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Power display by Ross helps Red Sox whip Astros

Apr 27, 2013 - 6:47 AM Boston, MA (Sports Network) - David Ross finished 4-for-4 with a pair of solo homers and scored three times as Boston tripped up Houston, 7-3, in the second edition of a four-game series from Fenway Park.

Will Middlebrooks and David Ortiz also went deep, while Dustin Pedroia added three hits, an RBI and a run scored for the Red Sox, who have taken two in a row in the set and four of five overall.

Ryan Dempster (1-2) worked six innings for the win, allowing four hits and two runs while fanning a season-high 10 batters.

"He located his fastball well. He was able to get key some strike outs. He's so dependable and reliable, he's going to keep the game in check. He's done that every time he's taken the mound so far this year," Red Sox manager John Farrell said.

Jose Altuve drove in two runs and Robbie Grossman the other for the Astros, losers in seven of their last 10.

Erik Bedard (0-2) was charged in defeat for eight hits and five runs in three- plus innings. The former Sox hurler did strike out five and did not issue a walk.

Jacoby Ellsbury began the home first with a single and came home when Pedroia dumped a double to the gap in left center. A Ross blast over the Green Monster with two outs in the second made it 2-0 for the hosts.

Matt Dominguez doubled to begin the third and came home two batters later on a Grossman groundout, but Pedroia reached with a bloop ground-rule double with one out in the home half and Mike Napoli plated him on a two-out double for a 3-1 game.

Middlebrooks began the fourth with a shot over the landmark in left and Ross followed by launching a ball over the billboards in left center.

Dominguez added a leadoff double in the fifth, moved up on a wild pitch, and after Grossman walked, an Altuve fly to right made it 5-2.

An Ortiz bomb to dead center in the home sixth boosted Boston's edge to four runs, then another Altuve sac fly brought home Dominguez with Houston's third run in the top of the seventh.

Boston had the bases loaded with none out and scored just once in the eighth. Ellsbury lined into a double play which erased Middlebrooks at third, but Jonny Gomes followed with a single to score Ross which gave the Sox a 7-3 edge.

Alex Wilson then retired the side in order to close out the contest.

Game Notes

The Red Sox pounded out 17 hits and scored at least once in each of the first five innings en route to victory ... Boston improved to 9-2 all-time against Houston ... Prior to the game, the Astros revealed that outfielder Justin Maxwell is expected to be sidelined for at least a month because of a broken bone in his left hand ... Napoli doubled twice, setting an all-time club record in the month of April with 13, eclipsing Jose Offerman (1999) and Ortiz (2007, '12) both of whom hit 11. He also set a new club record for doubles hit in the month of April, snapping the previous mark of 11 set by Ryan Sweeney (2012), Mike Lowell (2006) and Offerman (1999) ... Sox outfielder Shane Victorino missed his second straight game with lower back spasms.