This Pitch Trend Sparked Padres’ Major Rally [Video]

BOSTON — The Red Sox got four solid innings of work on the mound from Nick Pivetta and took the lead in the bottom of that frame to start the series against the San Diego Padres at Fenway Park on Friday night.

That success came to an end promptly in the fifth inning.

Pivetta’s stuff took a turn when he lacked the same feel for his sweeper in the fifth inning. The pitch got hit hard in the frame, notably on a go-ahead home run from Kyle Higashioka. The Red Sox starter allowed four straight and a walk before being lifted with nobody out. That marked a fast shift after allowing just three hits through four innings with four strikeouts.

“The sweeper didn’t perform in that inning,” Alex Cora told reporters. “… It wasn’t able to execute. Everything happened so fast.”

“It was dissatisfying,” Pivetta told reporters. “I left some hanging pitches in the middle of …