Nate Robinson and Marquis Daniels carry the Celtics offensively in the fourth quarter, and Boston emerges with a four-point win over the Toronto Raptors in their TD Garden opener.

Robinson, Daniels, Delonte West and Shaquille O'Neal all finish in double figures for the Celtics, who win this one with a balanced team effort and a deep bench.

Fourth quarter, 41.2 seconds, Celtics 91-87: Delonte West with the huge block. Looks like the C's might pull this one out.

Fourth quarter, 1:21, Celtics 89-87: A thunderous dunk from Stephane Lasme, a big 3 from Nate Robinson, and the C's are back in front. These bench guys are making plays when it counts.

A Von Wafer free throw makes it a two-point lead. Jay Triano calls a timeout with 1:21 left and furiously goes to work scribbling X's and O's. Let's see if he's got a plan to pull this one out.

Fourth quarter, 2:55, Raptors 84-83: Andrea Bargnani has made two free throws to put the Raptors up one. The C's have called a timeout. Let's see what Doc has planned for these final three minutes. Can he teach these bench guys to get a couple clutch stops?

Fourth quarter, 4:27, Celtics 81-80: Sonny Weems breaks the silence, scoring the first points for either team in two-plus minutes, but Nate Robinson quickly answers with a bucket of his own.

Nate might be the key to the Celtics' game plan for the final four minutes. They need his offense to have a chance.

Fourth quarter, 5:50, Celtics 79-78: It really says a lot about the Celtics' depth that five guys from the back of their rotation can match the Raptors' starters blow for blow. Calderon, DeRozan and Bargnani remain on the floor for the Raps, fighting for this win like their lives depend on it, while Stephane Lasme and Luke Harangody battle them to a stalemate.

Knowing Doc, he probably won't bother to use his starters in crunch time for this one. The only real question is whether we see Von Wafer or Mario West tonight. If Doc doesn't use the two youngsters soon, there's a good chance he'll end up cutting them this week. Now's as good a time as any to throw them into the fire.

Fourth quarter, 7:22, Celtics 79-78: Ladies and gentlemen, Marquis Daniels has come alive. The Raptors insist on leaving Daniels wide open in the corner on every play, and Daniels is making them pay. He's scored seven straight points.

The Raps have called a timeout. They've got to make some adjustments to get out on the wing and slow down Daniels, who now has 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting.

Fourth quarter, 9:25, Raptors 74-70: The Raptors have their first lead of the game, and rather than fight back, Doc Rivers is digging deeper into his bench.

Stephane Lasme checks in for the first time, replacing Luke Harangody. The Celtics' starters seem comfortably settled into their seats on Doc's bench.

Fourth quarter, 11:20, 68-68: Not a good start to the Celtics' fourth quarter. Semih Erden gets whistled for two fouls in the span of 11 seconds, and Leandro Barbosa gets another wide-open corner 3 to tie the game.

We'll soon find out how much Doc Rivers cares about winning preseason games. If he wants to pull this one out, he'll give the Big Three plenty of run in crunch time. The youngsters really aren't playing well at the moment.

End of third quarter, Celtics 68-65: The Raptors get a huge five-point run from Leandro Barbosa in the final minute to stay within striking distance, but the C's maintain a three-point lead with one quarter to play.

Doc's got a bench unit of Nate Robinson, Delonte West, Marquis Daniels, Luke Harangody and Semih Erden on the floor.

We haven't heard a peep out of Von Wafer, Mario West or Stephane Lasme. That can't be a good sign for three youngsters fighting to make Doc Rivers' final cut. The D-League may be in their futures.

Third quarter, 2:36, Celtics 62-55: Doc is letting Rondo and the Big Three get an extended run in the third quarter. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he actually cared about winning this game.

Having the four stars out on the floor with Semih Erden is a really strong lineup — smart, unselfish, defense-first. If the two O'Neals continue to have problems this season with injuries and foul trouble, you might see this lineup a lot. Not a bad problem to have.

Third quarter, 5:56, Celtics 56-52: One big problem the Celtics need to fix before the regular season gets underway: Shaquille O'Neal's got to stop getting in foul trouble. The big fella has five fouls tonight in 16 minutes.

With Shaq sitting out and Jermaine O'Neal's minutes being closely monitored, it looks like we'll be seeing plenty more of Semih Erden tonight.

Third quarter, 8:03, Celtics 54-48: Jarrett Jack has dropped five consecutive points on the C's to keep this game close. Looks like Rajon Rondo fell asleep for a couple of possessions defensively.

Rondo's one of the best on-ball defenders in the game, but he's letting Jack outplay him in this third quarter. First he leaves him wide open for a corner 3 (swish), and then he leads him glide right by for a layup untouched.

It's only preseason. Rondo can flip the switch once the games start counting.

Third quarter, 10:31, Celtics 52-43: If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Shaquille O'Neal violently misses a dunk on the Celtics' first possession of the second half, but he comes back a minute later and throws down a monster one-hander off a lob from Rajon Rondo.

Diesel's got 11 points now to lead the Celtics. The Raptors don't really have an answer for him in their starting five — Andrea Bargnani is as soft a starting center as you can find in the NBA. Typical European perimeter guy.

Halftime, Celtics 46-39: The Celtics take a seven-point lead into the locker room thanks to a tremendously balanced effort. Ten C's have scored, none of them in double figures.

Kevin Garnett still leads the way for Boston with seven points; Shaquille O'Neal also has seven, while Ray Allen and Nate Robinson each add six.

The only man in double figures tonight is — yep, you guessed it. Sonny Weems. The Celtic-killer has 11.

Second quarter, 2:58, Celtics 38-29: What is it about Sonny Weems that gives the Celtics fits? The guy went off for 21 against them last April, and he's got eight points tonight on 4-of-7 shooting. Why can't they stop this guy?

The good news for the Celtics is that the rest of the Raptors combined are shooting 8-for-26, or 30.8 percent. If they could only figure out how to slow down a 24-year-old fringe D-Leaguer, they could push their lead back to double digits.

Second quarter, 5:09, Celtics 36-23: It's official — Boston still loves Nate Robinson.

Nate has hit a pair of 3s in the last minute and a half, opening the Celtics lead to a whopping 13. This second unit is scary when the little man gets hot — he can give the Celtics instant offense.

Doc's letting his starters get plenty of rest tonight.

Second quarter, 7:29, Celtics 28-19: Luke Harangody has four defensive rebounds in three minutes, and he nearly got a fifth bedorte tipping it to teammate Semih Erden.

The Celtics are on a 7-2 run since Harangody entered the game. That's no coincidence.

This kid is playing hard.

Second quarter, 9:04, Celtics 28-17: Glen Davis is on the C's bench, having taken a hard charge from Raptors big man David Andersen. Looks like he's got a bloody nose — he's holding a towel over his face and tilting his head back as he sits.

Luke Harangody is in the game for the C's in Big Baby's place. He's already made a nice hustle play to save a Celtic turnover.

Harangody's doing everything he can to earn a role on this team. Looks like he could fit as the 12th man off of Doc Rivers' bench.

Second quarter, 10:54, Celtics 21-17: Welcome to the block party. Jermaine O'Neal has already blocked three shots for the Celtics tonight; Andrea Bargnani and Amir Johnson have two blocks each for the Raptors.

J.O. comes out early in the second quarter, giving way to Semih Erden. Warm welcome from the Garden fans, who no doubt have recognized the fast start this fall from the Turkish rookie.

End of first quarter, Celtics 21-16: For the second time this preseason, we've witnessed the Celtics play a ridiculously good first quarter defensively. On Wednesday, they held the Sixers to only nine points; tonight the Raptors get 16.

Kevin Garnett leads all scorers so far with six points on 3-of-7 shooting; DeMar DeRozan has five points for the Raptors.

Solid first quarter for the C's, although the offensive execution could still stand to be a little smoother.

First quarter, 2:10, Celtics 20-14: This is probably a pretty good sneak preview of how the Celtics' rotation will look in the regular season. Ten minutes in, the C's are going with a lineup of Rajon Rondo and four backups.

The C's have a solid second unit with Delonte West and Nate Robinson as their reserve guards, but Rondo is too competitive and too stubborn to come out. The Celtics' All-Star point guard averaged 36.6 minutes per game last season.

The C's have the personnel to change that this year, but Rondo doesn't seem interested.

First quarter, 2:56, Celtics 18-14: The Celtics have a modest lead in this first quarter despite some rather sloppy play offensively. They've got six assists and six turnovers so far.

Jermaine O'Neal just flicked a bad pass to Rajon Rondo, who fell out of bounds trying to save it.

