But DiNardo did something against the Sox that he was never able to do for them in seven career starts. The 27-year-old lefthander held them scoreless, and when four Oakland relievers did the same, he conquered Matsuzaka and the Red Sox, 2-0, before a crowd of 31,127 in McAfee Coliseum.
The Sox hit into more double plays (5) than they had hits (3), which offset the six walks DiNardo issued in six innings. All three Sox hits were singles, by Julio Lugo in the first, David Ortiz in the sixth, and Mike Lowell (off reliever Kiki Calero) in the seventh.
The last double play was the weirdest, rookie Dustin Pedroia, who had been hit by a pitch, dropping to the ground to avoid a hunk of Ortiz's bat that went airborne when the Sox DH lined softly to third baseman Eric Chavez in the eighth. Pedroia was still prone when Chavez flipped to first baseman Nick Swisher to double him up.
"He took a step, the bat came flying by," manager Terry Francona said. "He lost the ball and fell. That's the kind of night it was."
Matsuzaka, meanwhile, lost his second straight start after winning his previous six decisions. He threw 130 pitches in seven innings, the most damaging an 0-and-2 fastball that Chavez clocked for an opposite-field home run for the game's first run in the fourth. Chavez had sent the Sox to defeat the night before with an 11th-inning walkoff home run off Kyle Snyder.
"Tek [Jason Varitek] called for a fastball high and inside," Matsuzaka said through translator Masa Hoshino. "I left it high and over the plate. That was my own mistake. That was a preventable home run."
Oakland's other run came in the fifth, when Nick Swisher's two-out double into the left-field corner scored Jason Kendall, who had walked.
The Sox have lost five of their last six games, their lead in the American League East less than double digits for the first time since May 17. They lead second-place Toronto by nine games after losing for the sixth straight time in McAfee.
"The Red Sox are a team that doesn't lose many games often," Matsuzaka said. "I felt a sense of urgency to stop the losing skid.
