Porcello after loss: 'You have to keep fighting'

BOSTON -- The Red Sox had preserved Fenway Park as the only American League ballpark in which Angels' slugger Mike Trout had not hit a home run.

Until Saturday.

After striking out Trout in the first inning and getting him to ground out in the third, starting pitcher Rick Porcello delivered an 89.5 mph two-seam fastball with a runner on in the sixth. Trout crushed the first pitch 428 feet over the Green Monster, according to Statcast, ending the Red Sox’s homerless bid against him at his 90th career at-bat at Fenway.

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"Honestly, the worst part about that is that was the best hitter, and that was the worst pitch I threw the entire day,” Porcello said. “And that's what happens.”

The Red Sox fell into a 5-1 hole on Trout’s 39th homer, and they dropped to 3-46 on the season when trailing after six innings in their 12-4 loss.

“He was going to hit one before his career was over here,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said.

Home runs spelled trouble for Porcello (10-9) over his five frames. He surrendered a two-strike, three-run homer to Justin Upton in the first inning off a 92.8 mph four-seam fastball. Porcello settled in to retire 14 straight batters after Upton’s home run before allowing a lead-off single to Kole Calhoun in the sixth, which preceded Trout’s blast. All five of the runs he allowed over his 75 pitches were scored off shots that flew out of the park.

“It’s one of those that, as everybody knows, he found his stride and he goes through the lineup and they make him pay,” Cora said, adding, “It’s a tough one because the pitch count is down and just two swings, they get five runs.”

Porcello has given up at least one home run (13 total) in his last eight starts, dating back to June 29 against the Yankees in London. His 25 allowed this season are tied for eight-most in Major League Baseball.

“Pitches that are not well-executed, that’s the biggest thing,” Porcello said. “Giving guys the opportunity to get the bat on the ball. Everybody’s hitting homers now, and you’ve got to be precise and efficient with everything that you throw because it’s damage when you’re in another part of the plate.”

Porcello's ERA rose to 5.67 after the loss. He has never finished a season in his 11-year career with an ERA above 5.00, his highest being 4.92 in both 2010 and '15. Last year, he posted a 4.28 ERA in the regular season and 3.52 in the playoffs en route to winning the World Series.

“I don’t think there’s any doubt through my career I’ve been battle-tested with some tough stretches. To me, this is no different,” Porcello said. “This is lasting a lot longer than I would like. But the fight and inner confidence that I have is not going to go away regardless of the what happens. …

“You get knocked down a bunch. Last year, it was a dream season. This year, getting punched in the face every fifth day and it is what it is. Keep making adjustments and keep grinding. Nobody’s going to feel sorry for you, so you have to keep fighting and that’s what I plan on doing.”

After Porcello’s two home runs on Saturday, the Red Sox have allowed multiple home runs in 10 of their last 14 games.

“A few pitches that he didn’t execute today, they went out of the ballpark,” Cora said. “We’ll keep working. We’ll keep going. There were some positives, but obviously at the end, we need results as a team.”