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Red Sox-Rangers Preview

Jul 22, 2009 - 5:03 AM By MATT BEARDMORE STATS Writer

Boston (55-37) at Texas (50-41), 8:05 p.m. EDT

Clay Buchholz' last outing was a spot start to give Boston's rotation an extra day of rest following the All-Star break. When he takes the mound Wednesday night in Arlington, Buchholz could be making the first of a couple appearances in place of an ailing All-Star right-hander.

Buchholz will try to help the slumping Red Sox snap a four-game slide as they face the Texas Rangers in the finale of a three-game set.

Making his first start since Aug. 20, Buchholz (1-0, 1.59 ERA) allowed one run and four hits over 5 2-3 innings in Friday's 4-1 win at Toronto. Although he earned his first victory since May 2, 2008, against Tampa Bay, the 24-year-old right-hander was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket.

"I'm just thankful for the opportunity to be here and play with these guys again," Buchholz said. "The starting rotation they have here right now is pretty unbelievable."

Boston, though, placed 11-game winner Tim Wakefield on the disabled list Tuesday due to a lower back strain, giving Buchholz at least one more start.

"It was unexpected, but any day in the big leagues is better than being in the minor leagues, so I'm happy to be here again, and I'll go after them tomorrow and see what happens," Buchholz told the teams' official Web site Tuesday. "I'll go out there and try to command the zone and try to throw strike one just like (my) last start."

That would be a welcome sight for a Red Sox club that hasn't won since Buchholz' last appearance.

Coupled with the New York Yankees' 6-4 win over Baltimore, Boston (55-38) fell out of the AL East lead for the first time since early June with Tuesday's 4-2 loss to Texas.

The Red Sox are batting .195 (25 for 128) and have scored eight runs during their longest skid since a five-game slide June 28-July 2, 2008.

"We've hit our worst spot of the year as a team swinging the bats," said Boston captain Jason Varitek, who is batting .091 in his last eight games. "We've all been here before. We're one or two hits away from getting it back together."

Texas (51-41), meanwhile, has won three straight to keep the pressure on the AL West-leading Los Angeles Angels.

The Rangers are 4-1 versus Boston in 2009 after dropping 15 of the previous 18 meetings.

"It's a huge win, because (the Red Sox are) a great team," outfielder David Murphy told the Rangers' official Web site. "It just makes a statement that we're here and we're for real."

Vicente Padilla (7-5, 4.67) gets the ball for Texas as it closes a six-game homestand. In Friday's 5-3 loss to Minnesota, Padilla allowed five runs and a season-high 11 hits, including a two-run triple by Carlos Gomez and a three-run homer by Jason Kubel.

"Everything was fine, I only threw two bad pitches," Padilla said.

On June 7, Padilla yielded four runs and four hits over seven innings in a 6-3 victory at Fenway Park. He is 2-3 with a 4.89 ERA in six starts against Boston.

Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis is 5 for 12 with three doubles lifetime against Padilla. Youkilis' RBI double in the sixth inning Tuesday extended his hitting streak to seven. He is batting .429 with three homers and nine RBIs during this stretch.

All-Star outfielder Nelson Cruz could start for Texas on Wednesday after missing the last three games with a fractured right ring finger.