Red Sox know it is time to step on gas

Confidence comes easily in a clubhouse filled with eight AllStars, two Cy Young winners and an MVP. Confidence comes naturally when you have a core that last year won 108 games — topped by only eight teams ever —and World Series rings.

But confidence can’t stretch the schedule.

Since teasing a long-awaited resurgence when they claimed the first three games of last weekend’s series against the Yankees by a combined score of 38-13, the third-place Red Sox are now in the midst of their longest losing streak in four years, and face their largest AL East deficit since 2015 — 11 ½ games behind their rivals, as well as four games back of the final AL wildcard spot — following their fifth straight loss, 4-2, Friday in The Bronx.

“You can’t look at the big picture. You can’t look at [the deficit] or other teams,” manager Alex Cora said. “I’ve been saying it all along, you have to take care of your business.”

After being swept in three games at home by the Rays, the Red Sox looked ready for their latest version of their biggest series of the season, as J.D. Martinez blasted a first-inning, two-run homer off James Paxton, who had been lit up for seven runs and nine hits at Fenway Park last Friday.

But that momentum — and lead — evaporated in minutes.

Eduardo Rodriguez opened the bottom of the first by allowing the first three runners to reach base — including a pair of walks — and then allowed a grand slam to Gleyber Torres to put Boston behind for good. The Red Sox had 24 more outs to work with, but produced just two more hits, failing to silence the standard “Boston sucks” chants, as their final seven hitters were retired.

“There’s a sense of urgency all the time now,” first baseman Mitch Moreland said before the game. “We know where we’re at. We know what we gotta do. We gotta win games.

“It’s nothing we can’t overcome. We’ve got time. We’ve got some games left. Obviously it’s getting down to crunch time, but we’ve got a good team and we can still do what we need to do.”

Boston still believes there is enough talent, enough time, enough belief that the final 51 games will look different than the previous 111. But just reaching the postseason could be nearly as challenging as last year’s playoff run.

“That experience is good to have, but at this point I don’t know how much that would kind of factor into it,” Moreland said. “I feel like just getting in our foot in the door, giving ourselves an opportunity, that’s where that’s gonna pay off the most, but we’ve gotta take care of business right now and give ourselves that chance.

“We’ve got some ground to make up and we know it. We’ve gotta take care of that part first.”