Bay knows struggles won't last long

Seattle (41-38) at Boston (48-31), 1:05 p.m. ET

John Barone / MLB.com

BOSTON -- Nearly two months ago, Jason Bay was given an opportunity to gush over his latest hot streak before the throng of media surrounding his locker.

The Red Sox left fielder had just hit his fourth home run in a span of five games, leading Boston to a victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. Asked to discuss the power surge, Bay cited the fortune of being able to clobber hittable pitches consistently.

One sentence later, he tempered that enthusiasm.

"It's not always going to be this way," Bay warned. "But I'll take it."

The struggles he foresaw earlier this season have finally found Boston's soft-spoken slugger, who is in the midst of a certified slump for the first time in his Red Sox career. Friday night's RBI double was just the third hit in 34 at-bats for Bay, who, despite the dip, still leads the American League with 70 RBIs.

But if Bay is troubled by his recent hitting woes, he's not showing it.

"I don't know that you can even tell," said manager Terry Francona, whose Red Sox will continue their weekend series against the Mariners on Saturday afternoon at Fenway Park.

"There's nothing different about him. When he's happy, he's never very loud. He's always the same. There's no less effort. He's just been missing a little bit in the last week, more so than in the past. But that'll change.

"He's had a tough time lately. It happens. Everybody goes through it. Hitters go through that. If I had an explanation, hitters wouldn't go through that. We all have ... it's frustrating. It's not a lot of fun. Then, all of a sudden, you get that feeling back and you're OK. It's hard to explain."

A return to form won't come without due diligence from Bay, who said he's done more pregame hitting work in recent days with the hope of putting his funk to rest.