Lowrie Back With A Bang

In 15 games since rejoining the team on July 21, Jed Lowrie is hitting .311/.426/.444, with a hit in nine of his 12 starts.

He has a 1.020 OPS in his last 10 games.

I'm going to give them everything I've got when I go out there, but my legs are still getting back underneath me being able to play every day. I like where I'm at right now and the way everything is going.

Felix Doubront was brought into a tight spot in the sixth inning and escaped a bases-loaded situation, keeping Boston's lead at 5-4. When he was sent to the pen, he was unsure about adjusting, "but I kind of like (relieving) now. ... I was excited. That's pressure, a little bit."

Francona:

You know what? Tonight was like our whole season. It wasn't perfect. But we kept playing. I mean, we did a lot of good things. We did some other things that also weren't real conducive to winning a close game. We found ways to come back and win.

Notes: Jason Varitek has increased the intensity of his workouts; he is roughly 7-10 behind Dustin Pedroia's progress. ... Mike Cameron took BP on the field. ... Hideki Okajima has started a throwing program. ... Pawtucket's Josh Reddick was named the International League Player of the Week and Portland first baseman Anthony Rizzo was named the Eastern League Player of the Week.In New York, Andrew Marchand calls Curtis Granderson a "colossal failure" for the Yankees, who "essentially gave up [Austin] Jackson and [Johnny] Damon for a guy who is not even going to play in big playoff games".

Wallace Matthews lists several things that went wrong for the Yankees in their 4-3, 10th-inning loss to Texas last night: "Nick Swisher's non-slide into home, Derek Jeter's rally-killing double play ... Mariano Rivera's failure to hold the line". The MFY lineup was missing Robinson Cano (head cold), Jorge Posada (shoulder trouble), and Mark Teixeira (maternity leave).