Jon Lester avoided the dismal early inning problems that had bedeviled him.
Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Jon Lester allowed four runs in six innings but could not get a win at New York Saturday night.NEW YORK - It could have been easier and probably should have been, but for the Boston Red Sox, any victory these days is a blessed one.
A five-run lead was lost, costing Jon Lester a long-awaited win in the process, but Pedro Ciriaco's ninth-inning triple was the difference in an 8-6 win over New York at Yankee Stadium.
The one-out drive to center off New York closer Rafael Soriano eluded Curtis Granderson, who misplayed a ball that should have been caught. That scored Jacoby Ellsbury and broke a 6-6 tie.
"I thought he'd make the catch, but when I saw him go back, I thought I had a chance,'' said Ciriaco, who is hitting .356 after making his fifth start at DH, a spot he had never before played.
Perhaps the wind was a factor on Ciriaco's fly ball, but its gust was no greater than the collective sigh of relief that could be heard all the way from New England.
"We were good tonight, and we were a little lucky,'' Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine said.
"Pedro hit the ball like a knuckleball for 380 feet. He's been pretty hot.''
Ciriaco is 10-for-18 against the Yankees.
Dustin Pedroia's sacrifice fly scored Ciriaco, and the Red Sox escaped in a game that seemed in hand until the eighth, when Mark Teixeira's two-run home run off Vicente Padilla made it 6-6.
With Adrian Gonzalez driving in four runs, the Red Sox had given Lester a 6-1 lead. He gave back three in the fifth and left after six innings with a two-run cushion.
"Before and after that (fifth) inning, he was perfect. He gave us just what we needed and what we were looking for,'' Valentine said.
The lead was wiped out by Teixeira, who was Padilla teammate in Texas in 2007. They evidently did not enjoy dinner and golf together, because their relationship has taken on the nature of a feud.
That is especially unusual for Teixeira, who is otherwise known as mild-mannered. He has accused Padilla of throwing at players.
Padilla responded by throwing out the book on political correctness. He has said Teixeira should play "a women's sport.''
Padilla declined to speak to media Saturday night, which was probably just as well. Just before Teixeira's home run, Granderson had nearly tied the game twice before his drives curved foul.
Lester allowed four runs with two home runs in six innings. He sent a message not to give up on him yet.
"It was huge. I threw the ball well and gave up only four hits - I'm happy about that,'' he said.
"I kept the ball down, which was what I've been preaching all along. I gave up a fly ball homer to right (to Jayson Nix), which is the nature of the beast in the park.''
Lester's outing was infinitely better than anything he had done recently, and it gave Boston its second victory in the last eight games.
In a six-inning start of 101 pitches, Lester had six strikeouts and two walks.
Given the alarming scope of Lester's problems lately, it is not out of line to say this could be one of the most significant starts of his career - if he can build on it.
The Red Sox beat the Yankees for the second time in eight tries this year. They had been 9-16 since June 28.
A tailspin that has put the credibility of this team a source of debate began the day after Lester's last victory. His no-decision Saturday - thanks to Padilla - kept his record at 5-8 and his losing streak at four.
In a dramatic reversal from recent starts, Lester was in command from the outset. Retiring the first eight batters was a far cry from his last start, when he gave Toronto Blue Jays nine runs in the first two innings.
The Red Sox staked him to a 3-0 lead in the first. Will Middlebrooks' two-out, two-run double was the big hit.
Lester was perfect until No. 9 hitter Chris Stewart homered with two out in the third. Gonzalez' three-run homer made it 6-1 in the fifth, but Nix's two-run homer and Derek Jeter's RBI grounder made it 6-4 in the bottom of the inning.
If Nix's home run was aided by the dimensions of Yankee Stadium, so was Gonzalez'.
"I'm glad we were playing here and not Fenway Park. It was good for us to get this win and pull it off,'' he said.
Gonzalez continued to pound the ball. He had three hits, and was robbed of a fourth by Ichiro Suzuki in right.
The nature of the win carried its own satisfaction. Teixeira's home run gave an embattled team another dose of adversity, but they bounced right back.
"Great win. Got to go out tomorrow and play well, too,'' Pedroia said.
"Gonzo was determined, so was Petey ... they all were,'' Valentine said.
Lester's 1,000th career strikeout came in the sixth, when Robinson Cano went down swinging. Bruce Hurst is the all-time Red Sox record-holder for a lefty with 1,043.
Lester had thrown an encouraging bullpen session this week. He also got a pep talk from Valentine.
"A bullpen is a bullpen. I've had good bullpens the last four times out and obviously it didn't help,'' Lester said.
"It's nice to have a good one, but it doesn't matter.''