Nelson Cruz homered and finished with three hits, helping the Texas Rangers beat Boston 6-3 on Sunday for their first series win over the Red Sox in 12 years.
The Rangers had 12 hits one day after Jon Lester flirted with a perfect game before settling for a two-hitter in Boston's 8-1 victory. Cruz's 17th homer and 10th in his last 17 games drove in Texas' final run.
Cruz doubled and scored in the third, tripled and scored in the fifth and hit a solo shot in the seventh off Hideki Okajima that ended Boston's bullpen scoreless streak at 12 innings.
Cruz's double ended an 0-for-11 slump. He is tied with Tampa Bay's Carlos Pena and Yankees slugger Mark Teixeira for the AL lead in homers.
The last time the Rangers won a series against the Red Sox was a three-game sweep in August 1997. They were 0-12-3 in their last 15 series with Boston and 1-9 in their last 10 games at Fenway Park before Sunday's win.
But Texas is a lot better now and took two of three in the series between division leaders.
Vicente Padilla (4-3) allowed two earned runs and four hits in seven innings, rebounding from a 12-3 loss to the New York Yankees last Tuesday in which he gave up seven earned runs in 3 2-3 innings. C.J. Wilson pitched the ninth for his fifth save in six chances.
Daisuke Matsuzaka (1-4) gave up 10 hits and five runs in 5 2-3 innings for Boston. He struck out eight and didn't walk a batter but his wild pitch in the fifth allowed Cruz to score and made it 5-3.
The Rangers scored in each of the first three innings to build a 4-0 lead. Boston responded with two in the third and Mark Kotsay's first homer since joining the Red Sox on Aug. 27 in a trade with Atlanta cut it to 4-3 in the fourth.
Michael Young, who had both of Texas' hits against Lester, connected for his eighth homer in the first. Omar Vizquel singled in a run in the second and David Murphy doubled in two more in the third.
The Red Sox ended three of the first six innings with players thrown out on the bases.
Kevin Youkilis was picked off second after a two-out double in the first. Then Jason Bay, in the second, and David Ortiz, in the sixth, were thrown out by Taylor Teagarden trying to steal second.
Notes:@ Boston CF Jacoby Ellsbury left in the top of the sixth with a right shoulder strain. ... Boston RF J.D. Drew missed his second straight game with a sore shoulder. ... Okajima's scoreless streak of 16 1-3 innings ended with Cruz's homer. ... The Red Sox lost for just the second time in seven games.
