Brock Holtwas named to the American League All-Star team a year ago. He represented the Red Sox well in the game, too, coming off the bench to steal a base and score a run.
Holt won’t be an All-Star this season, having played only 38 games because of a concussion that put him on the disabled list for six weeks. But his value to the Sox has not changed.
In a game chock full of hits, Holt had the biggest one on Monday afternoon. His two-run homer in the third inning gave the Red Sox the lead and eventually a 12-5 victory against the Texas Rangers.
Down 4-0 in the first inning, the Sox responded with a season-high 21 hits and won for the third time in four games. Thirteen of the hits were for extra bases, including home runs by Holt, Mookie Betts, Dustin Pedroia,and Travis Shaw.
Holt’s home run came with one out in the third inning off Nick Martinez. Holt lined a slider to right field and the ball hit the top of the low wall in front of the Red Sox bullpen and bounced over.
Reliever Robbie Ross Jr. popped off the bench and deftly caught the ball in his hat before it hit the ground. He had to dodge around a security worker to make the play.
“I saw that later. Pretty sweet,’’ Holt said.
With the Sox up, 5-4, in the top of the fourth inning, Shin-Soo Choo doubled for Texas. He tried to score when Ian Desmond singled to left field, but Holt made a strong, accurate throw and catcher Sandy Leon tagged Choo to end the inning.
It’s not happenstance that the 45-37 Sox are 24-9 with Holt in the lineup this season.
“He’s a smart player all the way around,’’ manager John Farrell said.
The concussion was Holt’s second in a span of 20 months and the team was understandably cautious in bringing him back because of lingering symptoms. He is 5 of 13 in three games since with three extra-base hits, three RBIs, five runs, and two outfield assists.
The Sox won all three of the games.
“I don’t know that I’m surprised. I wish [the symptoms] wouldn’t have lasted as long. I’m still working through some stuff,’’ Holt said. “I felt good in my rehab games and the next step was coming here.’’
The bottom third of the order — Holt, Shaw and Leon — contributed eight hits and four RBIs.
Leon was 4 for 5 with three doubles. He is 20 of 40 with nine extra-base hits and nine RBIs, remarkable for a player who came into this season with six extra-base hits and eight RBIs in 75 previous major league games.
“When you can score from any point in the lineup, it’s going to make a good team great,’’ Betts said.
Sox starter Rick Porcello allowed four runs in the first inning. With a runner on second and two outs, he gave up four consecutive singles. But the righthander locked down the Rangers from there and went six innings.
“That’s the last thing I want to do is go out there and give up four runs,’’ Porcello said. “But with the guys that we have swinging the bats, if you hold it there you have a chance.’’
The Red Sox scored in three innings while Porcello was on the mound and, each time, he came back in the top of the next inning and kept the Rangers off the scoreboard.
“That’s such a huge shift to maintain momentum on our side,’’ Farrell said.
With only three relievers available in the bullpen, Porcello was going to throw 100 pitches regardless. That he lasted six innings won Farrell’s admiration.
“He’s a tremendous competitor,’’ the manager said.
On a hot day when Fenway Park played small — there were 37 hits in the game — Porcello judged himself by the final score, not how he got there.
“At the end of the day, whatever the numbers are, I’m working my butt off to get us a win,’’ he said. “There’s times when you’re facing a good-hitting lineup, summer time at Fenway Park, you’ve just got to go out there and grind through it and get the outs and look to win ballgames.’’
Porcello (10-2) is the fourth pitcher in the majors to give up 12 hits and still earn a win this season. Teammate Sean O’Sullivan pulled that off on May 10 against Oakland, a game the Sox won, 13-5.
With the Sox up, 9-4, in the eighth inning, Koji Uehara allowed a home run by Rougned Odor. When Elvis Andrus doubled, Farrell went to Ross.
With his hat on his head this time, Ross retired five of the six batters he faced.
Since an embarrassing 21-1 loss against the Angels on Saturday, the Sox have scored 22 runs on 37 hits. Now they have David Price on the mound Tuesday night with a chance to win a series against the team with the best record in the American League.
“Nobody panics in our dugout,’’ Betts said. “We know our offense can make up for a lot of things in a hurry.’’
Peter Abraham can be reached at pabraham@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @PeteAbe.
