After completing sweeps of their own in the past week of the Milwaukee Brewers and Kansas City Royals, the Boston Red Sox received a taste of their own medicine as the Oakland A’s finished off a sweep with a 6-3 win in front of 33,067 fans at McAfee Coliseum on Sunday afternoon. The loss for the Red Sox was their third in-a-row and 7th straight on the road.

Jon Lester returned to the hill 6 days removed from his no-hitter and had wanted things to return to “normal”. By normal, I really don’t think he meant not throwing first pitch strikes as he struggled with his command today and only threw 12-of-25 first pitch strikes. He ended up going 5 innings, allowing 4 runs (3 earned) on 7 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3.

Craig Hansen worked 1 2/3 innings giving up 2 hits and 1 run. Javy Lopez worked 1/3 of inning giving up a hit and a run. Mike Timlin worked the 8th allowing just a hit.

Manny Ramirez paced the Red Sox offense with a 3-for-4 night and 2 RBIs. It appears he has found the flaw in his swing. David Ortiz, Mike Lowell, J.D. Drew and Julio Lugo had the other hits for the Sox with Big Papi adding the other RBI.

After A’s starter Joe Blanton retired the first two batters to start the 1st inning, Big Papi connected on a fastball that he lined into the bleacher seats in right for a home run and 1-0 Sox lead. Manny followed that with the first of his 3 hits but was left stranded on first when Blanton struck out Lowell.

Lester’s bid for a second consecutive no-hitter ended on the first batter he faced as Jack Hannahan laced a single to left center. Bobby Crosby worked a walk but Lester rebounded to get Mike Sweeney to foul out and Frank Thomas to pop out. Emil Brown tied the game up with a RBI single to center. Lester finished off the bottom of the 1st with a strikeout of Jack Cust.

Hannahan led off the 3rd inning with a fly ball that Manny misjudged and had pop out of his glove for a 3-base error. Hannahan came around to score on a (Mike) Sweeney single to put the A’s up 2-1.

More struggles for Lester in the 4th inning as he walked the lead-off hitter Mark Ellis. Ryan Sweeney then singled and Kurt Suzuki followed that with an infield single to load the sacks full of A’s. Hannahan made it 4-1 A’s as his single scored Ellis and (Ryan) Sweeney.

The visiting nine battled back in the 5th as Blanton got a little wild. He walked Lugo, got Jacoby Ellsbury to fly out and then walked Dustin Pedroia and Big Papi. Manny singled scoring Lugo and Pedroia to cut the A’s lead to 4-3. Manny would again be left stranded on the bases as Blanton struck out Lowell and Kevin Youkilis to finish the inning.

Cust added two insurance runs when he took the first pitch he saw from Lopez in the 7th and planted it in the right field seats for a 2-run homer and 6-3 A’s lead.

The Red Sox managed two hits after the 6th inning against 4 A’s pitchers. Huston Street worked the 9th for his 11th save.

Bartolo Colon will make his second start for the Red Sox tomorrow night and look help them back to their winning ways against the struggling Seattle Mariners, who were just swept by the Yankees.

Notes and musings:

Red Sox @ A’s Box Score, May 25th

Tim Wakefield will be Charlie Moore’s guest tonight on NESN at 8 PM tonight as he makes appearance on Charlie Moore Outdoors.

Manny improved to 13-for-21 lifetime against Blanton.

Big Papi’s home run was his 236th a DH which moves him out of a tie with Harold Baines. He now trails Frank Thomas and Edgar Martinez.

The full interview with Jon Lester on ESPN’s Sunday Conversation will air during the 11 PM SportsCenter tonight.