The C's are coming along nicely as a team this preseason, but crisp ball movement is definitely still one area they need to work on.

First quarter, 4:02, Celtics 16-10: Both Jermaine O'Neal and Delonte West have checked into the game for the first time. Both receive nice ovations from the Garden faithful.

I wonder how many of the fans here tonight remember Delonte from the good old days of the 2006-07 Celtics? That 58-loss season seems like eons ago. All the Celtic diehards of that era have been replaced by fairweather Big Three fans.

First quarter, 5:54, Celtics 16-8: You can tell the Celtics aren't taking these preseason games seriously — they keep trying silly alley-oops.

First Ray Allen lobbed one to Shaq a couple a minutes ago, and Shaq almost dropped it and then managed an off-balance layup. Then KG tried throwing up an alley-oop to Paul Pierce, and Pierce just missed completely.

The C's will get around to trying that whole "ball movement" thing once the regular season rolls around. At least I assume so.

First quarter, 7:35, Celtics 12-7: Ray Allen already has a pair of fast-break buckets. Ray's playing the part of Rajon Rondo, capitalizing on turnovers to run the break and get easy transition points.

Meanwhile, Rondo hasn't attempted a shot yet.

These are the Bizarro Celtics.

First quarter, 9:04, Celtics 6-5: The Celtics have an early lead, with KG, Shaq and Ray Allen each scoring once. But Bargnani has two blocks already, having stuffed a driving layup from KG.

The Raps are trying to turn the Celtics into jump shooters. Knowing this C's team, it doesn't seem too difficult.

First quarter, 10:57, Celtics 2-0: We're underway. After the two sides exchange turnovers to start the game, Kevin Garnett draws first blood with a long two.

The C's were stifled on their first play with Paul Pierce trying to drive the lane and Andrea Bargnani stuffing him. Bargnani's presence as a shot-blocking threat can't be ignored — it's the one bright spot on an otherwise dreadful defensive team.

6:05 p.m.: Jay Triano calls an audible — no Jose Calderon, no Linas Kleiza in tonight's lineup. Jarrett Jack and Sonny Weems get the start instead.

Astute Celtics fans might remember Weems as the guy who killed the C's in the final week of the regular season last year, going off for 21 points.

5:30 p.m.: Doc Rivers has announced that Shaquille O'Neal will start for the Celtics at center.

Jermaine O'Neal is getting over the hamstring injury that kept him out of action this week, but Doc wants to keep J.O. limited as he nears 100 percent. Expect to see the younger O'Neal come off the bench and spell the elder one.

Meanwhile Avery Bradley is nearing a return as well. Doc says that the C's first-round draft pick "could" play, but he doesn't look quite ready. Seeing the rookie guard make his debut sometime this week wouldn't be out of the question.

5 p.m.: Looks like Jose Calderon, DeMar DeRozan, Reggie Evans, Linas Kleiza and Andrea Bargnani will get the start this evening for Raptors head coach Jay Triano. Updates to come from Doc Rivers' corner shortly.

4 p.m.: Welcome to the TD Garden, where the C's are two hours away from tipping off their first true home game of the preseason.

We'll get some thoughts from head coaches Jay Triano and Doc Rivers momentarily, followed by lineups and eventually an opening tip. Get ready for some hoops.

9 a.m.: It's been nearly four months since the Celtics took the floor at the TD Garden. On Sunday night, the wait is over.

It won't quite have the glitz of Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Lakers, when the Celtics left Boston with a win on June 13. But the C's are finally back home, and they're taking on the Toronto Raptors in their first preseason game in Boston.

This is the beginning of a grueling preseason stretch for the Celtics — five games in five different cities over seven days.

The C's are 2-0 so far in this young preseason, but what lies ahead will be a challenge.

Beltre had an MRI, CT scan and X-rays taken at MGH earlier Sunday. Nothing popped up and he should be good to go, even if he is still a little sore from that dive he made Saturday night.

“He’ll probably play tomorrow,” Terry Francona said.

If and when Beltre is back in there Monday night he will be facing Brian Matusz, the Orioles’ young lefty who has owned the Sox this season. Matusz will be opposed by Daisuke Matsuzaka as Boston and Baltimore open a three-game set at 7:10 p.m.

Final, Red Sox 6-0: Jon Lester is the story in this one. He wins his fifth straight game with seven scoreless against a team that hammered him the last time they met.

We’ll go hear from Lester and others and come back to wrap this one up for you.

End 8th, Red Sox 6-0: It is getaway day for the Blue Jays so expect some early swings off Robert Coello, who is jogging in to try to finish this one off.

Mid 8th, Red Sox 6-0: The Blue Jays have had a home run in 19 straight games and an extra-base hit in 25 in a row. They have only five singles in this one.

End 7th, Red Sox 6-0: It will be Scott Atchison to take over for Jon Lester, who yielded just four singles in another great outing. The Jays had him on the ropes in two innings but he got out of those jams and had few other issues.

Josh Reddick has replaced J.D. Drew in right.

Mid 7th, Red Sox 6-0: You cannot blame Jon Lester for taking a few steps off the mound after a pitch to Mike McCoy that was called a ball for some unknown reason. Home plate umpire Greg Gibson just didn’t see that one right. Should’ve been strike three and the third out.

McCoy eventually walked but Lester was out of the inning moments later. He is done after 112 pitches, I would imagine.

End 6th, Red Sox 6-0: The Blue Jays elected to intentionally walk Yamaico Navarro (4-for-30 in his career) to load the bases and pitch to Ryan Kalish, who was actually a better hitter against lefties in his minor league career. It works.

Kalish grounds to first to strand three runners and we move on to the seventh.

Wonder if they thought Navarro was Adrian Beltre.

3:24 p.m.: Shaun Marcum continues to get hit hard in the sixth and his day is done following a double by Bill Hall, who is now 5-for-7 with four extra-base hits off Marcum.

Brad Mills is on to face Daniel Nava with two men in scoring position and just one out.

By the way, in an earlier post I mentioned that Jon Lester would likely face the Yankees twice down the stretch. He would actually face New York and then Chicago if everyone stays in line. My bad.

Mid 6th, Red Sox 6-0: Jon Lester’s pitch count is at 91 after he survives a one-out single in the sixth. The key to keeping the Blue Jays down is limiting the extra-base hits. All four of Toronto’s hits have been singles and some of them rather soft.

End 5th, Red Sox 6-0: Three singles, a double and a long two-run homer by J.D. Drew allow the Red Sox to open it up a bit in the fifth. From a pitchers’ duel to a one-sided affair in a heartbeat.

Jed Lowrie and Bill Hall led things off with base hits. Daniel Nave made it 2-0 with a double and Yamaico Navarro followed with a single that got under the glove of left fielder Mike McCoy.

Two runs scored on that play (Navarro gets just one RBI because of the error) and Drew capped the rally by launching one several rows past the bullpens in right.

Mid 5th, Red Sox 1-0: Jon Lester and the Red Sox breathe a huge sigh of relief after the lefty is able to escape another bases-loaded jam. Plenty of credit goes to rookie Yamaico Navarro, who is filling in for Adrian Beltre at third base.

With the bags full and just one out Navarro charges a chopper and makes a perfect throw past the runner home, an exceptionally challenging play to make. That gets Lester his second out.

For the second time Lester has to face Jose Bautista with three men on and for the second time he induces a ground ball. Navarro picks it up again and steps on third for the final out.

End 4th, Red Sox 1-0: Quite a contract push being made by Victor Martinez. With a solo shot down the line in right to start the scoring he improves to .327 (17-for-52) with five homers and 17 RBIs in his last 14 games.

Martinez builds upon his American League lead in RBIs for the month of September. He now has 18.

Going back a bit further he is now batting .349 (30-for-86) with eight homers and 21 RBIs in his last 21 games.

Mid 4th, 0-0: Jon Lester needed 25 pitches to survive the third. He throws only seven in a perfect fourth and will enter the fifth with a pitch count of 59.

End 3rd, 0-0: Shaun Marcum has retired seven in a row since Victor Martinez’s infield hit in the first. Left fielder Mike McCoy helps Marcum out with a nice sliding catch in the corner in the third.

Mid 3rd, 0-0: Jon Lester was in cruise control until a John McDonald single with two outs in the third. Two walks and a visit from pitching coach John Farrell followed, and Lester suddenly had to face the dangerous Jose Bautista with the bases loaded.

After using up nine pitches in walking Yunel Escobar, Lester got Bautista on one. The major league leader in home runs grounds to short.

Also, a bird just flew into a window in the press box.

