second with one out. Powell then ripped a ball into right-center, scoring Hideki Matsui and leaving runners on the corners. Again Oakland failed to capitalize, as Papelbon forced pinch-hitter Josh Willingham and Pennington into consecutive infield pop-ups to end the game.

Game Notes

The Red Sox have won six of their last 11 games after starting the season with six consecutive losses, their longest a season-opening drought since 1945...Oakland went 5-4 against Boston last season, taking the season series for the first time since 2006.