Red Sox bullpen implodes in west coast finale, spoils Kutter Crawford start

SEATTLE — Entering Wednesday, the Red Sox were 43-2 when leading after six innings. One bullpen implosion later, that impressive record took a hit.

Following five shutout innings from starter Kutter Crawford, relievers John Schreiber and Richard Bleier combined to give up five runs in the sixth and seventh innings as the Sox squandered an early lead and ended their west coast road trip on a sour note with a 6-3 loss to Mariners. Despite consistently strong performances from the starting rotation, the Red Sox won just two of six games out west and will return home at 57-51.

Bad defense, in part, once again did the Red Sox in late in the game at T-Mobile Park. Seattle plated the go-ahead run when Rafael Devers and Yu Chang ran into each other trying to field a soft Julio Rodríguez grounder in the seventh then scored an insurance run when Rodríguez raced home (and was credited with a steal) on a successful stolen base attempt by Eugenio Suárez at second base. Seattle’s late rallies undid another terrific outing from Crawford, who allowed just four hits and recorded five strikeouts but was pulled at just 81 pitches.

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Boston mounted an early lead against impressive Mariners righty Logan Gilbert, as Jarren Duran launched a two-run homer (his seventh of the season) in the third and Masataka Yoshida laced an RBI single to make it 3-0. Gilbert lasted six innings, working around three walks and five hits.

Schreiber, who entered with a 2.18 ERA in 21 appearances, had his worst outing of the season. After Suárez hit a one-out double in the sixth, certified Red Sox killer Cal Raleigh won a 10-pitch battle against Schreiber by launching a two-run homer (his fifth against the Sox this season) to make it a one-run game. In the seventh, Schreiber walked Dominic Canzone and allowed a single to Tom Murphy before Richard Bleier entered and allowed a game-tying single to pinch-hitter Cade Marlowe.

With one out, Rodríguez hit a soft grounder — and a potential double play ball — to the left side, only for Devers to run into Chang as the ball trickled into left and Murphy scored the go-ahead run. Devers failed to run back to cover third, allowing pinch-runner José Caballero to advance another base. Caballero scored when Suárez roped a Bleier pitch into right field, making it 5-3. Rodríguez’s steal of home — he raced home when catcher Connor Wong tried to throw Suárez out at second — made it a three-run game.

Schreiber allowed four runs on three hits while recording just three hits as his ERA rose to 3.74. Bleier was tagged with two earned runs; he now has a 5.27 ERA.

Key series with Blue Jays up next

The Red Sox are off Thursday before beginning a season-long 10-game homestand with a key series against the Blue Jays — one of their prime wild card foes — on Friday at Fenway Park. Boston is 7-0 against Toronto this season, having swept the Jays for four games at Fenway from May 1-4 and for three at Rogers Centre from June 30-July 2.

Here’s this weekend’s schedule (along with pitching probables):

Friday, 7:10 p.m. ET — LHP James Paxton (6-2, 3.34 ERA) vs. TBD

Saturday, 4:10 p.m. ET — TBD vs. TBD

Sunday, 1:35 p.m. ET — TBD vs. TBD