ALCS Game 5 score: Red Sox vs. Astros updates and news – The Boston Globe

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Globe writer Julian McWilliams will be offering live commentary throughout the game. Follow along below, and click here to refresh.

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That was the Sox’ first run since the first inning yesterday — 7:36 p.m.

They’re still down 7-1 in the top of the eighth.

Rafael Devers finally gets the Sox on the board — 7:34 p.m.

His solo home run stayed fair as it soared into the right field bleachers. It’s Devers’s fifth home run of the postseason.

Still, no one is warming in the Astros bullpen. Framber Valdez has thrown 70 pitches through that at-bat.

Inside the Kyle Schwarber’s defensive woes — 7:32 p.m.

The Red Sox have paid the price defensively this series, due in large part to Kyle Schwarber’s lack of experience at first base.

When the Red Sox acquired him at the deadline, Schwarber had never played first base.

Schwarber’s error in the sixth proved costly. Then, in the seventh, the ball that got under his glove on Hansel Robles’s pickoff attempt was one Schwarber should have had (though it was ruled an error on Robles).

First baseman Bobby Dalbec hasn’t played much during this playoffs with Cora electing to go with offense over defense. Dalbec’s last start was Game 1 of the ALDS. Nevertheless, Schwarber is 0 for 3 so far this game and is batting just .150 during the playoffs.

An incredible stat — 7:27 p.m.

The Astros have scored 21 of their 29 runs in this series with two outs — an ALCS record.

This has never happened to Alex Cora — 7:17 p.m.

Cora has never lost back-to-back games in a playoff series. He was 5-0 coming into tonight.

Hansel Robles takes the mound for the Sox — 7:15 p.m.

Ryan Brasier had a quick outing.

These Astros hitters are relentless — 7:06 p.m.

The Red Sox have been outscored 14-0 since the eighth inning last night. The Astros put up another five-run inning in the sixth, three of which came with two outs.

They have scored 38 runs with two outs this postseason. It’s part of what makes them the best offense in baseball. They are relentless.

It’s now 6-0 — 7:01 p.m.

Another for the Astros — 6:56 p.m.

Yuli Gurriel scores the Astros’ 37th run with two outs this postseason, putting Houston up 4-0.

And that’s it for Chris Sale — 6:48 p.m.

Yordan Alvarez hit another Astros runner in on the first pitch he saw from Sale in the sixth.

T6: Astros 3, Red Sox 0

Alvarez has made his mark against the Red Sox this game, driving in all three of their runs following that two-run double. But before that, a crucial walk to Jose Altuve to lead off the inning and then an error by Kyle Schwarber in the top of the sixth cost the Sox.

Sale is done. Alvarez had all three of the Astros’ hits.

Sale’s final line: 5 ⅓ innings, three hits, 4 runs (3 earned), 2 BBs, 7 Ks, 87 pitches, 55 for strikes.

Ryan Brasier is on the mound.

Bad error for Schwarber — 6:47 p.m.

Terrible error. Let’s see how this develops.

That was a missed opportunity for the Sox — 6:44 p.m.

Big missed opportunity by the Red Sox in the bottom of the fifth. They are now 0 for 11 with runners in scoring position, extending to last night’s contest. Hunter Renfroe continues to scuffle, grounding into a double play. Verdugo then grounded out to first to end it. That one hurt.

What will they do with Chris Sale? — 6:35 p.m.

An eight-pitch inning for Sale in that frame, which puts him at 79 on the game. Sale has completed six innings just once this year. It will be interesting to see what Cora does with Sale in the sixth.

With the way he’s pitching, you would have to imagine Cora gives a pitcher of his caliber a chance to go out there for the sixth and face the top of the order.

The Red Sox still haven’t put a ball in play 😬 — 6:25 p.m.

Framber Valdez is perfect through four innings. The Red Sox haven’t put a ball in play, and one hasn’t even left the infield. Nine ground-ball outs!

That was vintage Chris Sale — 6:21 p.m.

That was vintage Chris Sale. He buckled down after allowing a long single off the wall to Alvarez, then went with pure power in a way we haven’t seen since he came back from Tommy John surgery earlier this year.

He tossed just one slider out of the last eight pitches he threw. He struck out Correa on 96 miles per hour, then Tucker on 98. Perhaps this can get the Sox going.

Chris Sale escapes a jam and can’t hide his excitement — 6:15 p.m.

With runners on first and third, Chris Sale struck out Carlos Correa and Kyle Tucker back-to-back to get out of the fourth.

Behind the numbers on Valdez — 6:03 p.m.

With the exception of his four strikeouts, all of Valdez’s outs have come on the ground. The Red Sox haven’t figured him out yet.

