MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Mike Aviles homered and the Boston Red Sox bullpen just barely avoided another big collapse in a 7-6 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday night.

Alfredo Aceves struck out Denard Span with the bases loaded in the ninth inning for his fourth save in six chances as the Red Sox completed the sweep.

Dustin Pedroia tripled, doubled and singled for the Red Sox. The Twins have dropped five in a row.

Clay Buchholz (2-1) had another shaky outing for the Red Sox, giving up five runs on 10 hits with three walks in 5 1-3 innings.

The Red Sox led 7-1 after five innings, but their beleaguered bullpen was able to hang on with 3 2-3 scoreless innings of relief.

Aceves walked Trevor Plouffe, gave up a hit to Ryan Doumit and hit Alexi Casilla in a tense ninth inning. But he got Span to chase a pitch up and out of the zone to escape the jam.

Joe Mauer had two hits and two RBIs and Anthony Swarzak pitched three innings of scoreless relief to keep the Twins in the game after another terrible outing from their starting pitcher.

Liam Hendriks (0-1) gave up seven runs on nine hits and two walks in four innings.

Aviles hit a three-run homer in the second inning and the Red Sox were cruising with a six-run lead heading into the sixth. But after the Sox blew a 9-0 lead against the Yankees on Saturday, no one was taking anything for granted.

Buchholz needed all the cushion he could get, and so did the Boston bullpen, which entered the night with the worst ERA in the American League. Buchholz carried a 9.00 ERA into the game, with his confidence in his changeup shaken and still smarting from giving up five home runs in a 6-2 loss to the Yankees last week.

Buchholz danced in and out of trouble for the first five innings, stranding eight runners on base before getting knocked out in the sixth. The right-hander gave up an RBI double to Span and left after walking Jamey Carroll to load the bases with one out in the sixth. Bobby Valentine went with righty Scott Atchison to face the lefty Mauer, who ripped a single back up the middle to score Casilla.

Valentine then went to the rookie lefty Justin Thomas against the lefty Justin Morneau, who hit the first pitch off the wall in right-center field for a double to make it 7-5.

Thomas then hit Chris Parmelee in the helmet with a pitch. The crowd grew hushed after the ball slammed off the bill of Parmelee’s helmet and bounced all the way over to the Red Sox dugout. Parmelee left the game for precautionary reasons, and the team said he would be reevaluated on Thursday.

Matt Albers then gave up a single to Plouffe to make it 7-6, but got Sean Burroughs to ground into a double play to end the inning with Boston still in front.

Vicente Padilla, Franklin Morales and Aceves each pitched an inning of scoreless relief and the runs surrendered by Atchison, Thomas and Albers were charged to Buchholz.

Cody Ross went 1 for 3 with an RBI for the Red Sox but left the game early with soreness in his left knee.

NOTES: Twins slugger Josh Willingham missed the game to attend the birth of his son, Rogan. Willingham is on three-day paternity leave. … The Red Sox open a four-game series in Chicago against the White Sox on Thursday. They send Felix Doubront (0-0, 3.94) to the mound to face Phil Humber (1-0, 0.63), who is coming off of a perfect game in his last outing. It’s been a big week for Humber, who flew home from Oakland to be with his wife for the birth of their first child. “I hope he’s tired,” Valentine said. … The Twins have a day off on Thursday before hosting the Kansas City Royals this weekend. RHP Carl Pavano (1-2, 4.73) will start the opener on Friday against Royals LHP Danny Duffy (1-2, 3.63).

Alfredo Aceves struck out Denard Span with the bases loaded in the ninth inning for his fourth save in six chances as the Red Sox completed the sweep.

Dustin Pedroia tripled, doubled and singled for the Red Sox. The Twins have dropped five in a row.

Clay Buchholz (2-1) had another shaky outing for the Red Sox, giving up five runs on 10 hits with three walks in 5 1-3 innings.

The Red Sox led 7-1 after five innings, but their beleaguered bullpen was able to hang on with 3 2-3 scoreless innings of relief.

Aceves walked Trevor Plouffe, gave up a hit to Ryan Doumit and hit Alexi Casilla in a tense ninth inning. But he got Span to chase a pitch up and out of the zone to escape the jam.

Joe Mauer had two hits and two RBIs and Anthony Swarzak pitched three innings of scoreless relief to keep the Twins in the game after another terrible outing from their starting pitcher.

Liam Hendriks (0-1) gave up seven runs on nine hits and two walks in four innings.

Aviles hit a three-run homer in the second inning and the Red Sox were cruising with a six-run lead heading into the sixth. But after the Sox blew a 9-0 lead against the Yankees on Saturday, no one was taking anything for granted.

