Red Sox Knocked Out Of First Place

Texas rookie Tommy Hunter pitched six solid innings to beat Josh Beckett and Boston 4-2 on Tuesday night, knocking the Red Sox out of first place in the AL East.

Boston has lost four straight for the first time since last July, scoring only eight runs in the stretch. The New York Yankees beat Baltimore 6-4 on Tuesday night to break the tie for the AL East lead.

Hank Blalock put Texas ahead to stay with a two-run single in the first, though the Texas-born Beckett (11-4) retired 13 batters in a row after that until Michael Young's one-out single in the sixth. It was his third complete game in six starts.