Struggling Red Sox try to get on track at Diamondbacks


Boston is off to a 2-7 start in what has been a harrowing 11-game West Coast road trip to start its defense of last year’s World Series championship.

It is the worst start for a team coming off a World Series title since the stripped-down Marlins started 1998 with a 1-11 record.

The Red Sox were humbled by a 15-8 loss Friday in Arizona’s home opener — allowing the Diamondbacks five home runs and 18 hits — after losing their third game at Oakland on Thursday.

Boston has led after only six of a possible 81 innings this season.

Asked if his team is suffering from a World Series hangover, manager Alex Cora said, “I don’t believe in hangovers. The only hangover is when you are going out drinking and the next day you got a headache. We’ve all been there.”

The series between Boston and Arizona (4-4) resumes Saturday. Veteran lefty David Price (1-0, 6.00 ERA) will start for the Red Sox against right-hander Luke Weaver, who did not have a decision in his first start at Los Angeles last Sunday.

Weaver, who played the first three years of his career with St. Louis before being dealt to Arizona in the offseason trade for Paul Goldschmidt, allowed four earned runs on six hits with three strikeouts and two walks in 4 1/3 innings in Arizona’s 8-7 loss to the Dodgers.

He has never faced the Red Sox in his career. Price is 2-0 with a 2.81 ERA in two career starts against the Diamondbacks.

Price will attempt to work Boston’s rotation out of its doldrums. Through the first nine games, Red Sox starters have an ERA of 9.60.

“Without looking at stats,” Cora said, “we kept the ball in the ball park last year and this year we are not doing that.”

Boston pitchers have allowed 23 home runs. Through April last season, they had allowed only 24.

Arizona manager Torey Lovullo hopes the runs keep coming after Friday’s power-hitting barrage that included Boston’s former American League East nemesis Adam Jones (13-year career with Baltimore) hitting his fourth home run and Ketel Marte knocking two out from each side of the plate, one of which was a grand slam as part of a seven-run sixth inning.

“It’s a pretty constant theme that we’re going to go out there and grind out some at-bats, and take fearless approaches with men in scoring position,” Lovullo said.

Arizona has a team slugging percentage of .578 and is averaging 7.0 runs and 2.4 home runs a game.

Before Friday’s game, it was announced that Arizona infielder Jake Lamb was diagnosed with a Grade 2 strain of his left quadriceps muscle, and will be out an estimated six weeks.

The team recalled infielder Ildemaro Vargas from Triple-A Reno. Vargas hit his second career home run in Friday’s victory.

Lamb injured the quad while running out a double in the ninth inning Wednesday night in San Diego. This is the second year in a row that Lamb sustained an early-season injury. Last year, he injured his left shoulder while diving for a ball during the season’s first week and missed six weeks.