Buchholz needed all the cushion he could get, and so did the Boston bullpen, which entered the night with the worst ERA in the American League. Buchholz carried a 9.00 ERA into the game, with his confidence in his changeup shaken and still smarting from giving up five home runs in a 6-2 loss to the Yankees last week.

Buchholz danced in and out of trouble for the first five innings, stranding eight runners on base before getting knocked out in the sixth. The right-hander gave up an RBI double to Span and left after walking Jamey Carroll to load the bases with one out in the sixth. Bobby Valentine went with righty Scott Atchison to face the lefty Mauer, who ripped a single back up the middle to score Casilla.

Valentine then went to the rookie lefty Justin Thomas against the lefty Justin Morneau, who hit the first pitch off the wall in right-center field for a double to make it 7-5.

Thomas then hit Chris Parmelee in the helmet with a pitch. The crowd grew hushed after the ball slammed off the bill of Parmelee’s helmet and bounced all the way over to the Red Sox dugout. Parmelee left the game for precautionary reasons, and the team said he would be reevaluated on Thursday.

Matt Albers then gave up a single to Plouffe to make it 7-6, but got Sean Burroughs to ground into a double play to end the inning with Boston still in front.

Vicente Padilla, Franklin Morales and Aceves each pitched an inning of scoreless relief and the runs surrendered by Atchison, Thomas and Albers were charged to Buchholz.

Cody Ross went 1 for 3 with an RBI for the Red Sox but left the game early with soreness in his left knee.

NOTES: Twins slugger Josh Willingham missed the game to attend the birth of his son, Rogan. Willingham is on three-day paternity leave. … The Red Sox open a four-game series in Chicago against the White Sox on Thursday. They send Felix Doubront (0-0, 3.94) to the mound to face Phil Humber (1-0, 0.63), who is coming off of a perfect game in his last outing. It’s been a big week for Humber, who flew home from Oakland to be with his wife for the birth of their first child. “I hope he’s tired,” Valentine said. … The Twins have a day off on Thursday before hosting the Kansas City Royals this weekend. RHP Carl Pavano (1-2, 4.73) will start the opener on Friday against Royals LHP Danny Duffy (1-2, 3.63).

Mike Aviles homered and the Boston Red Sox bullpen just barely avoided another big collapse in a 7-6 victory over the Minnesota Twins last night.

Alfredo Aceves struck out Denard Span with the bases loaded in the ninth inning for his fourth save in six chances as the Red Sox completed the sweep.

Dustin Pedroia tripled, doubled and singled for the Red Sox. The Twins have dropped five in a row.

Clay Buchholz (2-1) had another shaky outing for the Red Sox, giving up five runs on 10 hits with three walks in 5 1-3 innings.

The Red Sox led 7-1 after five innings, but their beleaguered bullpen was able to hang on with 3 2/3 scoreless innings of relief.

Aceves walked Trevor Plouffe, gave up a hit to Ryan Doumit and hit Alexi Casilla in a tense ninth inning. But he got Span to chase a pitch up and out of the zone to escape the jam.

Joe Mauer had two hits and two RBIs and Anthony Swarzak pitched three innings of scoreless relief to keep the Twins in the game after another terrible outing from their starting pitcher.

Liam Hendriks (0-1) gave up seven runs on nine hits and two walks in four innings.

Aviles hit a three-run homer in the second inning and the Red Sox were cruising with a six-run lead heading into the sixth. But after the Sox blew a 9-0 lead against the Yankees on Saturday, no one was taking anything for granted.

Buchholz needed all the cushion he could get, and so did the Boston bullpen, which entered the night with the worst ERA in the American League. Buchholz carried a 9.00 ERA into the game, with his confidence in his changeup shaken and still smarting from giving up five home runs in a 6-2 loss to the Yankees last week.

Buchholz danced in and out of trouble for the first five innings, stranding eight runners on base before getting knocked out in the sixth. The right-hander gave up an RBI double to Span and left after walking Jamey Carroll to load the bases with one out in the sixth. Bobby Valentine went with righty Scott Atchison to face the lefty Mauer, who ripped a single back up the middle to score Casilla.

Valentine then went to the rookie lefty Justin Thomas against the lefty Justin Morneau, who hit the first pitch off the wall in right-center field for a double to make it 7-5.

Thomas then hit Chris Parmelee in the helmet with a pitch. The crowd grew hushed after the ball slammed off the bill of Parmelee’s helmet and bounced all the way over to the Red Sox dugout. Parmelee left the game for precautionary reasons, and the team said he would be reevaluated today.

Matt Albers then gave up a single to Plouffe to make it 7-6, but got Sean Burroughs to ground into a double play to end the inning with Boston still in front.

Vicente Padilla, Franklin Morales and Aceves each pitched an inning of scoreless relief and the runs surrendered by Atchison, Thomas and Albers were charged to Buchholz.

