It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish it.

And in the case of the Red Sox on Monday night, the evening began on the high note of Jarren Duran’s leadoff home run, and was all downhill from there.

At the bottom, a loss the likes of which had only happened once previously in Major League Baseball Major in the last 105 seasons.

Boston had chances all night long, at least one baserunner in nine of 10 innings, but its clutch factor was M.I.A. and in the bottom of the 10th, it was the Phillies who triumphed, albeit in one of the most bizarre endings baseball has seen in a long time:

A walk-off on bases-loaded catcher’s interference by rookie Carlos Narváez, determined on a replay review.

Phillies win, 3-2.

According to the Red Sox and Elias Sports, the only other instance of a catcher’s interference walk-off in all of Major League Baseball since 1920 was Aug. 1, 1971 between the Dodgers and Reds. Hall of Famer Johnny Bench was the catcher in question.

“That’s the rule,” manager Alex Cora told reporters.

What a waste of one of Walker Buehler’s best starts of the season.

Trouble typically finds the right-hander in the first or fourth inning this year – opponents entered Monday hitting .338 with a 1.048 OPS and .373 with a 1.180 OPS, respectively, in the first and fourth – and it was the case Monday, too. The Phillies tied and took a 2-1 lead on three consecutive one-out hits off Buehler in the fourth.

Able to rebound from the damage, Buehler exited on a high note. He retired all but one of his last 12 batters, including the final seven in a row. In total: two runs (one earned) on six hits, one walk, and four strikeouts. For the third time this year, and first time since June 11, he completed seven innings. By earned runs, it was his stingiest showing since May 20 and his fourth time yielding no more than one.

“The stuff was really good,” said Cora. “That was a great outing against a good offensive club … that was tremendous.”

Buehler outlasted one of the National League’s most consistent starters of the last half-decade; since the start of the ‘21 season, only Logan Webb has more outings of at least 6.1 innings (64) than Zack Wheeler (63). In such starts, Wheeler’s 1,000 strikeouts outpaced all NL arms by a margin of 91, at minimum.

Initially it seemed as though the Red Sox would chase Wheeler from the game early, when Duran took the Phillies ace deep to lead off the game and Boston collected several hits.

But after that leadoff bang, the Red Sox whimpered through the next four innings. They tied the game on Trevor Story’s RBI single in the sixth, but did no further damage.

Wheeler exited after six innings, charged with two earned runs on seven hits, with zero walks and 10 strikeouts. According to MLB’s Sarah Langs, it was his fifth start with double-digit strikeouts and no walks, the highest single-season total by a Phillies pitcher in at least the last 125 seasons.

“We had our chances, we didn’t cash in. But shoot, that guy, he’s one of the best if not the best in the big leagues,” Cora said of Wheeler.

Having bailed Wheeler out of nearly every jam they created, the Red Sox extended the same courtesy to relievers Tanner Banks, Orion Kerkering, old friend Matt Strahm (‘22 Red Sox) and Max Lazar. All told, Boston struck out a season-high 16 times, and went 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position and eight men left on base.

In a high-stakes eighth inning, Aroldis Chapman worked around Edmundo Sosa’s pinch-hit leadoff single from the No. 9 spot. The lineup turnover couldn’t rattle the 37-year-old All-Star, who got Trea Turner to line out and Kyle Schwarber to fly out, both to Duran in left. Sosa advanced to second on a wild pitch, only to watch as Chapman blew Bryce Harper away with a 99.9 mph sinker.

Garrett Whitlock dominated the ninth inning, needed 13 pitches (11 for strikes) to punch out the side.

In the 10th, the Red Sox, already 0-6 in extra-inning contests on the road this season, failed to bring home the automatic runner.

Each wasted opportunity taunted Boston as Jordan Hicks loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning on a walk, wild pitch, and intentional walk.

A loss seemed inevitable, but no one could have predicted exactly how it was about to play out. With the diamond full, Sosa swung. Upon review, the crew chief announced catcher’s interference on Narváez, ruling that the rookie’s mitt made contact with Sosa’s swing.

Sosa was awarded first base, but it was a mere formality.

Game over.

The Red Sox are 1-3 since the All-Star break. This season, they’re 0-7 in extras on the road and their seven catcher’s interference leads the majors.

They took issue with Monday’s unhappy ending, though.

“So late,” Narváez told reporters of Sosa’s swing. “I had the ball, then I felt the contact. Really weird.”

“The ball is already in his glove,” echoed Hicks, “so I don’t understand the call.”

No surgery for Houck

Tanner Houck has been shut down indefinitely, but doesn’t need surgery at the present, Cora announced Monday.

Houck’s rehab assignment was due to expire last week, but rather than activate or option the right-hander, the Red Sox returned him to the injured list.