MIAMI _ This is what will haunt Trevor Richards from his first game in the major leagues: three balls hit toward third base that by the course of mere inches steered his fate toward defeat.
That was the consequence of a peculiar three-run rally by the Red Sox that began after two were out in the fourth inning Monday that bedeviled the Marlins' right-hander in a debut that until then was on a promising track. It ended in a 7-3 loss after he gave up five runs in 4 1/3 innings before a Fenwayesque gathering at Marlins Park.
Richards' fortunes began to swing when Xander Bogaerts coaxed a two-out single out of a dribbler along the third-base line that somehow rolled to a halt in fair territory.
Eduardo Nunez hit one considerably harder in the same direction that skipped high off the base and rolled into the corner in left for a double as Bogaerts scampered home with the tying run.
Then, after a walk to Jackie Bradley, Jr., Christian Vazquez ripped a liner that deflected off the glove of leaping third baseman Brian Anderson for another double that sent two more runners home.
Welcome to the big leagues, kid.
The lesson took a harsher turn in the fourth when Richards hung a 1-1 slider to Hanley Ramirez, and the former Marlin cranked it into the visitors' bullpen in left for a two-run homer that left Richards in a 5-1 deficit.
It wasn't the sort of scrapbook memory Richards wanted to make in front of about 25 family members who traveled from out of state to Little Havana to share with him, as well as with Big Papi Ortiz, Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada watching from the second row.
Richards was handed a 1-0 lead on fellow rookie Anderson's first career homer, an opposite-field shot into the right-field seats leading off the bottom of the second.
Anderson showed the ability to drive the ball the opposite way during spring training and during the first week of the season. His three-run double through the gap in right-center was the crowning blow of Sunday's 6-0 win against the Cubs.
But Anderson missed a chance to add to the lead in the third with the bases loaded when he swung at first-pitch breaking ball and tapped weakly into a force out.
Richards was up against Brian Johnson, not to be confused with the forefront man for AC/DC.
This Johnson was a dual power source as a pitcher and DH at Florida, hitting 15 homers and helping the Gators reach a College World Series (2010). He won the John Olerud Award in 2012 as the best two-way player in college baseball.
Johnson got the better of this confrontation of young pitchers attempting establish themselves without contributing with the bat. The Red Sox lefty, in his seventh career start, held the Marlins to one run in six innings to earn his third big-league win.
Richards, 24, made a quick ascent through the Marlins system in two years after signing as an undrafted free agent out of independent Frontier League.
Control was a key to Richards' emergence Marlins Minor League Pitcher of the Year last year. He walked only 30 batters in 146 innings last season at two levels of the minors while striking out 158.
His fastball tops out at 92 mph, pedestrian by today's standards. It's all about how he locates it and how effectively he mixes in his slider and changeup to keep hitters off balance.
The right-hander, who grew up near St. Louis and played for Drury University in Springfield, Mo., has been likened in pitching style to Kyle Hendricks of the Cubs.
For a moment there was a hint of first-game jitters as Richards's first three pitches were balls. He recovered to get Mookie Betts on a popup. He struck out Andrew Benintendi on three pitches and got Ramirez on a grounder to complete the 1-2-3 inning on 11 pitches.
Although he only walked one, Richards' command wasn't spot-on. His pitch count began to climb, and the second time through the order the Red Sox showed how a good-hitting team can quickly turn sliver-thin margins into big results. He finished with 93 pitches, 55 for strikes, and eight hits allowed.
By comparison, the Marlins were unable to take advantage of Johnson when they had him in trouble. In addition to leaving the bases loaded in the third, they got the first two hitters on in the fourth and sixth, and failed to advance them in either inning.
