Red Sox 7, Rays 4: Shane Victorino went 4-for-4 with two RBIs and John Lackey worked eight strong innings as Boston took the series opener from visiting Tampa Bay.

Jackie Bradley Jr. doubled in two runs and scored once and Will Middlebrooks added an RBI and a run scored for the Red Sox, who have won three of four. Lackey (4-2) struck out five and allowed two runs on six hits and one walk in his second straight eight-inning stint before Koji Uehara got the final out of the ninth to clean up a mess and pick up his sixth save.

Erik Bedard worked the first five innings for the Rays and surrendered one run on four hits and three walks before Brandon Gomes (1-1) and Juan Carlos Oviedo combined to yield five runs in the sixth as the game got away. Evan Longoria and Ryan Hanigan each drove in a run for the Rays.

Both teams missed opportunities to take the lead early before Victorino snapped a scoreless draw with a sacrifice fly in the fifth and Longoria came right back in the next half-inning with a sacrifice fly of his own to knot it back up. Gomes came on to start the sixth and walked the first two before getting a flyout and handing it off to Oviedo.

A.J. Pierzynski greeted the right-hander with a go-ahead RBI single to center and Middlebrooks followed with a double off the wall in left to score a run before Bradley’s double to center made it a 5-1 gap. Victorino’s ground-rule double to right scored Bradley and capped the rally.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Tampa Bay was playing its 1,000th game as the Rays. … Red Sox SS Xander Bogaerts went 0-for-3 with a walk to snap his 10-game hitting streak. … Yunel Escobar drove in a run in the ninth and Wil Myers scored twice for the Rays.