FORT MYERS, Fla. — Josh Beckett was solid for 3 2/3 innings in his first start since getting hit in the head by a line drive and the Boston Red Sox beat the Houston Astros 3-2 Tuesday in a split-squad game.

Former Red Sox and Astros star Roger Clemens watched from a suite as his minor league son, Koby, went 0 for 4 as Houston’s first baseman.

Boston’s spring training sellout streak at City of Palms Park dating to 2003 ended at 109. This exhibition game was a late addition to the Grapefruit League schedule.

Beckett had been out since getting struck in the left temple during batting practice on Feb. 28. The Red Sox ace allowed one run — on a wind-aided double — on three hits and walk and struck out four.

“My curveball was good,” he said. “We changed a couple of things in my delivery, and we’re still making adjustments with it. The adjustment came faster with the breaking ball. I threw some good changeups.”

Red Sox manager Terry Francona was pleased.

“Pretty good,” he said. “I thought he threw his fastball downhill. Stayed out of the middle. Especially coming off a missed outing. He looked pretty strong.”

Dennys Reyes earned the win, pitching a scoreless eighth inning. Matt Fox got the save, with three swinging strikeouts in the ninth.

The Red Sox scored the go-ahead run in the eighth as Nate Spears singled home Paul Hoover.

Aneury Rodriguez, a Rule 5 pick from Tampa Bay, started for the Astros, going three scoreless innings, giving up four hits and a walk.

“Just had to keep the ball down,” Rodriguez said. “That’s the first thing, because the last game I threw too many balls. And I come today into the game and say, ‘Just try. I don’t care if it’s in the middle. Just try.’”

Lance Pendleton, a Rule 5 pick from the Yankees, came in after Rodriguez, pitching two innings, giving up a run on two hits and two walks.

“Good and bad,” Pendleton said. “Obviously it was good to get out of the situations with only giving up one run that inning. But I’m walking these guys and that is just not acceptable. Walks kill you.

“But what I think I was happiest about is towards the middle of that second inning I started feeling comfortable. I’ve been uncomfortable on the mound. It’s spring training and you’re trying to get used to it. So I can take some good out of that. I just need to stop walking some people,” he said.

Rodriguez and Pendleton are vying for a spot in the Astros’ rotation. “(Rodriguez) was around the plate but just couldn’t get that consistency of being able to throw all his pitches for strikes,” Astros manager Brad Mills said. “His fastball, I think, really had a lot of movement. He had trouble controlling that.”

“The thing that’s been a bugaboo for (Pendleton) has been the command of his pitches and that’s what got him in trouble today again as well,” he said.

NOTES: Astros OF Jason Michaels was a late scratch because of back spasms. “It’s a spasm, just a little stiff,” Michaels said. “I don’t think it’s serious but we decided to play it safe.”

Ellsbury, Sox split squad slip away from Cards

JUPITER, Fla. — Red Sox center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury had all the different parts of his game working against the Cardinals.

Ellsbury went 3 for 4 with a double and a Boston split squad scored four runs in the eighth inning to slip past St. Louis 8-7 on Tuesday.

Ellsbury also drove in a run, scored a run and stole a base before heading to the clubhouse following a sixth inning strikeout. “You want it to all come together, so it’s nice to put the overall game together,” Ellsbury said. “I felt pretty good from Day 1, but you want to see as many pitches as you can and you want to get that timing down.”

Two of Ellsbury’s hits came off St. Louis starter Jamie Garcia, who looked sloppy at times in his second start of the spring.

Ellsbury appeared to have the Red Sox primed for a big first inning, leading off with an infield single then stealing second base. Walks to David Ortiz and Oscar Tejada loaded the bases with two outs, but Garcia induced a come-backer from Lars Anderson, which he promptly flipped to catcher Yadier Molina to end the threat.

Garcia allowed three runs and seven hits and three walks in three innings. Garcia said he felt like he was rushing his delivery. “Every time I go out here and pitch, I’m thinking about trying to minimize pitches and get them to swing the bat,” Garcia said. “I wasn’t able to do that today.”

Each start by Garcia takes on greater importance after the Cardinals lost Adam Wainwright to season-ending ligament replacement surgery.

Garcia is slated for the No. 2 spot in the rotation.

“It didn’t go the way I wanted it to go,” said Garcia, who went 13-8 with a 2.70 ERA last season his first full year in the majors. “The only thing I can say is that I feel good healthy.”

Trailing 7-4 entering the eighth, Alex Hassan brought the Red Sox back with a two-run double to right center. Three pitches later, Ryan Lavarnway homered to left to give the Red Sox their margin of victory.

After allowing two runs in the first, Boston starter Stolmy Pimentel didn’t make it out of the second inning. He retired the first two batters before surrendering back-to-back singles to Matt Carpenter and Ryan Theriot. Tommy Hottovy relieved Pinmentel, and struck out Colby Rasmus to end the threat. The Cardinals scored five runs in the fifth inning, batting around against Boston reliever Jason Rice. St. Louis led off the inning with four hits, taking a 4-3 lead on Gerald Laird’s RBI single through the right side of the infield. The Cardinals added three more runs before Rice got Shane Robinson to hit into a double play.

Carpenter continued a strong spring by going 3 for 3 with an RBI. He also started a double play in the second and made a nifty over-the-shoulder catch of Anderson’s foul pop in the third.

Notes: Chris Carpenter was pain free after throwing a side bullpen session on Tuesday morning, but still isn’t sure he’ll make his scheduled Friday start. The session was his second since Carpenter left his first spring training start with a strained hamstring.

Copy the Story Link