Orioles get sloppy in 8-1 loss (updated with quotes)

BOSTON - The Orioles rely on their defense to bail them out of jams, not to create or exacerbate the situation, which made the seventh inning tonight especially odd and unsettling.

Darren O'Day got the ground ball he needed to produce a rally-killing double play and leave the Orioles behind by one run, but normally sure-handed shortstop J.J. Hardy booted it. It came out of his glove and wouldn't stick in his bare hand on multiple attempts.

Unfortunately for the Orioles, the miscue wasn't the low point in a game they managed to keep close despite another prolonged quiet stretch at the plate. The Red Sox scored three runs, the first charged to Dylan Bundy, piled on in the eighth and claimed an 8-1 win before a sellout crowd at Fenway Park.

The last three runs came against Oliver Drake. Catcher Christian Vázquez plated two of them with a triple, his fourth hit of the night, on a ball that eluded a sliding Seth Smith near the right field line. Vázquez raced home on Dustin Pedroia's infield hit.

Smith replaced Craig Gentry after pinch-hitting for him.

Bundy left with a 2-1 deficit after walking Pablo Sandoval with one out in the seventh on his career-high 106th pitch. O'Day got the ground ball from Chris Young, but not the outs, and the inning unraveled.

Vázquez reached on a fly ball to shallow right-center field, with Jonathan Schoop catching up to it, but not holding onto the ball. Gentry and Adam Jones backed off for Schoop, who seriously tested his range on the play, and the Red Sox loaded the bases.

Pedroia shot a ground ball up the middle that Hardy could only slow, allowing two runs to score, and Andrew Benintendi followed with an RBI single to right field. Gentry committed the second error by missing the cutoff man and letting Benintendi take second base.

Hardy fielded Mookie Betts' sharp grounder, ran directly at Pedroia and eventually made the tag near third base, and Hanley Ramirez lined to left field. O'Day was charged with two runs in two-thirds of an inning to leave his ERA at 20.25, but no one could argue that he deserved a better fate.

Drake gave up four hits, the last three of the infield variety, and walked a batter to go with the three runs.

The Orioles (4-2) have dropped two in a row and will try for the series split Wednesday night.

Left-hander Drew Pomeranz retired 12 straight batters before Jones' one-out double in the sixth. Hardy was retired to end the second, fifth and seventh innings.

Bundy has registered two quality starts in his two outings, allowing a combined four runs and 11 hits in 13 1/3 innings. He's walked two batters and struck out 11.

He should have been tagged with only two runs tonight, but baseball life isn't always fair.

It also can get real ugly in a hurry.

Manager Buck Showalter on Bundy: "Pretty good, pretty good. It always gets kind of magnified when there's not much margin for error. We had some run-scoring opportunities and didn't push anything across against a good club like Boston that you need to do. Dylan presented himself well. He had an extra days' rest. Don't think he was quite as crisp with his command as far as some counts, but he gave us a great chance to win a game tonight."

Showalter on defense "They don't always show themselves in errors. Analytically, it will say one thing. But our guys are disappointed. It's been a strength of ours and will be again. It's just one of those things that makes you realize how good they are and have been when you see a game like that. It just wasn't crisp and I know our guys are disappointed in it, but we'll be all right."

Showalter on whether Hardy's miscue impacted how others played in the field: "No, not at all. They don't ... Jonathan's a real tough play, a base hit. They had about four or five ground balls that snuck through or just off the end of a glove. Just one of those nights where a lot of things fell their way."

Showalter on O'Day: "That was the highlight for me of the night. Darren was good. That's Darren. A lot of ground balls, a lot of command. You could tell he felt (good). He'd like to have one pitch back to Benintendi, but other than that, that was real encouraging seeing him today. I really wanted to get him back out there tonight."

Showalter on Pomeranz: "He had high fastball, little cutter, spun the ball when he need to, changed planes, things that made him successful and why they wanted him."

Hardy on the double play ball: "Dylan kept us close right in the game, Darren came in and did what he was supposed to do and I just missed a routine double play ball. They go ahead and score three that inning. Falling behind like that with their bullpen is not ideal. I just missed it. I was ready for it, I knew Darren was going to get the ground ball and I just missed it."

Hardy on an unusual inning defensively for the team: "I can only really speak for myself. I think all the other stuff that happened was just, just off the glove, diving plays. They would have been great plays had we made them, but it just turned into ugly baseball after I didn't make that double play."

Hardy on whether it was deflating: "Yeah, I think when you feel like you get the ground ball you're looking for to end the inning, I think it's very deflating. It just kind of unraveled. And it all started with that routine double play."

Hardy on O'Day: "That's why he comes in in that situation, to get that ground ball. He did exactly what he was supposed to do and I just missed it."

Bundy on his outing: "Battling command really the whole game. I didn't have the fastball command very well, so I was using my changeup and slider some in those hitter's counts. I feel like I was 2-0 to a lot of guys tonight. Changeup, I was able to get some ground balls and double plays tonight."

Bundy on this start compared to opening day: "I don't know. I'm just happy to go six-plus innings and keep the game close and allow our hitters ... because one swing of the bat (and) we can come right back in that game. All I'm trying to do is keep our team in the game."

Bundy on whether it's important for him to show he can throw 106 pitches: "Absolutely. That's what a normal starter's got to do. Maybe even 120 pitches some days. That's my goal for this year is just to work up to that major league workload and keep improving every start."

Bundy on whether it was odd to see defense unravel: "Yeah, you can say that, but I mean, it's baseball. It happens. Those guys are going to come out tomorrow and maybe make some spectacular plays. You never know. They play good defense all night. A hiccup here and there, that's OK, but they'll come back tomorrow ready to play."