End 2nd, 0-0: Bill Hall entered 3-for-4 with three home runs off Shaun Marcum. Pretty good. He is now 3-for-5 after a weak dribbler ends the second.

We could be in for a pretty good duel here between Marcum and Jon Lester.

Mid 2nd, 0-0: Lyle Overbay was the primary culprit when Jon Lester had the worst start of his career last month at home against the Jays. Overbay slugged two three-run homers off Lester, the second of which chased the lefty with no outs in the third.

This time Overbay is Lester’s first strikeout victim. He flailed at a cutter on the inside part of the plate.

End 1st, 0-0: Shaun Marcum strikes out the side in the bottom of the first and the one hit he gives up, a single to Victor Martinez, was a check-swing tapper to third on which Edwin Encarnacion had no play.

Marcum loves pitching in Fenway Park. He has allowed four runs in 20 innings here since 2008.

Mid 1st, 0-0: Yamaico Navarro has his first chance in Adrian Beltre’s place and handles it just fine. It was a routine grounder to third that ends a 1-2-3 inning for Jon Lester.

The Sox’ prospects for postseason play are obviously grim but this is one of those days that makes you appreciate baseball in Boston. Fenway is just sparkling right now and it couldn’t be more comfortable.

Just thought I would add that in there.

12:45 p.m.: Apparently Adrian Beltre’s wrist is not going to allow him to go. We will know later on if it is anything serious. For now here is the Beltre-less batting order:

Ryan Kalish, CF
J.D. Drew, RF
Victor Martinez, C
David Ortiz, DH
Mike Lowell, 1B
Jed Lowrie, SS
Bill Hall, 2B
Daniel Nava, LF
Yamaico Navarro, 3B

12:19 p.m.: The Red Sox lineup remains an unknown but we do have the Blue Jays to keep you tied down, as well as some talk about Jon Lester.

First, here is the crew Lester will face Sunday afternoon:

Mike McCoy, LF
Yunel Escobar, SS
Jose Bautista, RF
Vernon Wells, CF
Lyle Overbay, 1B
John Buck, C
Edwin Encarnacion, 3B
J.P. Arencibia, DH
John McDonald, 2B

Much has been made of Lester’s recent run of dominance. In his last four starts he is 4-0 with a 2.67 ERA with 42 strikeouts in just 27 innings. What some people might forget is that prior to the run Lester had the worst start of his career, at home against these very same Blue Jays.

In a 16-2 loss to Toronto on Aug. 20, Lester gave up a career-high nine runs in a career-low two innings. It was as if he needed to get everything out of his system that night and since then has been very good.

The lefty is lined up to pitch two more times after today. That gives him a chance to reach 20 wins, a feat about which Terry Francona was asked earlier in the day.

“In baseball, the round numbers, there’s some significance,” Francona said. “When you really think about it, what’s the difference between .299 and .300? But it looks huge. Twenty wins is kind of that plateau.

“But that wouldn’t take away from what he’s done. He might go out in his last start, have a lead and somebody gives it up. Wins and losses are certainly important and they are certainly a barometer but there’s other things. This kid’s gone out and pitched so well. Whether it’s 17, 19, 20, some of that’s gonna have to do with the bullpen, scoring runs, things like that. This kid’s phenomanel…he’ll hit 20 [someday], he might go past it.”

Lester will face the Yankees in those last two starts, unless something changes with rotation or weather or whatever. It’ll be a tough task but if he does it Lester would be the first Red Sox lefty since Mel Parnell in 1953 to reach 20 wins.

11:14 a.m.: We are still waiting on lineups here as the Red Sox await word on Adrian Beltre, who rolled up on his left wrist in a dive Saturday night.

Beltre was sent to MGH on Sunday morning to get checked out, manager Terry Francona said. If he comes through whatever exams he gets OK and he wants to play, Francona will let him. Otherwise, Lowrie will get the start at third, Francona said.

Updates on this to come in a bit. 

Just a side note. You can tell it is nearly football season in a year that may not see the Sox play postseason baseball. The press box is almost barren. Those outlets that normally have three or four people for every Red Sox game have just one, or in some cases none. But we’re here and will be eagerly monitoring Jon Lester’s bid for an 18th win.

10 a.m.: The Red Sox entered a three-game series with the then-reeling Toronto Blue Jays in need of a sweep. They enter the finale of the series Sunday afternoon just looking to avoid one.

After suffering back-to-back painful losses to start the series the Sox turn to Jon Lester to get back in the win column. He has won four straight starts, striking out at least 10 in each outing.

Boston is 7 1/2 games behind Tampa Bay in the wild card race. Just 14 games remain.

First pitch is 1:35 p.m.

Jed Lowrie hits two home runs and David Ortiz crushes a go-ahead three-run homer as Boston wins its third straight.

The Sox, now 6 1/2 games behind Tampa Bay with 17 to play, will go for the sweep Wednesday.

Back in a few with a final thought.

Mid 9th, Red Sox 9-5: Two insurance runs take away the save opportunity for Jonathan Papelbon but he will come on regardless. Could use the work.

Ryan Kalish and Josh Reddick get the RBIs in the ninth. Kalish has 13 in 11 games this month.

End 8th, Red Sox 7-5: Daniel Bard does what Daniel Bard does with a pair of strikeouts in a scoreless eighth. The Red Sox are three outs from their third straight victory.

Mid 8th, Red Sox 7-5: The Red Sox were down to their last four outs and had nobody on in the eighth before breaking out in a big way. Two straight singles preceded David Ortiz's 30th home run of the season, a three-run moon shot that sends this see-saw affair back into Boston's hands.

Ortiz joins Manny Ramirez and Ted Williams as the only players in team history with six seasons of 30 or more home runs. It is the first time he has reached the mark since he hit 35 in his phenomenal 2007 season.

End 7th, Mariners 5-4: It took about 35 minutes for Seattle to score one run but it's a big one. Rich Hill records the long-awaited last out of the seventh.

12:26 a.m.: The fourth Red Sox pitcher of the seventh inning will be coming on after Michael Bowden fails to do his job. Pitching in the biggest spot he has been in since being converted to a reliever, Bowden gives up a long RBI double to Franklin Gutierrez to snap the tie.

The run is charged to Daisuke Matsuzaka. Rich Hill will be making his Red Sox debut.

12:21 a.m.: Hideki Okajima has very quietly been an effective member of the bullpen since returning from the DL. After getting a pair of outs, including a strikeout of Russell Branyan with the go-ahead run perched at second, Okajima has now thrown 5 1/3 scoreless innings since his return.

Michael Bowded is coming on with two outs and Ichiro Suzuki still at second.

12:11 a.m.: Daisuke Matsuzaka gets to face one hitter in the seventh. It is Ichiro Suzuki, who rips his third hit of the game to chase Matsuzaka. Hideki Okajima is on in relief.

Mid 7th, 4-4: Luke French keeps throwing slop up there and the Red Sox keep popping it up. He has set down 12 straight and 11 of the outs have come through the air.

End 6th, 4-4: If this one stays tied and we go to extra innings it may never end. The Mariners lead the majors in extra-inning losses with 11. The Red Sox are second with 10. The teams are a combined 8-21 in extras.

Mid 6th, 4-4: Yes, I did say Luke French might not last very long in this one after he was hit hard early. But following a five-pitch sixth he is in great shape to go seven or even more.

French has retired nine in a row since Jed Lowrie's second home run of the night.

End 5th, 4-4: This is now the sixth straight start that Daisuke Matsuzaka has allowed at least four runs, with an eight-spot thrown in the last time out. He beaned the light-hitting Josh Wilson with his very first pitch of the inning so you just knew it would not go well.

Wilson came in on a double by Ichiro Suzuki, who eventually scored from third on a sac fly to right.

Matsuzaka still had 15 pitches to throw before getting out of the inning. In addition to hitting Wilson he gave up three hits and a walk.

Mid 5th, Red Sox 4-2: Luke French has his first scoreless inning since the first. He has recorded 11 outs through the air.

End 4th, Red Sox 4-2: Daisuke Matsuzaka survives his own throwing error to get through the fourth. Red Sox pitchers have 21 errors this year.

Mid 4th, Red Sox 4-2: You can see our earlier post for more on what Jed Lowrie has done in his limited action this year. Add to that his second home run in as many at-bats as he takes Luke French deep in the fourth to record the first multi-homer game of his career.

Lowrie is hitting .333 (16-for-48) against lefties this year.

End 3rd, Red Sox 3-2: Teams have been running wild on the Red Sox this road trip and the M's are intent on testing Jason Varitek in his return.

