ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The last time Felix Doubront won one of his starts, the Red Sox were bonafide a playoff contender. That's an indication of just how long it's been since his last win.
Doubront allowed just one hit over six innings and the Red Sox held off the Tampa Bay Rays, 7-5, for their fourth win in their last five games.
The win snapped Doubront's personal winless streak of eight starts. Before Tuesday, his last win came on July 18, when the Sox were a single game back of the second wild card spot.
Though he give up just one hit, Doubront still yielded three runs in the third when he walked three hitters in a row, then was tagged for a two-run single by Ben Zobrist and a sacrifice fly by Evan Longoria.
Five different Red Sox hitters knocked in at least one run, led by Ryan Lavarnway, who had a single and a two-run double to lead the offense.
After going two weeks in which they failed to score five runs in any one game, the Sox have now scored more than five runs twice in the last five games.
The victory also assured the Red Sox of a winning record on this, their second-to-last road swing of the season. The last time the Sox had a winning record in a multi-city trip was June 11-18 when they were 4-2 in Miami and Chicago.