Ellsbury breaks PawSox hit streak mark

Jacoby Ellsbury extended his hitting streak to a team-record 20 games Friday as the Pawtucket Red Sox beat the Buffalo Bisons, 7-4, to split their doubleheader.

Ellsbury led off the game by slapping a single up the middle and scoring on Jed Lowrie's double. He went 3-for-4 with an RBI, eclipsed the mark set by Dave Stapleton in 1979 and equaled by Dave Berg in 2005.

The 23-year-old left fielder is hitting .390 (32-for-82) during the streak, raising his average 25 points to .293.

Ellsbury singled, stole second and scored the tying run in the fifth on throwing errors by catcher Mike Rose and center fielder Brian Barton. Joe McEwing smacked a go-ahead single, Bobby Scales drew a bases-loaded walk and George Kottaras lifted a sacrifice fly to close the four-run inning for the Red Sox (63-69).

Brandon Moss smacked a solo shot, his 16th, in the third.

Pawtucket starter Devern Hansack (9-7) gave up four runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out four in 5 2/3 innings. Travis Hughes tossed a scoreless seventh for his 22nd save.

Mike Rose stroked a run-scoring double in the second before launching a solo homer, his fourth, in the fourth for the Bisons (70-62). Joe Inglett and Keith Ginter drove in Buffalo's other runs.

Reliever Adam Miller (4-4) gave up four runs -- two earned -- on four hits and a walk with two strikeouts in 1 1/3 innings. Starter Jeff Harris yielded three runs on four hits and two waks with three strikeouts in three frames.