Ichiro Suzuki steals the third base of the night for Seattle and later scores. At that point in time opponents were 13-for-13 in stolen base attempts against Boston on the trip.

Chone Figgins was gunned down at third later in the inning to end the streak.

Mid 3rd, Red Sox 3-1: A wild pitch by Luke French helps the Sox expand their lead in the third. Marco Scutaro walked and moved to second on the wild one ahead of an RBI base hit by Victor Martinez.

Boston has five hits and all have been solid. French may not be long for this one.

The Yankees have outlasted the Rays, but you have to see how the game ended. I'll withhold the details so you can experience it on your own. You may hate the Yanks but it was a pretty cool way to finish off a win.

New York is back on top in the division. The Sox, with a win, would be 6 1/2 games behind Tampa Bay. Seems like we've been saying that for over a month.

End 2nd, Red Sox 2-1: Whenever Daisuke Matsuzaka is on the mound, even if he's on his game, you have to consider the use of the bullpen. He simply has not lasted deep into games on a consistent basis.

The righty, who turned 30 on Monday, has gone at least seven innings just twice in his last 13 starts. He has failed to go beyond six innings in nine of those outings.

Dice has already thrown 42 pitches.

Mid 2nd, Red Sox 2-1: Seconds after Adrian Beltre is thrown out at home plate for the first out of the second, Jed Lowrie hammers a two-run homer to left to give the Red Sox an early lead.

There seem to be some Lowrie haters out there. They most likely exist due to his inability to stay healthy. But if he does he could be a big part of this team going forward. In fact, don't be surprised to see Lowrie push Marco Scutaro for playing time next season at shortstop.

Half of Lowrie's 30 hits this season have been for extra bases. He led the team in OPS in August and has as many walks as strikeouts. He quietly produces when in the lineup, and has shown in the past to be a very good shortstop defensively.

As for Beltre, his double to lead things off gave him 71 extra-base hits, a new record in a season for a Red Sox third baseman. Wade Boggs had the old mark of 70 in 1987.

End 1st, Mariners 1-0: Daisuke Matsuzaka's first-inning woes had vanished over the past couple of months, but he is reached for one in the first on a pair of singles and a walk.

Dice-K entered with a 7.71 ERA in the first inning this year.

Mid 1st, 0-0: Mariners catcher Adam Moore had an embarrassing instance in the opener in which he misjudged a pop behind the plate. He handles two such plays successfully in the first as Luke French is through the inning without a problem.

9:55 p.m.: If you are one of those who has already moved on and is eying 2011 as the year for the Red Sox, then you can begin plan your outings to Fenway Park now. The 2011 schedule was released Tuesday.

If you are one of those still clinging to Boston's chances in 2010, then hold your breath when Daisuke Matsuzaka steps to the mound in a matter of moments. He is needed in a big way, but the same could be said last week when he gave up eight runs in 4 2/3 innings against Tampa Bay.

Matsuzaka has a 7.04 ERA over his last five starts.

9:14 p.m.: The Red Sox used an all-rookie outfield Monday night for the first time since 1987 when Mike Greenwell, Ellis Burks and Todd Benzinger were thrust out there together. It was also their 41st different outfield rotation of the season, tied with the 1996 team for the most in franchise history.

Tuesday's rotation of Bill Hall, Ryan Kalish and Darnell McDonald? Old hat.

Further evidence that the Yankees are in serious trouble? They just blew a 6-0 lead and now trail Tampa Bay 7-6.

8:00 p.m.: We have talked a bit about the remote, yet still possible, chance that the Sox catch the Yankees, given that New York is seriously struggling and it has to play Boston six times.

Well, the Yankees, losers of seven of eight, have broken out against Matt Garza in Tampa Bay and hold a 4-0 lead in the third. We'll keep our eye on that one through the night.

For now, here is the Seattle lineup against Daisuke Matsuzaka:

Ichiro Suzuki, RF
Chone Figgins, 2B
Russell Branyan, DH
Franklin Gutierrez, CF
Casey Kotchman, 1B
Jose Lopez, 3B
Michael Saunders, LF
Adam Moore, C
Josh Wilson, SS

6:20 p.m.: The captain is back for the Red Sox as they take on the Mariners on Tuesday. Jason Varitek will get his first start since he returned from his broken right foot. Here is the Boston lineup:

Marco Scutaro, 2B
Darnell McDonald, RF
Victor Martinez, 1B
Adrian Beltre, 3B
David Ortiz, DH
Jed Lowrie, SS
Jason Varitek, C
Bill Hall, LF
Ryan Kalish, CF

8 a.m.: The Red Sox will look to win three straight games for the first time in almost a month when they face the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday night.

Behind eight dominant innings for Jon Lester the Sox took the opener 5-1. They are seven games behind the New York Yankees in the race for the wild card with 18 games to play.

Daisuke Matsuzaka, who has struggled over the past month or so, will go for Boston. He is 2-0 with a 2.23 ERA in his career at Seattle.

Lefty Luke French gets the nod for the last-place Mariners. He has never faced the Red Sox.

First pitch is 10:10 p.m. and you cannot use football as an excuse not to watch.

With six games remaining against New York, the Red Sox are seven out. They still have eight games before they even play the Yankees, six of which are at home and five of which are against last-place teams.

It doesn't seem like much of a stretch to put Boston's deficit at five or so entering those last six games with the Pinstripers.

Of course, as has been the case all season, the Sox will go only as far as their starting pitching takes them. For that to be a reality Tuesday they need Daisuke Matsuzaka to turn things around. He has a 7.04 ERA over his last five starts.

We will follow Matsuzaka's effort opposite Luke French for you right here. First pitch is scheduled for 10:10 p.m.

Final, Red Sox 5-1: The Red Sox have evened their record on this road trip and owe it all to Jon Lester, who has won 17 games for the first time in his career.

The lefty was magnificent, striking out 12 in eight innings.

Ryan Kalish drives in two with a home run in the eighth and Josh Reddick, Daniel Nava and Lars Anderson each have a single RBI.

All the players mentioned in this post are 27 or younger. Youth is served on a Monday night in Seattle.

We will come back with a final thought a little later on and look for more on the site related to the Red Sox' sudden possibilities with the reeling New York Yankees.

Mid 9th, Red Sox 5-1: Daniel Bard will be coming on to try to finish this one off. While he has some room for error it would be nice to see Bard have a clean outing. He has quietly struggled of late.

In 5 1/3 innings in September, Bard has given up six hits and has walked five. This will be his 65th outing of the year.

Jon Lester allowed just a run on three hits and three walks while striking out 12 in a marvelous effort.

End 8th, Red Sox 5-1: Jon Lester's last four strikeout totals now read 10, 10, 10 and 12. He struck out the side in the eighth and should be able to watch Daniel Bard wrap this one up. Quite an effort by Lester, who will pick up a career-high 17th win if the Red Sox hold on.

Mid 8th, Red Sox 5-1: Just to update some numbers we gave earlier, Ryan Kalish is hitting .312 (10-for-32) in September. He has 12 RBIs in 10 games during the month.

12:00 a.m.: Midnight strikes and the bell tolls for Doug Fister, who is yanked one batter after giving up a two-run bomb to Ryan Kalish. There is a reason the Sox are getting Kalish more starts near the top of the order — he may be their best hitter right now.

End 7th, Red Sox 3-1: A walk, single and an RBI ground out spoils Jon Lester's shutout bid. He escapes further harm when Jed Lowrie makes a nice play for the final out.

Lester's pitch count is 89. He's in great shape but some insurance runs would be nice.

Mid 7th, Red Sox 3-0: If you thought Doug Fister would last seven innings in this one, please raise your hand. OK, I can't see you but you get props for seeing past his rocky second inning.

Just one Red Sox hitter has reached in the past five innings against Fister. With a pitch count of just 94 he has a shot to go eight innings for the first time since May 19.

End 6th, Red Sox 3-0: Jon Lester has set down nine straight, striking out three along the way. He has eight punchouts overall, leaving him two shy of reaching 10 for a career-high fourth straight start.

Mid 6th, Red Sox 3-0: Doug Fister has retired 14 of the last 15 hitters he has faced. The one to reach was David Ortiz, who doubled with one out in the sixth.

End 5th, Red Sox 3-0: Lars Anderson and anyone else we asked said when he was called up that his defense was vastly improved. Certainly seems to be the case. Anderson has made every play at first base for the Sox, including a diving stop to end the fifth.

Mid 5th, Red Sox 3-0: Doug Fister threw about six pitches that were hammered in the second. Other than that he's been dominant, and efficient.

