Held hitless for six innings in a 2-0 loss in Game 1, the Rays came out swinging _ and connecting _ against a postseason ace who has struggled this October.

Longoria hit a two-run homer in the first inning. Upton launched a solo shot in the third and Crawford put the AL East champions ahead with an RBI single that drove in Longoria, who had doubled off the left-field wall.

Upton continued his recent power surge. After hitting nine homers in 531 at-bats during the regular season, he's connected four times in 24 at-bats during the playoffs.

Jason Bay had a two-run double in the Boston first. Dustin Pedroia's solo homer off Scott Kazmir gave the Red Sox a 3-2 lead in the third.

Longoria, the All-Star rookie third baseman who homered twice in his playoff debut against the Chicago White Sox, snapped an 0-for-13 drought with third homer of the postseason.

Beckett began the night 3-0 with a 2.70 in league championship series play, with one of the wins coming for Florida in the 2003 NLCS. He was 6-2 overall in postseason and had won five consecutive decisions since the Marlins lost to the Yankees in Game 3 of the 2003 World Series.

On the other hand, he also was coming off the shortest playoff start of his career _ five innings _ against the Los Angeles Angels in Game 3 of this year's ALDS. He allowed four runs on a postseason career-high nine hits and walked four, departing with the score tied at 4.

There was action in the Boston bullpen in the third inning, which Beckett ended by picking off Crawford at first base.

High pitch counts have been a problem for Kazmir throughout his career. He led the majors in pitches per inning (18.1) for the third straight season and also struggled early in Game 2 of Tampa Bay's first-round playoff series against the White Sox.

The hard-throwing lefty gave up two runs during a 37-pitch first inning in the ALDS and threw 38 in the first inning Saturday night, with the Red Sox doing all their damage after Kazmir struck out Jacoby Ellsbury and Pedroia flied out to start the game.

David Ortiz walked on a 3-2 pitch, Kevin Youkilis singled and both scored when Bay doubled off the wall on another full-count pitch. Kazmir walked the next batter, Jed Lowrie, before striking out Jason Varitek to end the inning.

Longoria became the second player in major league history to homer in his first two postseason at-bats in Game 1 of the ALDS, however he had gone 1-for-16 with eight strikeouts since finishing that game with three hits.

After Boston's 2-0 victory in Game 1 Friday night, Ortiz said the Rays had different looks on their face than during the regular season, suggesting they may have been feeling the pressure of being in the ALCS for the first time.

"I agree with him," Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon said before Game 2.

"For the first time yesterday, I thought we were impacted a little bit by the event. I'd like to think we'll get beyond that today," Maddon said, noting that it was most evident in the way his young team chased pitches from Daisuke Matsuzaka in the opener.

"First game of the LCS, the place was kind of buzzing. and in spite of all the preaching, the attempts to stay within the same parameters, I thought yesterday we just got away from ourselves a little bit. ... We didn't play the same game."

The manager was fine with the team's defense and felt right-hander James Shields and the bullpen were "magnificent" in limiting the Red Sox to two runs.

"But overall, offensively, I didn't think we were our normal selves at the plate," Maddon said. "I would like to think we learned a lesson and can move on."

The series shifts to Fenway Park for Game 3 Monday, with left-hander Jon Lester pitching for Boston and right-hander Matt Garza taking the ball for Tampa Bay.

Basketball Hall of Famer Dick Vitale, a Rays season ticket holder since the club's inaugural season in 1998, threw out the ceremonial first pitch.