01:00 AM EDT on Wednesday, May 18, 2005

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

OAKLAND -- In the series opener here Monday night, the Red Sox did too little with a lot of chances, stranding a season-high 13 baserunners. Last night -- with significant help from the Oakland A's -- they did a lot with a little.

The Sox managed just four hits last night, but aided by 11 walks and three errors by the A's, came back to sneak away with a 7-5 victory at McAfee Coliseum.

"Sometimes," said starting pitcher Matt Clement, "that's how the game works."

Two innings after leaving and watching from the dugout as Matt Mantei turned a 3-3 tie into a 5-3 advantage for Oakland, Clement was taken off the hook as the Sox scored four times in the eighth.

That was when the struggling A's -- 2-12 in their last 14 -- had their pen implode and its defense collapse. Edgar Renteria had the big hit in the eighth -- a sharp single with the bases full.

A's reliever Juan Cruz, who had already thrown two hitless innings, melted in the eighth, walking the bases full by issuing passes to Jason Varitek, Bill Mueller and Jay Payton.

Ricardo Rincon came on to turn Mark Bellhorn around righthanded and struck him out for the first out. Rincon did his job against Johnny Damon, too, getting Damon to ground to first. But Scott Hatteberg attempted to lead Rincon with a throw that was short, and Damon reached as Varitek crossed the place.

Huston Street entered and Edgar Renteria greeted him with a bullet to right. Right fielder Eric Byrnes allowed the ball to roll past him to the wall, and by the team center fielder Mark Kotsay tracked down the ball, the bases had cleared and Renteria stood on third with a single, advancing two bases on the costly error.

"He threw me a fastball on the first pitch," said Renteria. "I tried to hit a flyball to tie the game."

The game-winner doubtless will boost Renteria' confidence, which has been shaken by an inconsistent first six weeks in a new city and new league.

"'I feel better," said Renteria. "It's just going to take some time."

Alan Embree, the third of five Red Sox pitchers, picked up the win. It was his first win in just over a year, dating back to May 14, 2004.

"With our offense," said the lefty, "if you keep them within a run or two, you know (the hitters) have a chance to pick us up."

Clement retired the first two Oakland hitters in the sixth, with his pitch count nearing 100. But he allowed back-to-back single to Matt Watson -- Monday night's rookie hero -- and Marco Scutaro, bringing Terry Francona out of the dugout for a pitching change.

Matt Mantei, who had not been scored upon in his previous 10 outings and had allowed only one of five inherited runners to score against him this year, yielded a hard liner up the middle to Byrnes, scoring Watson, and a follow-up single to Kotsay.

In four of his previous five outings, Clement had walked just one hitter, but last night, his command deserted him at times, and in the fifth inning, proved particularly costly.

Byrnes got things going with a one-out single to center, and Clement then filled the bases by walking the next two hitters -- Kotsay and Jason Kendall -- in succession.

Eric Chavez rolled over on a slider as Byrnes scored and Kotsay and Kendall moved up one base each. Clement was an out away from getting out of the jam, but Hatteberg lined a hard single to right, plating Kotsay.

But Jay Payton, charging hard in right field, fielded the ball and threw a strike to Jason Varitek, who applied the swipe tag to Kendall, preserving the tie.

Nursing a 2-1 lead in the fifth, the Sox had added on. Issuing his seventh and final walk of the night, Zito put Renteria on base to open the inning. David Ortiz hammered a double to right, and when Byrnes' throw went to the plate in a futile effort to nab Renteria, Ortiz alertly took the extra base, belly-flopping into third.

Ortiz, however, wasn't so alert a minute later when he inexplicably broke for the plate on Manny Ramirez' routine grounder to short. Scutaro ran him back and Chavez slapped on the tag as he unsuccessfully tried to beat the throw.

Oakland starter Barry Zito walked seven, setting a career high, though he gave up just three hits in five innings.

"We didn't knock the cover off the ball," said Francona. "But we made him work, had a lot of good at bats and got some baserunners."

Taking early advantage of Zito's wildness, the Sox pushed two runs across in the first with the benefit of just one hit.

Damon worked a walk and motored to third when Renteria drove a double off the wall in left.

A groundout to second by Ortiz plated Damon and moved Renteria to third, from where he scored on Ramirez' sacrifice fly to left.