Fister has thrown 68 pitches, but 25 of them came in the second.

End 4th, Red Sox 3-0: Rough night in New York. First they see the Jets score nine points and lose in the regular season opener of the new Meadowlands Stadium, or whatever that is called. Then the Yanks fall out of first place. Also, Johan Santana had surgery. And somewhere a cab smells.

Actually, the cab thing could happen anywhere. I once found a grilled cheese in the back seat of one in Boston. Not one bite taken.

Jon Lester strands a runner at second base to end the fourth. He has six strikeouts.

Mid 4th, Red Sox 3-0: Interesting night so far for Daniel Nava in his first start in a week. He ripped an RBI double in the second and then looked at three straight called strikes to finish the fourth.

End 3rd, Red Sox 3-0: Jon Lester has it all working in this one. He has struck out five and allowed just an infield hit in the first three innings. That is now 35 strikeouts in 22 innings over the last three-plus starts for the lefty.

Mid 3rd, Red Sox 3-0: Doug Fister gets knocked all over the ballpark in the second and then throws just eight pitches in retiring Victor Martinez, David Ortiz and Adrian Beltre in the third. Go figure.

End 2nd, Red Sox 3-0: Jon Lester has a 1-2-3 inning and is now up to 199 strikeouts on the season.

The Rays beat the Yankees on a walk-off homer by Reid Brignac in the bottom of the 11th. As it stands the Red Sox are seven games behind New York in the loss column and the Yanks are reeling.

Whenever the Bronx Bombers lose on CC Sabathia's night they are in for a long series. As I've continued to say, it is not outlandish to see Boston within six games of New York before those two teams meet for six games over the final two weeks of the season.

Mid 2nd, Red Sox 3-0: Boston is all over Doug Fister in the second. Three doubles, a single and an RBI ground out do the trick, with Lars Anderson's first career extra-base hit one of the highlights.

This is already more run support than Jon Lester received in his last appearance in Seattle.

End 1st, 0-0: Jon Lester is now three strikeouts shy of reaching 200 for his career after getting one in the first. Lester has fanned 10 in each of his last three outings so it's a safe bet he will reach that number in Seattle.

Mid 1st, 0-0: Doug Fister, who stands 9 feet tall and weighs 120 pounds, survives a two-out error by Chone Figgins to get through the first. Figgins has 17 errors, five more than any other American League second baseman.

The last time the Red Sox visited Seattle it was Figgins who was at the center of a dugout fight with his manager and others, the low point in a frustrating year for the Mariners.

10:00 p.m.: The Yankees and Rays are still scoreless now going into the bottom of the 10th. Brett Gardner was thrown out trying to steal third with two outs in the top half of the inning, a bad move by the Yankees speedster.

9:39 p.m.: The word on J.D. Drew is that he jammed his right ankle in Sunday's game at Oakland. He was very slow to get up after scoring in the sixth so it may have happened then, adding to his persistent hamstring woes.

Only three Red Sox players have been in more games than Drew so the usual criticisms he gets for missing games won't float. He's battled through plenty this season to be out there as much as possible.

Maybe that is one reason why his numbers have suffered a bit.

9:11 p.m.: If you have already moved on from baseball and have thrown yourself behind the pigskin then follow Mike Hurley's Jets-Ravens Live Blog.

If you are like me and would rather the serenity of a night in Safeco Field, then stick around and we'll see what the Sox have to offer.

8:41 p.m.: As I sit here the Rays and Yankees are scoreless in the seventh with both CC Sabathia and David Price throwing one-hitters with the A.L. East lead on the line.

If you are one of the few believers that the Red Sox still have a chance you have to start rooting for the Rays. Boston is finished with Tampa Bay but has six remaining games against New York, which is limping to the finish line.

Outside of Sabathia the Yankees have nobody they can count on in their starting rotation and their offense has been just as bad of late.

New York has dropped six of seven and if it doesn't get its act together soon enough it's not out of the realm of possibility that the Sox get within six games of the Yanks before those final six meetings. Boston has nine games still to go before the rivalry is renewed.

8:20 p.m.: The latest addition to the Red Sox bullpen is lefty Rich Hill, a local boy (Milton) who was signed to a free agent deal in June.

Hill has held lefties to a .218 average in his major league career. Dustin Richardson has struggled mightily, Hideki Okajima has been up and down and Felix Doubront may not be returning anytime soon, so there is a spot for another southpaw and Hill showed he was ready to come back up.

In 2007, Hill was 11-8 with a 3.92 ERA and had 183 strikeouts in 195 innings with the Cubs. He has tasted success at this level.

In other pregame news, pitching coach John Farrell is ill and will not be in the dugout. Bullpen coach Gary Tuck will take over his duties and David Page, the strength and conditioning coach, is taking over for Tuck.

Back in a bit with more.

6:35 p.m.: It is a Pawtucket-heavy lineup for the Red Sox in the opener of three games against Seattle. J.D. Drew will sit after appearing to be a bit banged up in the finale at Oakland and Mike Lowell will rest again.

Here is the starting lineup against Mariners righty Doug Fister, as well as the Seattle order vs. Jon Lester:

Red Sox

Marco Scutaro, SS
Ryan Kalish, CF
Victor Martinez, C
David Ortiz, DH
Adrian Beltre, 3B
Jed Lowrie, SS
Josh Reddick, RF
Daniel Nava, LF
Lars Anderson, 1B

Mariners

Ichiro Suzuki, RF
Chone Figgins, 2B
Russell Branyan, DH
Franklin Gutierrez, CF
Jose Lopez, 3B
Casey Kotchman, 1B
Matt Tuiasosopo, LF
Adam Moore, C
Josh Wilson, SS

8 a.m.: The Red Sox continue a six-game road trip when they head to the Pacific Northwest for the last time this season and take on the Seattle Mariners in a three-game series at Safeco Field.

Boston is 1-2 on the trip after winning the finale in Oakland on Sunday. Josh Beckett had his fourth straight quality start to pick up the win, a 5-3 decision.

Jon Lester, a native of nearby Kirkland, will be aiming for a career-high 17th win on Monday. He flirted with a perfect game in his last trip to Seattle before falling on the wrong end of a 5-1 score.

Doug Fister goes for the Mariners. First pitch is 10:10 p.m.

Fourth quarter, 3:57, Patriots 38-24: Cedric Benson put some more makeup on the Bengals’ ugly performance with a one-yard touchdown run, but Cincinnati failed to convert on an onside kick.

Fourth quarter, 7:41, Patriots 38-17: After four consecutive runs, Tom Brady faked a hand-off to BenJarvus Green-Ellis and lobbed a pass high to Rob Gronkowski for a one-yard touchdown, and the Patriots were masterful with that 14-play drive to answer Cincinnati’s scores. They’ve got a lot to be happy about in this game.

Fourth quarter, 12:50, Patriots 31-17: Check out some more details on the Patriots’ inactives.

End of third quarter, Patriots 31-17: Tom Brady hit Wes Welker for 12 yards on the final play of the quarter, and the Patriots have embarked upon their first show-me drive of the young season. With the Bengals taking control of momentum, New England’s offense has to do its part to take some pressure off the defense.

Third quarter, 0:22, Patriots 31-17: The Bengals continued to take advantage of the Patriots’ conservative defensive approach, and then they pounced when Carson Palmer hit Chad Ochocinco for a 28-yard touchdown. Ochocinco was gun shy, though, and didn’t make an attempt to go for the minutemen.

Third quarter, 5:13, Patriots 31-10: The Pats were held to a three-and-out because Dan Koppen’s holding penalty negated a first-down pass to Alge Crumpler. Also, Stephen Neal left for one play with a left leg injury, and he was replaced by Ryan Wendell. Neal received some attention from the medical staff, but he appeared to be OK.

Third quarter, 7:54, Patriots 31-10: The Bengals finally found the end zone after a long, 12-play, 80-yard drive against a Patriots defense that really laid back. They primarily rushed three guys and dropped eight into coverage, and Carson Palmer took advantage of some free time in the pocket.

It was a pretty impressive use of the big tight end Jermaine Gresham, who was singled up against James Sanders in the back of the end zone. Palmer simply threw it high enough and away from Sanders, and Gresham basically reached over his head to snag the touchdown pass.

That was also a good series from nickel back Jonathan Wilhite. And defensive lineman Mike Wright did a good job of penetrating to the backfield, but he missed about three chances to sack Palmer.

