OAKLAND -- For the second night in a row, former Red Sox outfielders conspired to do in their former team.
Trailing by a run in the ninth, the A's got a game-tying pinch-hit single from Brandon Moss and a game-winning sacrifice fly from Coco Crisp to edge the Red Sox 3-2.
The other Oakland run came on a first-inning homer by Crisp. Oakland has scored nine runs in the two series and eight have been knocked in by former Red Sox players Crisp, Moss and Josh Reddick.
Alfredo Aceves blew his fourth save chance of the season.
The blown save wasted a fine start by Jon Lester, who went 6 23 innings, striking out nine, which matched his previous season high. He allowed a solo homer to Coco Crisp to open the first, then walked Jemile Weeks before retiring 14 of the next 15 hitters he faced. After the first inning, just two A's reached base against him.
Vicente Padilla took over with two outs and a runner on in the seventh and fanned Brandon Hicks. Padilla has stranded 18-of-19 inherited runners this season. Padilla then worked out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the eighth when he struck out Yoenis Cespedes and Johnny Gomes.
The Sox got a solo homer from Jarrod Saltalamacchia in the second to tie the game, then took the lead in the fourth when Oakland first baseman Chris Carter couldn't handle Saltalamacchia's smash, enabling David Ortiz (single) to score from third.
Boston Red Sox
Boston has scored just 12 runs in the six games on the current trip. In five of the six, they've managed two runs or fewer. With runners in scoring position, the Sox are just 4-for-37 (.108) in those six games.