Indians - and fans - let Beckett have it at Fenway

When Josh Beckett mercifully made his exit Thursday night, it wasn’t the boos that were most noticeable.

It was the fan immediately behind the Red Sox’ dugout, swinging his arms as if he were swinging a golf club.

The fact that Beckett spent an off day playing golf when he was presumably resting a strained latissimus muscle had struck the same sore spot as the chicken-and-beer situation from the Sox’ meltdown last September, particularly with the Sox returning home from Kansas City having dropped two of three to the team with the worst home record in baseball.

There was resentment in the crowd, and they aimed it at Beckett.

Ten days had passed between his starts and despite the rest, Beckett lasted just 2 1/3 innings, his shortest start in four years, and he was roughed up for seven runs on seven hits.

“Maybe it was a little too much time off,’’ Sox manager Bobby Valentine acknowledged.

The 8-3 loss was the eighth in nine games for the Sox, and it dropped them to 12-19.

When his day was done, Beckett walked off the mound looking like the guy who was too ashamed to sign his scorecard.

The Indians teed off on him.

Jack Hannahan smacked a two-run homer in the second, his third of the season. Jason Kipnis followed with a leadoff bomb in the third, his sixth.

The Sox, who were already leading the league in homers allowed in their own ballpark, upped the total to 28. They gave up 77 last year.

Michael Brantley, who had just three hits in his previous five games, went 4 for 5, roping a pair of doubles. The four hits tied a career high.

Derek Lowe went six solid innings for the Indians, giving up nine hits but just two runs, his ERA when he left a stingy 2.47.

After tossing a clean first inning, Beckett allowed three runs in the second and four more in the third.

The Sox were desperate for a strong start.

Beckett offered little, struggling to execute two-strike pitches and paying for it.

“I’m not a big fan of making excuses, but I know when you have layoffs sometimes you’re not as crisp as you like to be,’’ said catcher Kelly Shoppach. “I’m sure he felt confident going into the game and we did too. That happens. Sometimes you don’t execute and they took advantage of pitches out over the plate.’’

Beckett threw only 56 pitches. The last start in which he got as few as seven outs was Aug. 17, 2008, when he gave up eight earned runs on eight hits to the Blue Jays.