Major League Baseball
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Boston 2, Tampa Bay 0
When: 7:10 PM ET, Tuesday, May 5, 2015
Where: Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts
Temperature: 57°
Umpires: Home - Brian Gorman, 1B - Mark Carlson, 2B - Mike DiMuro, 3B - Tripp Gibson
Attendance: 33688

BOSTON -- Mookie Betts' timing couldn't have been any better on Tuesday night.

The rookie center fielder blasted a pair of solo home runs and made a key defensive play to lead the Boston Red Sox to a 2-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park.

"His timing at the plate is pretty consistent," Red Sox manager John Farrell said.

"Just one heck of an athlete. We're seeing some pretty special things in a short glimpse here."

It was the first career multi-homer game for Betts, who teed off on a sixth-inning slider and an eighth-inning fastball to give Boston (13-14) a win in the second contest of a three-game series against Tampa Bay (14-13). The Red Sox also snapped a season-worst, four-game skid.

"I think we just needed a win, but a win like this is huge because it's a momentum thing," Betts said. "We can carry it into tomorrow. Whoever's on the bump I'm sure will continue that, and we'll score a few more runs tomorrow."

Betts' first home run came on an 0-1 slider, bouncing off the Sports Authority sign on the Green Monster in left field to give Boston its first hit off Rays left-hander Drew Smyly (0-1).

The second came on a 90-mile-per-hour heater from Tampa Bay right-handed reliever Ernesto Frieri two innings later.

"That wasn't a bigger swing," Betts said of his first home run. "That's just kind of my swing. Swing hard in case you hit it, pretty much."

Betts also wowed the fans at Fenway with his arm, firing a strike to second base to double off Rays third baseman Evan Longoria on second baseman Logan Forsythe's lineout to center to record the first two outs of the fourth inning with runners on first and second.

"I just saw that he took off running and he hit a line drive and I think the second base(man) came out at me," said Betts. "I was able to get it in pretty quickly."

Longoria reached on a single to center to lead off the fourth, marking the 1,000th career hit for the three-time All-Star and franchise cornerstone of the Rays.

"That's pretty cool," Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said. "I had read that the other day in the notes that he was creeping up on that. Hopefully he gets another thousand in that time frame. He's a pretty impressive baseball player."

Smyly had no-hit stuff working early in the ballgame, keeping the Red Sox hitless through five innings. However, they certainly didn't make it easy on him and his teammates.

Boston designated hitter David Ortiz was robbed of extra bases on a spectacular running catch from Rays center fielder Kevin Kiermaier in the fourth. In the fifth, Tampa Bay shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera robbed rookie Red Sox catcher Blake Swihart of a hit on a diving play to end the inning.

"It's a tough loss," said Smyly, who said he knew about his no-hitter midway through the game. "It was a pitcher's duel from the beginning. Rick (Porcello) did a great job of keeping us from scoring. We got quite a few runners on early. But we just couldn't get that big hit."

Porcello (3-2) followed up on last Wednesday's one-run outing to hold the Rays scoreless while striking out six and giving up eight hits in seven innings. Boston closer Koji Uehara tossed a clean ninth to pick up his fifth save.

Smyly allowed one run on two hits and two walks while striking out six in six innings.

Tampa Bay and Boston meet for the rubber match of the series Wednesday night at Fenway.

NOTES: Twenty-six members of the 1975 World Series Red Sox team, including Carlton Fisk, were on hand for a special 40th anniversary celebration prior to first pitch Tuesday. Boston wore its 1975 throwback uniforms and fans in attendance received a Fisk bobblehead. ... Red Sox LF Hanley Ramirez is listed as day-to-day after spraining his left shoulder attempting to make a catch Monday in Boston's 5-1 loss to Tampa Bay. Ramirez could return as soon as this weekend against the Toronto Blue Jays, according to CSNNE.com. ... Tampa Bay RHP Alex Cobb has a partial tear in his elbow ligament and could require season-ending Tommy John surgery, the Tampa Bay Times reports. … Tuesday's loss marked the fourth shutout of the season for the Rays, who have now dropped three of their last four games and are 5-5 in the last 10 contests.
Top Game Performances
Starting Pitchers
Tampa Bay   Boston
Drew Smyly Player Rick Porcello
Loss W/L Win
6.0 IP 7.0
6 Strikeouts 6
2 Hits 8
1.50 ERA 0.00
Hitting
Tampa Bay   Boston
David DeJesus Player Mookie Betts
2 Hits 2
0 RBI 2
0 HR 2
2 TB 8
.500 Avg .500
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Hits HR TB Avg LOB K RBI BB SB Errors
Tampa Bay 8 0 8 .235 14 6 0 0 1 1
Boston 5 2 12 .172 10 6 2 3 1 1