Third quarter, 14:48, Patriots 31-3: The purpose of a squib kick is to limit a team’s return, so the Bengals get a big ol’ F on that play. Brandon Tate returned the second-half kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown to essentially end any doubt in this one. Tate has added a dynamic to the kick return unit that this franchise hasn’t seen in three decades.

Halftime, Patriots 24-3: Stephen Gostkowski tried to one-up Mike Nugent’s record, but his bid from 56 yards fluttered wide to the right just before the half. Prior to that, the Patriots ran a fake-spike play, and Tom Brady threw a two-yard pass to Brandon Tate that stopped the clock. The Patriots ran a number of such plays during training camp.

Second quarter, 0:28, Patriots 24-3: Mike Nugent’s 54-yard field goal was a Gillette Stadium record.

Second quarter, 1:14, Patriots 24-3: Holy cow, Mike Nugent had no problem drilling a 54-yard field goal to get the Bengals on the board. Let’s see how aggressive the Patriots get on this next possession with halftime looming.

Second quarter, 5:38, Patriots 24-0: With the Bengals in full-on passing mode, Gary Guyton has taken almost all of the reps alongside Jerod Mayo, and the linebacker just struck in a big way, jumping in front of tight end Jermaine Gresham, picking off a lazy pass from Carson Palmer and taking it 59 yards to the homeland.

Second quarter, 8:58, Patriots 17-0: It’s been a storybook return for Wes Welker, who caught his second touchdown pass of the game. Welker caught a four-yard touchdown pass over the middle, and the play survived a Marvin Lewis challenge. Brady went to Welker twice in a row, but credit a really nice diving breakup to Keith Rivers on second down. On third down, though, Welker was just too strong.

Second quarter, 11:30, Patriots 10-0: If Johnathan Joseph is looking for his dignity, Randy Moss just stole it. Moss juked the cornerback out of his jock and scampered 32 yards after a quick pass to the right. The Pats have it at the Cincy 24.

Second quarter, 12:19, Patriots 10-0: Bengals defensive end Jonathan Fanene left with an injury and is heading to the locker room.(Update: It’s Fanene’s right hamstring, and his return is questionable.)

Second quarter, 12:59, Patriots 10-0: Yet another stout effort from New England’s defense, which is winning the battle at the line, tackling well and taking advantage of an errant Carson Palmer. Funny how all the talk this week was of the Bengals’ offensive line’s size, yet many ignored their performance.

Second quarter, 14:51, Patriots 10-0: New England came back to earth with that possession, failing to pick up a first down after Rob Ninkovich’s fumble recovery. For the second consecutive series, Tom Brady’s third-down pass was missed by Kevin Faulk. Then, Stephen Gostkowski pulled a 47-yard field-goal attempt.

End of first quarter, Patriots 10-0: That was a nearly perfect first quarter for New England, which has played well in all phases. The Pats’ third possession hasn’t been as pretty, and they’ve got a third-and-11 coming up on the other side.

First quarter, 1:05, Patriots 10-0: Who said the Patriots can’t stop the run? James Sanders and Rob Ninkovich wrapped up Cedric Benson behind the line of scrimmage, and Benson coughed up the ball. Ninkovich dove on it at the Cincinnati 28, and the Patriots have a great opportunity to take a big lead early in this game.

First quarter, 2:29, Patriots 10-0: The Patriots’ 11-play, 56-yard drive stalled when Tom Brady’s third-down pass slipped through Kevin Faulk’s hands, but Stephen Gostkowski nailed a 32-yard field goal to extend the Patriots’ lead. That was another impressive drive, with the Pats showing a good balance between run and pass.

First quarter, 7:59, Patriots 7-0: Another good defensive series for the Patriots, who held the Bengals to a three-and-out. And in an interesting development, this game features two lefty punters.

First quarter, 9:00, Patriots 7-0: Wes Welker’s score marked the first touchdown of Sunday football in 2010.

First quarter, 9:47, Patriots 7-0: Welcome back, Wes Welker. The speedy slot receiver caught a screen pass and took it nine yards for a touchdown on New England’s first offensive possession of the season. Welker had bookend catches on the drive, which also featured a 45-yard pass to rookie tight end Aaron Hernandez, who took advantage of a botched coverage.

First quarter, 11:05: 0-0: The Patriots are in business right away. Aaron Hernandez was left wide open on the left side of the field, and he gained 45 yards on his first career reception to get the Pats to the Cincinnati 15. Kevin Faulk was credited with the start, but Fred Taylor was the first traditional running back on the field.

First quarter, 12:38, 0-0: Tully Banta-Cain and Myron Pryor combined to sack Carson Palmer on third down to amp up the crowd and create some big momentum for the young defense. The Patriots will take over at their own 28-yard line after Kevin Huber’s punt.

First quarter, 13:59, 0-0: The Bengals won the toss and elected to receive, and Kyle Arrington stuck returner Bernard Scott at the Cincinnati 18-yard line. Carson Palmer immediately tested rookie cornerback Devin McCourty, who knocked away a deep pass away from Terrell Owens along the left sideline.

12:59 p.m.: A flyover accompanied the national anthem, and the Gillette Stadium PA system followed by blaring “Highway to the Danger Zone.” Who’s ready?

12:55 p.m.: Tom Brady and Patrick Chung have led the Patriots onto the field, and the teams are just minutes away from kickoff. Viva la football!

11:51 a.m.: Here’s something to consider: Bengals defensive end Carlos Dunlap, who has had a pretty slow start to his rookie season, was a much more high-profile defensive end at Florida than Patriots rookie Jermaine Cunningham, is a healthy scratch. The Pats took Cunningham, who has been moved to outside linebacker, one spot before Cincinnati drafted Dunlap.

11:34 a.m.: The Patriots’ eight inactive players will be wide receiver Julian Edelman, offensive lineman Nick Kaczur, wide receiver Taylor Price, running back Laurence Maroney, cornerback Terrence Wheatley, linebacker Dane Fletcher, defensive lineman Brandon Deaderick and offensive lineman Steve Maneri.

11:31 a.m.: Wes Welker is warming up on the field, and he’s definitely wearing the bulky brace on his left knee.

11:27 a.m.: Interestingly, the Bengals are wearing their black jerseys, which means the Patriots won’t be wearing their traditional home blues.

11:13 a.m.: Cornerback Kyle Arrington is jogging around the field, which is a good sign. Arrington practiced through a groin injury this week, and if he wasn’t good to go, it’s unlikely he’d be on the field this close to game time.

10:47 a.m.: All right, after finally getting settled in here at Gillette Stadium, here are some updates. Wide receiver Julian Edelman, who is questionable with a foot injury, was on the field working out with trainers and, it looked like, wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea. That means he’s a game-time decision.

6 a.m.: The Patriots’ 2010 season officially opens Sunday at Gillette Stadium. They’ve got a brutal schedule this season, and the gauntlet starts right away with a big matchup against the star-stacked Bengals, who won the AFC North title last year.

NESN.com will have you covered throughout the day, so keep the live blog fresh on your page. For starters, check out our loaded preview content, including Kicking Off, the scouting report, Three Keys to Victory and Across Enemy Lines.

Postgame, Red Sox 5-3:

With the Rays and Yankees playing one another while the Sox are in Seattle, Boston has to hope that one of the two teams it is chasing gets swept.

To their credit, the Sox still have a tiny shred of hope, if only because the Yanks and Rays do not look very good right now.

"Obviously we're fighting for our lives and everybody's putting in really hard work and playing hard," said Ryan Kalish, who had the go-ahead hit in the seventh Sunday. "Obviously we still have a chance to get in."

That effort continues Monday when Jon Lester goes for his career-high 17th win opposite Doug Fister. First pitch is 10:10 p.m.

Final, Red Sox 5-3: Jonathan Papelbon strikes out the side to record his first save in 10 days as the Red Sox salvage one of three games in Oakland.

Josh Beckett gets the win with a workmanlike six innings and the bullpen is perfect over the final three.

Boston is back to 7 1/2 games behind Tampa Bay and is eight behind the reeling New York Yankees as it heads to Seattle for three more.

We'll be back a little later on with more reaction.

Mid 9th, Red Sox 5-3: Jonathan Papelbon was warming in the bullpen and will come in to try to pick up his 36th save.

Also warming was Matt Fox, the guy the Sox recently claimed off waivers from Minnesota. Fox is on the Sox. If only Dr. Suess was still around to write the story.

End 8th, Red Sox 5-3: The biggest difference between Scott Atchison and several other Red Sox relievers who have faltered in middle inning roles this season is that he simply throws strikes. It was what impressed the coaching staff all the way back in Fort Myers and got Atchison on the club in the first place.

