Weather impacts Wright’s knuckleball movement

BOSTON — Whether it was the elements, the opponent or just an off night, Steven Wright had his most difficult outing of the season, as the Red Sox lost to the Astros, 7-6, at Fenway Park on Friday night, snapping their season-high five-game winning streak.

With a steady rain falling throughout the game and a 12-mph wind blowing out from the start, the knuckleballer lasted just 4 1/3 innings, his shortest outing since July 25, 2015, when he went the same distance in a loss to the Tigers at Fenway.

“A huge factor,” Wright said of the weather. “It got to the point where I couldn’t keep anything dry, which, you’re trying to throw a pitch with your fingertips, it makes it a little slippery, hard to get a finger pressure. But they swung at some good pitches to hit. The ball wasn’t moving as much because of the finger pressure issue. But we got a [four-run] lead, I feel like I got to be able to hold that, try to get a little bit deeper into the game and just turn it over to the bullpen.”

Wright gave up five runs on nine hits and two walks with three strikeouts. The five runs matched the total from his three previous starts, spanning 22 innings. His ERA rose from 1.52 — fourth-best in the Majors entering Friday’s game — …

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