Here’s the Red Sox lineup as they try to avoid second 5-game losing streak of season Wednesday

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TORONTO — The Red Sox, even with all their early-season struggles, have lost five games in a row just once, in Cincinnati and Houston on their season-opening road trip months ago. They’ll try to avoid doing so again Wednesday night against the Blue Jays.

Boston will use the same lineup — with Masataka Yoshida leading off, Adley Rutschman hitting third and Wilyer Abreu in the No. 5 spot — as it did in Tuesday’s 5-3 loss, which was Rutschman’s club debut. Nick Sogard is the starter at second base and hitting ninth.


Yoshida is leading off for the second straight night and 10th time all season, replacing Sogard, who had hit first nine times in 11 games. Interim manager Chad Tracy made the switch once Rutschman took over the No. 3 spot Tuesday and Abreu was moved to fifth in the order.

“When you look at the quality of his at-bats that he has had over the course of the last month and you start looking at moving Abreu down for Rutschman, it’s like, ‘Let’s just get (Yoshida) up there at the top,’” Tracy explained. “He takes good at-bats, he doesn’t swing at balls a lot and finds his way on base. You stack those five or six guys up there at the top, I just like the look of it, particularly against right-handed pitching.”

Boston’s offense will face a tough customer in righty José Soriano, who has a 3.24 ERA in 127 ⅔ innings and will make his second start with Toronto since coming over in a deadline deal with the Angels. The Red Sox will send lefty Ranger Suarez to the mound for the fourth time since the All-Star break.


Suarez has thrown fewer than five innings in his last four starts, including a July 5 outing in which he left his outing in Anaheim early because of a groin injury. He had one of his worst outings of the year last time out against the White Sox, when he allowed four runs (three earned) on three hits and two walks in just three innings. He has a 5.65 ERA in a limited 14 ⅓-inning sample over his last four starts and hasn’t thrown more than 70 pitches.

The Red Sox also made a pregame roster move as they continue shuffling their bullpen. Lefty Alec Gamboa was called up from Triple-A and righty Seth Martinez was designated for assignment after just one outing.

First pitch is at 7:07 p.m. ET.

BOSTON RED SOX (64-55) vs. TORONTO BLUE JAYS (58-63) · ROGERS CENTRE · TORONTO, ON · GAME 120

FIRST PITCH: 7:07 p.m. ET

TV CHANNEL: NESN

RADIO: WEEI 93.7 FM

PITCHING PROBABLES: LHP Ranger Suarez (4-3, 3.32 ERA) vs. RHP José Soriano (9-6, 3.24 ERA)

RED SOX LINEUP:

1. Masataka Yoshida DH
2. Ceddanne Rafaela CF
3. Adley Rutschman C
4. Willson Contreras 1B
5. Wilyer Abreu RF
6. Caleb Durbin 3B
7. Jarren Duran LF
8. Andruw Monasterio SS
9. Nick Sogard 2B

BLUE JAYS LINEUP:

1. Charles McAdoo 3B
2. Brett Bateman RF
3. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 1B
4. Alejandro Kirk C
5. Kazuma Okamoto DH
6. Andrés Giménez SS
7. Ernie Clement 2B
8. Jesús Sánchez LF
9. Myles Straw CF

More Red Sox coverage​

• Red Sox roster moves include another bullpen shuffle, reliever DFA after one outing
• Red Sox trade outfield prospect to Orioles as player to be named later in Adley Rutschman deal
• Meet new Red Sox prospect from Marcelo Mayer trade who has .384 OBP, 28 steals, ‘very happy’ sister
• Fenway Insider: Submit questions for MassLive’s Sean McAdam
• Red Sox’ Chad Tracy explains leaving Patrick Sandoval in game, questionable bullpen decision in loss

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