ST. LOUIS (AP)— Mookie Betts hasn’t felt great about his performances lately, even if the results for the Boston Red Sox right fielder look just fine.
Betts homered and drove in two runs to back six quality innings by Eduardo Rodriguez and the Red Sox beat the St. Louis Cardinals 6-3 on Tuesday night in the opener of a two-game interleague series.
“I feel OK,” Betts said. “I had a good first at-bat and then not really another good one after that. So I’m just trying to put it all together.”
“I just feel like I’m not really consistent yet,” Betts said. “I have a good game and then a couple bad ones. That’s part of the game. It’s going to take a while.”
Jackie Bradley Jr. had two of Boston’s six hits, including a home run, and Rodriguez (2-1) allowed three runs and five hits. Rodriguez walked two, struck out five and threw a season-high 110 pitches.
“Overall he was solid,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said. “We played a strong game, I think, in every phase here tonight. Particularly some very good defensive plays.”
St. Louis made three errors and lost for just the second time in 10 games. Lance Lynn (4-2) gave up four runs, two earned, and three hits in six innings, striking out four and walking one.
“I gave up two early with the homers and the team fought back and gave me a lead and I gave it away,” Lynn said. “They gave me a chance to win and I didn’t get it done.”
Betts began the game with his seventh homer and 10th career leadoff shot, tying Jacoby Ellsbury for the franchise record. Bradley added a solo homer in the second for a 2-0 lead.
Craig Kimbrel pitched a scoreless ninth for his 12th save in 13 chances.
In the third inning, St. Louis’ Dexter Fowler smacked an RBI double off the left field wall, and Tommy Pham and Matt Carpenter followed with sacrifice flies.
The Red Sox scored twice in the fifth after a leadoff walk and an error. Bradley scored on an RBI groundout by Betts. Deven Marrero, who reached on an error by Jedd Gyorko, scored on Dustin Pedroia’s single to center to make it 4-3.
Boston scored twice in the eighth, on Christian Vazquez’s sac fly and then a dropped fly ball by Pham that was the third Cardinals error.
