BOSTON — Nick Pivetta took the mound for the Red Sox, perhaps for the last time, as the energetic 31-year-old heads to free agency next offseason, 48 hours before the end of the regular season.

As expected, the possible ejection at Fenway Park at the start of the first of Boston’s last three games against the Tampa Bay Rays prompted a reaction from Pivetta, who spent four and a half years in Boston. Pivetta tipped his cap to the appreciative crowd at Fenway Park after handing the ball in the seventh inning, savoring the moment.

“For me, it’s my last start as a Red Sox,” Pivetta said after Boston’s 2-1 loss to Tampa Bay. “It’s been a proud four, almost five years for me and there’s a lot to be grateful for. The opportunities that were given to me and I tried to take advantage of every single one of them. But I also got a lot of help. “There were a lot of people along the way that helped me, and a lot of them were in the dugout, and a lot of the coaching staff were in the dugout as well. So it’s really emotional for me.”

Pivetta added, “Boston has become a real home for me and my wife Kristen, and we really enjoy it and feel really comfortable here.”

The Red Sox got an excellent performance from Pivetta as the right-hander threw six consecutive shutout innings before giving up two runs in the seventh and finishing the night with 6 2/3 innings in which he allowed four hits and a walk with six strikeouts . Boston’s offense failed to support Pivetta with any kind of run production, scoring its only run until the bottom half of the seventh frame, although it didn’t spoil a sentimental finale for Pivetta in Boston.

“He likes it here,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “He likes the atmosphere, he likes to compete. Towards the end he sat in my seat (in the dugout) and said, ‘That’s a nice view.’ …He works so hard. We’re talking about it. And today he talked about the emotions, flashbacks and all that stuff.

Here are more notes from Friday night’s Rays-Red Sox game:

– The Red Sox acquired Pivetta from the Philadelphia Phillies in 2021 before their final postseason run, which ended in the American League Championship Series. Since then, Pivetta has developed into a reliable, versatile worker who can provide innings out of the rotation and the bullpen. He finishes 2024 with a 2.08 ERA in his last five starts at Fenway Park (31 1/3 innings).

“I think it’s just the accumulation of everything,” Pivetta explained. “There aren’t too many times where you’ve been given an opportunity like I have, and to be with a really great organization like the Red Sox, I’m very lucky and I’m very, very grateful for it.”

– Boston’s first five batters went a combined 2-for-19 with seven strikeouts, while No. 3 hitter Triston Casas recorded the team’s only extra-base hit (a double) in the bottom of the sixth inning.

– Opposing teams have held the Red Sox to one run or a scoreless point 31 times this season.

— Boston fell to an even record of 80-80 and 24-26 against division opponents this season, including 5-6 against Tampa Bay.

– The Red Sox and Rays return to their first-round game of the year on Saturday. First pitch at Fenway Park is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET, and you can watch the live action as well as a full hour of pregame coverage live on NESN.