Jonathan Papelbon will pitch the ninth, barring a rally by the Sox that breaks this one open.

Mid 8th, Red Sox 5-3: The Red Sox get a little more breathing room due to a throwing error by A's reliever Jerry Blevins. A pair of runners were left in scoring position.

Strangely, J.D. Drew has gone 3-for-3 against lefties in this one. He entered hitting .185 off left-handers.

End 7th, Red Sox 4-3: If you were handed an MVP ballot for the Red Sox, where would Scott Atchison rank? Is it too crazy to consider him a top five candidate on this team?

Atchison has been the most consistent reliever in the second half of the season and his ability to adjust to different roles has been invaluable.

He has a 1-2-3 seventh and has allowed just one run in his last nine innings of work. The righty has a 2.30 ERA in his last 18 appearances.

By the way, Daniel Bard threw 32 pitches on Saturday so Atchison may be needed for three more outs.

Mid 7th, Red Sox 4-3: Boston goes in order in the seventh and we head to the bottom half, the point at which the A's rallied on Saturday night. Scott Atchison will face the 3-5 hitters in relief of Josh Beckett.

End 6th, Red Sox 4-3: Josh Beckett has stranded two runners in scoring position for the second time. If he is done after 109 pitches he will have four straight quality starts in his pocket.

Mid 6th, Red Sox 4-3: Ryan Kalish hits for Bill Hall and needs just two pitches to give the Red Sox the lead, lining a two-run single to left. Kalish has eight RBIs in his last five games.

Over the past couple of weeks I've taken heat for simply alluding to the fact that the Red Sox have an outside chance of making the playoffs. It has had less to do with what Boston has going for it than how little the Rays and Yankees do.

Both Tampa Bay and New York are not playing their best baseball and neither look like world-beaters. The Yankees have lost six of their last seven and the Rays have lost five of eight. Boston, meanwhile has won just two of its last eight.

Had the Sox just gone .500 or a game better in that stretch we might have something more to talk about. That's all we've been getting at. If this score stands they will be 7 1/2 back heading to Seattle but it could very easily be 5 1/2 or so.

New York looks awful right now. No starting pitching, a battered lineup producing very little and a bullpen that is very inconsistent. With six games remaining between the Sox and Yanks there would've been some drama if Boston had just had a better week this week.

But they haven't.

5:57 p.m.: J.D. Drew has atoned for his running gaffe from earlier on with a two-run double in the sixth that chases Dallas Braden. The Red Sox' rally began with two outs and will have a chance to continue. Ryan Kalish is up with two runners in scoring position.

End 5th, Athletics 3-0: Mark Ellis has always been an incredibly streaky hitter. Unfortunately for the Red Sox they have caught him on a hot streak. Ellis's two-run double in the fifth gives Dallas Braden a little more breathing room.

Ellis is 19-for-40 (.475) in September.

Mid 5th, Athletics 1-0: Dallas Braden has his first 1-2-3 inning in the fifth. Yamaico Navarro is now 2-for-22 since joining the Red Sox.

End 4th, Athletics 1-0: Josh Beckett's strikeout binge has continued. He has seven Ks and could very well set a season high in that category for the second straight start.

Mid 4th, Athletics 1-0: The Red Sox get two singles in the fourth and nobody reaches second base. In fact, one of them never really settled in at first.

David Ortiz led off with a base hit in front of Jeremy Hermida but Mike Lowell followed by bouncing into a double play.

J.D. Drew then had a single more towards the corner in right and rounded first too far, getting thrown out coming back to the bag very lazily. Awful play by Drew.

That is at least the third time in this series that Sox runners have been caught by A's defenders throwing behind them after getting caught too far off a base. Two of them have resulted in outs.

End 3rd, Athletics 1-0: One of the impressive aspects of Josh Beckett's recent improvement was his extremely low walk totals. He had issued two walks or less in eight straight outings entering this one. Rather shocking then to see him walk four straight men with one out in the third.

That inning alone snaps Beckett's career-high streak of 20 straight road starts with three walks or less.

When you lose it you lose it, I guess. Beckett was actually fortunate to escape with just the one run scored.

Coco Crisp had the first of the four walks and scored the run. He has at least one walk in each game of the series and five stolen bases, continuing to do the job as the leadoff man for Oakland.

Throw in Crisp's three-hit effort in the series opener, which he began by robbing Ryan Kalish of a home run, and you can see how valuable the speedster can be if and when he stays healthy.

Unfortunately he had trouble with that in Boston.

Mid 3rd, 0-0: Just like Josh Beckett did in the second, Dallas Braden allows two runners to get into scoring position in the third. Just like Josh Beckett he gets out of the inning without being scored upon.

The A's are 32-15 in day games and only four American League teams have more home wins.

End 2nd, 0-0: A double and a single get the A's going in the second but Josh Beckett squirms out of it. He has allowed just one earned run in his last 12 1/3 innings of work.

Mid 2nd, 0-0: The Raiders were trounced in Tennessee so there are likely some upset fans at the Coliseum this afternoon.

The way things have gone for the A's against the Red Sox in recent years, they might be smiling by the time this one is through. Boston is 8-18 in Oakland over the last five years and has lost 17 of its last 23 there.

End 1st, 0-0: After striking out a season-high nine in his last start Josh Beckett opens up this one with another K. He is through the first in just 11 pitches.

Mid 1st, 0-0: A leadoff walk to Marco Scutaro leads nowhere for the Red Sox. Scutaro entered 8-for-14 (.571) against Dallas Braden but that was the first time he had ever walked against the lefty.

Tampa Bay just lost on a walk-off in Toronto. The Sox have a chance to get within 7 1/2 games with three weeks to play. Does that take your attention off football?

3:38 p.m.: Josh Beckett's subpar season has received plenty of blame for the Red Sox' campaign not going as planned. If you simply imagine him having an average season, say 15 wins and an ERA around 3.90, it's hard to imagine Boston not being in the mix with Tampa Bay and New York.

Beckett seemed resigned to the fact that he might be pitching out the string on a third-place team after his start Aug. 31 in Baltimore. Not that he had given up, by any means. But he said he would relish the role of spoiler if it came down to it and hope to build some momentum for himself heading into 2011.

He has very quietly done the latter. While Beckett's run support has been minimal, his bullpen has failed to provide him much relief and the defense behind him has not always helped out, the righty has improved bit by bit.

His earned runs allowed over the past six starts are as follows: 7, 6, 6, 3, 2, 1.

In addition, he has 27 strikeouts in 26 innings over his last four outings while walking just six. Beckett fanned a season-high nine his last time out and has walked two or less in eight straight starts. In addition, Beckett has thrown three straight quality starts for the first time since a four-game run that began in July 2009.

It is all somewhat lost in a lackluster campaign for your Opening Night starter, but he has shown signs of normalcy. Let's hope he can carry that into 2011.

3:09 p.m.: For those of you not glued to the Pats or still interested in all things Red Sox we first have sympathy for you and then have an offering — here is the Oakland lineup against Josh Beckett:

Coco Crisp, CF
Daric Barton. 1B
Kurt Suzuki, C
Jack Cust, DH
Mark Ellis
Jeremy Hermida, RF
Rajai Davis, LF
Steve Tolleson, 3B
Cliff Pennington, SS

1:12 p.m.: Since you have all set your fantasy lineups by now and begin the hand-wringing task of monitoring statistics from around the NFL, we give you the Red Sox' real lineup for Sunday afternoon's tilt in Oakland:

Marco Scutaro, 2B
Darnell Mcdonald, CF
Victor Martinez, C
Adrian Beltre, 3B
David Ortiz, DH
Mike Lowell, 1B
J.D. Drew, RF
Bill Hall, LF
Yamaico Navarro, SS

7 a.m.: The Red Sox have already clinched a sixth straight losing season series in Oakland. They will attempt to salvage the last of six games in the Coliseum when they wrap up a weekend series with the Athletics on Sunday afternoon.

Following Saturday's 4-3 loss the Sox were 1-4 in Oakland this year and 8-18 since 2005.

The setback reduced Tampa Bay's magic number to secure a playoff berth to 14.

Josh Beckett goes against Dallas Braden in the finale. First pitch is scheduled for 4:05 p.m.

But 3 1/3 innings of quality relief and a two-run rally in the eighth give the Red Sox the edge in the late innings. Coupled with New York's loss in Texas, Boston is now just five games back in the American League East.

The Sox remain 4 1/2 behind Tampa Bay in the wild card race. Toronto is 9 1/2 back of the Rays.

Clay Buchholz will try to maintain momentum, for himself and the team, when he opposes Shaun Marcum on Wednesday night. First pitch is 7:07 p.m.

