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Red Sox begin series with Blue Jays up north

Jun 10, 2011 - 2:58 PM (Sports Network) - The Boston Red Sox take aim at their seventh straight win this evening when they open a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

Boston took all three games from its most recent set with the New York Yankees, capping the sweep by scoring seven runs in the seventh inning in an 8-3 win on Thursday after waiting out a three-hour, 27-minute rain delay at Yankee Stadium.

David Ortiz scored the first run of the seventh and capped it with a two-run double, as Boston improved to 8-1 in the season series against its American League East rival.

"He feels good about himself, and he should," Red Sox manager Terry Francona said of Ortiz, who is hitting .326 with 15 homers and 36 RBIs.

Josh Beckett (5-2) continued his strong start to the season by allowing just two runs -- on Curtis Granderson's homer in the first -- over seven innings. He gave four hits and two walks and improved to 3-0 against New York this year.

Tonight, the Red Sox turn to righty Clay Buchholz, who is 4-3 with a 3.82 ERA. Buchholz received his fourth straight no-decision on Friday against Oakland, but was awful in allowing six runs (five earned) and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings of his team's 8-6 win.

Buchholz didn't get a decision versus the Jays earlier in the year and is 6-3 lifetime against them with a 2.73 ERA.

Toronto, meanwhile, will counter with lefty Jo-Jo Reyes, who has won his last two starts after tying a dubious major league record by going 28 straight starts without a victory.

Reyes followed up a complete game win on May 30 to beat the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday, holding them to three runs and five hits in 6 1/3 frames. He is 2-4 on the year with a 4.16 ERA.

"It didn't bother me before, but I have to keep the same mind-set and just go out there and take it pitch by pitch," Reyes said of the streak. "As long as I keep up the quality starts, [wins] are going to keep on coming."

Reyes lost to the Red Sox earlier in the year, surrendering four runs in just three innings, in his only other appearance against them.

Toronto was denied a three-game sweep over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday, as it dropped the finale at Kauffman Stadium, 3-2.

J.P. Arencibia accounted for the offense with a two-run triple for Toronto, which has split its last eight games.

Ricky Romero (5-6) was the hard-luck loser despite tossing his fifth career complete game. The left-hander surrendered three runs on eight hits, walked two and struck out four in eight frames.

"They bunched their hits together to score the three runs on a couple of pitches that were up in the strike zone," Blue Jays manager John Farrell said. "Yet we answer right back with two of our own and still created a couple of legitimate scoring opportunities in the last two innings and yet the win is elusive as we stand here right now."

Toronto has split its six games with the Red Sox this season.