An interesting approach from Sale — 5:53 p.m.

Interesting tidbit: Sale only threw Altuve one fastball in that at-bat to end the top of the third.

Sale tossed him seven sliders in that nine-pitch at-bat, including five straight.

The Sox can’t solve Valdez’s sinker — 5:45 p.m.

Valdez’s sinker is his go-to pitch, and so far the Red Sox haven’t been able to solve it or him.

He’s induced three ground outs and broken two bats on the sinker through two innings — one against Schwarber, then Devers. He plays his curveball off the sinker, and got Martinez to chase on that pitch for strike three and froze Hunter Renfroe on it, too.

What Chris Sale needs out of the Sox’ offense — 5:35 p.m.

The Red Sox have scored just two runs dating back to last night’s first inning, when Xander Bogaerts hit a two-run shot. Solo homers don’t hurt you. Sale responded well in that inning following Alvarez’s solo pop. It’s up to the offense now to pick up some slack.

Astros strike first again — 5:25 p.m.

That was not a bad pitch by Sale, just a quality swing by a powerful hitter in Yordan Alvarez. It’s his second homer of the postseason He came into today hitting .320 in the playoffs with a .480 slugging percentage.

What the Red Sox offense needs to do differently — 5:19 p.m.

The offense needs to be more effective in key moments. They were 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position, leaving 11 runners on base.

RED SOX: Hernández CF, Schwarber 1B, Bogaerts SS, Devers 3B, Martinez DH, Renfroe RF, Verdugo LF, Arroyo 2B, Vázquez C.

How Sale looked in the first — 5:17 p.m.

Sale needed nine pitches to get out of that one, topping out at 97 mph. He didn’t have his changeup in his last start, but seems as if he has it for now. He got Bregman to check-swing on his changeup before inducing a groundout.

What should we expect from Chris Sale? — 5:05 p.m.

The Sale of old is always a plus, but even before the injury, Sale was never really that good in the playoffs. He posted a 5.76 ERA prior to this year in the playoffs in seven games, four of which were starts. Sale has to just weather the storm and try to keep the game from blowing open early.

How the Astros have been against Chris Sale — 5:00 p.m.

Astros vs. Sale: Jose Altuve 8-24, Michael Brantley 8-41, Alex Bregman 1-6, Carlos Correa 4-19, Aledmys Díaz 1-3, Yuli Gurriel 3-8, Martín Maldonado 2-11

What is one good thing the Red Sox can take from last night? — 4:55 p.m.

The team used Garrett Whitlock for two innings but stayed away from Tanner Houck, who will likely be called on to eat some innings if Sale struggles.

The Sox lost their momentum. Can they recover? — 4:45 p.m.

Momentum in baseball is as good as the next day’s starter and Chris Sale hasn’t been good, so you could say momentum is on the Astros’ side — particularly with how they swung the bats in that ninth inning.

Sale lasted just 2 ⅔ innings in Game 1 and surrendered a run before manager Alex Cora pulled the plug. On the other side, the Red Sox will see Framber Valdez, who also ran into his share of trouble in his Game 1 start. Valdez went 2 ⅔ innings as well, giving up three runs.

Lineups — 4:25 p.m.

ASTROS: Altuve 2B, Brantley LF, Bregman 3B, Alvarez DH, Correa SS, Tucker RF, Gurriel 1B, Siri CF, Maldonado C.

Pitching: LHP Framber Valdez (11-6, 3.14 ERA)

RED SOX: Hernández CF, Schwarber 1B, Bogaerts SS, Devers 3B, Martinez DH, Renfroe RF, Verdugo LF, Arroyo 2B, Vázquez C.

Pitching: LHP Chris Sale (5-1, 3.16 ERA)

About last night — 4:20 p.m.

Yes, the umpiring hurt the Red Sox in the Game 4 loss. But plenty of blame is on their plate, too. Chad Finn dives in.

A lucky souvenir — 4:05 p.m.

At least one person had a good time near Fenway last night. An Allston man happened to be outside the park when Xander Bogaerts launched a home run all the way over the Green Monster seats. He watched the ball ricochet around Lansdowne Street before scooping it up.

“I said, ‘some guy’s gonna get lucky,” Espinal said, before recounting precisely how that guy turned out to be him. “It hit under a gate sign across the street on Lansdowne Street and bounced all the way back. It bounced pretty high onto the back side of the Green Monster. I had one chance to catch it.”

Read the full story here.

Today’s weather report — 3:55 p.m.

It’s warming up in the Boston area as the week continues. It will be around 65 degrees at first pitch, with lows expected into the 50s later on.

Julian McWilliams can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @byJulianMack. Katie McInerney can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @k8tmac.