Reynolds hits No. 35 (Boston leads 4-2)

Mark Reynolds homered off Josh Beckett with two outs in the top of the second inning to give the Orioles a 1-0 lead. Reynolds pulled a 91 mph cutter to left field, easily clearing the Green Monster after Beckett got ahead, 0-2, in the count. Reynolds sat out two games after being drilled in the helmet by an Ervin Santana pitch Saturday night, but he's 6-for-11 in his last four. He's homered in three of those games and driven in seven runs. He won't get much love in the Most Valuable Oriole voting, but it's only fair to point out that Reynolds leads the team in homers (35), RBIs (83), walks (71) and runs scored (80). Yes, he also leads in strikeouts and errors, and he's batting .223. It's been a mixed bag with Reynolds. My hunch is that most fans would have taken 35 home runs from Reynolds if given that number back in December. The low average and high strikeout total were expected. It's the 30 errors, I believe, that have soured so many people on him. This is the 13th time that an Oriole has hit at least 35 homers in a season. Reynolds is the first since Albert Belle (37) in 1999. Update: Carl Crawford's two-out, two-run double in the fourth inning broke a 1-1 tie. Crawford also has tripled and scored a run. Tommy Hunter has allowed five hits. He needs to get the ball down. Update II: The Red Sox collected three straight two-out singles in the fifth, the last by David Ortiz, to extend their lead to 4-1. More two-out damage. It's been a season-long theme. Beckett has retired 10 in a row. The Orioles' only hit came on the Reynolds home run. Update III: Beckett retired 11 straight before Robert Andino singled with one out in the sixth, stole second and scored on J.J. Hardy's single. Red Sox 4, Orioles 2.