Cody Ross went 1 for 3 with an RBI for the Red Sox but left the game early with soreness in his left knee.

NOTES: Twins slugger Josh Willingham missed the game to attend the birth of his son, Rogan. Willingham is on three-day paternity leave. … The Red Sox open a four-game series in Chicago against the White Sox tonight. They send Felix Doubront (0-0, 3.94) to the mound to face Phil Humber (1-0, 0.63), who is coming off of a perfect game in his last outing. It’s been a big week for Humber, who flew home from Oakland to be with his wife for the birth of their first child. “I hope he’s tired,” Valentine said.

During their Grapefruit League game in Port Charlotte on Sunday, March 18, young hurler Clay Buchholz appeared in mid-season form for the visiting Boston Red Sox.

In contrast, even younger pitching phenom Matt Moore failed to display a similar readiness for games to count for the Tampa Bay Rays.

In front of an abundant crowd of 7,826 at plush Charlotte Sports Park, the Red Sox triumphed by the score of 8-4, earning Buchholz his second victory of the spring.

The right-hander confidently worked through a Rays’ lineup, which featured the majority of the team’s everyday players, and surrendered only 1 run on a second inning homer by Evan Longoria. Buchholz enjoyed steady control of his 63 pitches, yielding 4 hits and no walks during 5 innings atop the hill.

Meanwhile, the Rays’ counterpart struggled mightily in his second appearance of the exhibition schedule. Hampered in the early days of camp by a mild abdominal strain, Moore made his debut last week with a pair of perfect innings against the Baltimore Orioles.

In his first start before a home crowd, however, the 22 year-old disappointingly picked up the loss by allowing 4 runs in 2 1/3 frames of action.

The Rays began the contest with an early deficit, as Moore permitted solo homers in the initial two innings to Cody Ross and Josh Kroeger. But the pitcher’s undoing occurred during a shaky third inning, where he lost command of the plate and was yanked after walking the bases loaded.

Two of those runners would score off relief pitcher Romulo Sanchez, who permitted 2 runs of his own in the fourth inning.

In total, Moore tossed 52 pitchers, with only 26 going for strikes.

Making matters worse, the lefty opposed a Boston lineup that lacked nearly all of its firepower. Sitting out were sluggers David Ortiz, Adrian Gonzalez, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Kevin Youkilis, as Boston manager Bobby Valentine rested his stars after split squad efforts one day earlier.

Like every exhibition contest, since the end result ultimately does not count, fans search for positives. Firstly, Matt Moore appeared healthy, as did Longoria, who is likewise emerging from bruised hand sustained early in spring training.

New designated hitter Luke Scott received 4 at bats, hitting in the second spot of the lineup. Displaying no ill effects from last year’s shoulder surgery, Scott followed yesterday’s home run by going 1 for 4 with an RBI.

New catcher Jose Molina provided a solid backstop for 6 innings and was 1 for 3 with an RBI. In addition to smothering a wild pitch in the 6th inning, the veteran could be seen visibly attempting to calm Moore during the turbulent 3rd inning.

Finally, Kyle Farnsworth pitched effectively in a scheduled appearance during the 5th inning. The Rays’ closer has been limited throughout the spring, but looked strong in mowing down 3 outs, while reaching 94 mph on the stadium’s radar gun.

Most of Tampa Bay’s position players remained in the game for 7 innings, before replacements from the extended roster emerged for the final 2 frames. Though only a handful of spots remain viable, fans witnessed youngsters compete, such as Elliot Johnson, Chris Gimenez, and Stephen Vogt.

Many of these players will soon land in the minor leagues. Yet, getting a taste of big league pitching in such games will certainly bolster their ability to provide future depth.

Vincente Padilla tossed the final 3 innings for Boston and earned the save. The well-traveled veteran turned heads by employing his slow curveball for strikes, which dipped as low as 52 mph.

Sensing the raising of the white flag, many left early to beat the traffic on Highway 776. The Red Sox train in nearby Fort Myers and brought a strong contingent of followers on this warm day blessed by a strong breeze.

In fact, the game’s first “Let’s Go Red Sox” chant frustratingly occurred in the 9th inning, as the crowd thinned before the 8-4 final was cemented.

As the Rays reach the halfway point of the exhibition schedule, the club will likely forget about this defeat by savoring the month’s sole off day on Monday. Fishing and golf will likely be priorities, before Tampa Bay travels to oppose the Miami Marlins in Jupiter a day later.

Source:

Yahoo! Sports, Rays-Red Sox game of 3/18/12.

More by Jeff Briscoe from Yahoo! Contributor Network:

Matt Moore Ready to Return

Jeff Briscoe is a regular contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network and a follower of the Tampa Bay Rays. He co-hosts The Sports Train radio show on 1580am WCCF in Southwest Florida.