Jordan Lyles deliver strong start as Texas Rangers dominate Boston Red Sox

Former Boston utilityman Brock Holt hit two RBI singles, and the Texas Rangers used a surprisingly strong start by Jordan Lyles to beat the sloppy Red Sox 10-1 on Saturday night.

The victory snapped a four-game losing streak for the Rangers, who entered with the majors’ fewest wins since the All-Star break at 7-25. Andy Ibanez and Adolis Garcia each had two of Texas’ season-high seven doubles, and center fielder DJ Peters made a terrific defensive play.

“That was one of our better games on all sides of the ball,” Rangers manager Chris Woodward said. “Jordan really set the tone with the way he was throwing the ball. You could tell he had good stuff early.”

Lyles (6-10) pitched seven innings of one-run ball in his 50th career win. He came in 0-5 with a 7.46 ERA in six starts since the All-Star break and owned the AL’s highest qualifying ERA at 5.55.

“I felt comfortable out there for the whole game,” he said.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Garcia and Ibanez each had three of the Rangers’ 17 hits.

Kike Hernandez had an RBI single for the Red Sox, who committed a season-high five errors, had two wild pitches and two base runners cut down.

“That was embarrassing today,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “It’s not acceptable. For a team that’s fighting for the playoffs to show up like that, and play like that, it doesn’t matter if you win or lose the game, it’s how you win or lose the game. That’s not acceptable.”

Holt, a former star at Stephenville High School, was with the Red Sox from 2013-19. He was part of the 2018 world champions, hitting for the only cycle in MLB postseason history that year.

“This place was home,” said Holt, who got a warm reception for the second straight night. “I got married playing for the Red Sox, had two kids playing for the Red Sox, we bought a house here, so this place is really special to me and my family.”

Peters made two outstanding plays on Rafael Devers’ deep fly ball, doubling up Hernandez at first with a throw on the fly from the warning track after making a leaping catch at the wall.

“We had a little bit of traffic early,” Lyles said. “Obviously, that play DJ made; the game would have looked a little different.”

The Red Sox made two throwing errors on consecutive hits during a three-run fourth that chased Eduardo Rodriguez (9-7) and made it 5-1.

Second baseman Hernandez threw wildly to the plate on Holt’s run-scoring single. Shortstop Xander Bogaerts fired wide of first on Garcia’s infield hit, scoring Kiner-Falefa, but all three runs in the inning ended up being earned.

Devers bobbled a grounder and Hunter Renfroe misplayed a ball in right during a four-run eighth.

Rodriguez lasted just 3 2/3 innings, giving up five runs and eight hits.

“It’s just one of those games that you have to turn the page and look forward to the next game,” he said. “You can’t let the way that things happened today get into your mind for the next game.”

PLAYING THE MONSTER

Rookie infielder Ibanez, in his fifth professional season, made just his second career start in left field. He played in front of Fenway Park’s 37-foot high Green Monster, handling three fly balls.

So, what advice did Woodward give him?

“If it’s hit in the air, just catch it,” Woodward said he told him.

WORTH NOTING

Woodward reinserted left-handed-hitting first baseman Nathaniel Lowe into the lineup after giving him Friday night off when the club faced lefty Chris Sale, hoping the struggling young player could relax after going just 1 for 14 in his previous four games. He doubled off the Green Monster his first at-bat. . The Rangers signed 30-year-old free agent RHP Buck Farmer to a minor league contract. He was released by Detroit on Aug. 17.

Tropical storm postpones Sunday’s game

Sunday’s game between the Boston Red Sox and the Texas Rangers at Fenway Park has been postponed because of the approach of Tropical Storm Henri.

The series finale will be made up on Monday at 12:10 p.m.

Boston’s Nathan Eovaldi (10-8) had been set to face Texas’ Kolby Allard (3-10) in the originally scheduled game.

The Boston area was hit by heavy rains on Sunday morning as Henri approached the northeastern U.S. coastline. Hurricane warnings extended from Connecticut and Rhode Island to New York’s Long Island. Henri had been downgraded to a tropical storm but still brought wind gusts of up to 75 mph (121 kph).