Final, Red Sox 7-5: The Blue Jays get the tying run to the plate in the form of Jose Bautista, a scary sight for Red Sox fans. Jonathan Papelbon challenged him with heat and eventually won the battle, getting Bautista to ground to second. One out later a big win was in the books.

Mike Lowell is the offensive hero with a tie-breaking solo shot in the eight, as well as a sacrifice fly. Another admirable job by the bullpen, too.

We will wrap it all up for you in a bit and look for more on the site on the recent efforts of the relievers.

Mid 9th, Red Sox 7-5: Jonathan Papelbon is on in pursuit of his 29th save and second in as many days. He threw 22 pitches in his four-out save in New York on Monday.

End 8th, Red Sox 7-5: Manny Delcarmen has quietly been very efficient of late. After a perfect eight he has allowed only two hits in five scoreless innings since a rough outing at Seattle last month.

Terry Francona obviously wanted to stay away from Daniel Bard right there. Jonathan Papelbon should be available.

Mid 8th, Red Sox 7-5: The Blue Jays bring on Shawn Camp with one out in the eighth and the Red Sox jump all over him. Mike Lowell breaks the tie with his fourth home run of season and Jed Lowrie later drives in Ryan Kalish with a double to center.

Lowrie has two of Boston's five doubles, both of them driving in a run.

Kalish had hit for Bill Hall and lined a sharp single to center.

End 7th, 5-5: Jose Bautista hits his major league-leading 35th home run of the season and we have a brand new game. It was a fastball from Felix Doubront that Bautista crushed to left.

For those of you wondering if Doubront was going to be used mostly against lefties, he is not. That was never the intention. Sure, he might be brought in to face a lefty in a key situation like he was in the sixth, but Terry Francona had every intention of sending him back out for the seventh.

In his minor league career Doubront has held right-handed hitters to a .254 mark, compared to .284 for lefties.

Don't get tied into the fact that he came on to face two lefties with runners on in the sixth as any indication of future plans for him.

Mid 7th, Red Sox 5-4: Facing reliever Scott Downs, the man so linked to the Red Sox before the trading deadline, Boston gets the first man on. A fielder's choice and double play ends any thoughts of a threat.

Felix Doubront stays in the game for the Sox.

End 6th, Red Sox 5-4: Felix Doubront gets the job done not once but twice. A grounder to short fails to get the third out when the runner beats the throw to second, but Doubront strikes out Travis Snider on a breaking ball to leave the bases loaded.

Doubront pumped his fist after the K. For a pretty soft-spoken kid it was a nice show of emotion following a huge punchout.

9:17 p.m.: Felix Doubront will make his second relief appearance for the Red Sox but the first in a big situation. He takes over for Daisuke Matsuzaka with two outs in the sixth, runners on first and second and leadoff hitter Fred Lewis at the plate.

Mid 6th, Red Sox 5-4: The way the Red Sox swung the bat in the second inning of this one it figured to be a short night for Ricky Romero. He has admirably managed to keep his team in the game.

It's a bit scary playing Toronto because leads can vanish in an instant. A one-run lead in the sixth means little against a team that may have two more home runs in them.

End 5th, Red Sox 5-4: A Jed Lowrie error gets Daisuke Matsuzaka in some hot water but he wiggles out of the jam on a fly to left and a liner to Mike Lowell at first. The Blue Jays left runners at first and second.

Matszuaka has thrown 91 pitches.

Mid 5th, Red Sox 5-4: J.D. Drew's bat has been very quiet of late but he has a big home run in the fifth to break the tie. Drew had gone 14 games between homers and entered the at-bat 4-for-29 (.138) in August.

Not surprised that some of you are convinced that Jacoby Ellsbury was safe on that stolen base attempt in the fourth. The angle from the outfield was one of the worst. People always forget on angles such as that that the foot looks as if it hits the bag about two inches before it actually does because it disappears behind the bag as the player slides in.

On a play like that two inches means everything. I personally think it was a virtual tie, which goes to Ellsbury, but it was not definitive. Not from the angle everyone liked.

End 4th, 4-4: Daisuke Matsuzaka throws 33 pitches in the third and only five in the fourth. With Daniel Bard likely not available and Jonathan Papelbon coming off a four-out save the Red Sox need some innings here. A quick inning was imperative.

Matsuzaka has thrown 72 pitches overall.

Mid 4th, 4-4: Catcher J.P. Arencibia certainly impressed with his 4-for-5, two-homer debut for the Blue Jays over the weekend. He shows off his arm by nailing Jacoby Ellsbury trying to steal second.

Replays indicated that Ellsbury may have just got in before the tag, but it was close. In one shot he looked out, in another safe, but neither were definitive. Either way it was a nice throw from one knee by Arencibia.

Another hit for Ellsbury. Safe to say he is feeling a bit better.

End 3rd, 4-4: Just as we fire off a post about Ricky Romero falling behind hitters and paying the price, Daisuke Matsuzaka begins to throw the ball all over the place and, like Romero, gets hurt.

Matsuzaka walks the first two men of the inning and then throws ball one to Travis Snider before Snider turns one around for a three-run shot.

In typical Blue Jays fashion all four of their runs have come on home runs.

Adam Lind also doubled in the inning to improve to 3-for-3 against Matsuzaka after starting off 0-for-19 against the Red Sox righty.

Less than half of Matsuzaka's 33 pitches in the third were for strikes.

Good to see Jacoby Ellsbury flying into the gap to nab one of the three outs.

Mid 3rd, Red Sox 4-1: Mike Lowell has five RBIs in six-plus games since returning to lineup after he lofts a sacrifice fly to left with the bases loaded.

The Red Sox have six hits. Ricky Romero was 1-0 or 2-0 on five of those batters. Against Victor Martinez in the third he was 3-1.

A lot of guys in the Boston lineup that can hurt you if you get behind.

End 2nd, Red Sox 3-1: Adam Lind was hitless in his first 19 at-bats against Daisuke Matsuzaka, striking out eight times. Since then he is 2-for-2 with a single and a home run. It's an impossible game to predict at times.

Lind singled in his last at-bat against Dice-K before the All-Star break and takes the righty deep to left with one down in the second.

Matsuzaka left a few other pithces up in the inning. Aaron Hill led it off with a drive nearly to the track in center and Lyle Overbay had a hard double down the line in right.

Mid 2nd, Red Sox 3-0: David Ortiz is now 7-for-14 against Ricky Romero with a leadoff double in the second. Adrian Beltre is 3-for-4 after a double of his own scores the first run. Jed Lowrie, the one Red Sox starter never to face Romero, rips an RBI double in their first encounter. And Jacoby Ellsbury is 4-for-10 vs. the lefty with a run-scoring single. The Red Sox just hammer this guy.

Ellsbury's hit was a sharp single to center and the best contact by far that he has made since returning. Lowrie may have been out at home on the play but the throw from center hit the mound.

End 1st, 0-0: Daisuke Matsuzaka threw two curveballs and the rest of his 14 first-inning pitches were fastballs or cut fastballs. He is aggressive early and it pays off with three straight strikeouts to start things off.

It's extremely early to mention this but what the heck — Matsuzaka's career high in strikeouts is 10. He accomplished that three times but not once in the last three years.

Mid 1st, 0-0: In his previous start against the Red Sox, Ricky Romero had a 1-2-3 first. He has the same result to start this one of. However, if you're searching for a reason to feel good about Boston's chances, just look at what Romero did in his second and third innings in that previous meeting.

Romero gave up an RBI single to Mike Cameron and a two-run homer to Bill Hall in the second inning before getting just one out in a seven-run third.

He was finally lifted after a bases-loaded walk to Cameron, one of three he issues in the third inning alone.

7:07 p.m.: It is seven minutes past the hour, which means it's time to play baseball in Toronto. Anybody know why this is the one city where they don't play at 7:05 or 7:10? Please leave the answer below.

6:40 p.m.: Daisuke Matsuzaka has had plenty of success against the Blue Jays, as we have noted. He has been even better after getting knocked around a few times by Toronto when he first broke in.

In five starts over the past three years, Matsuzaka has a 2.16 ERA against the Jays.

Some are saying that Matsuzaka has been better of late due to his commitment to the fastball. While that's true, what makes him dangerous against Toronto is exactly what makes him tough to watch against some other teams.

The Jays are free swingers. By living off the plate a bit, often with off-speed stuff, Matsuzaka can get them to swing at bad pitches, often missing entirely or making bad contact. He causes some fans to pull their hair out when he walks the bases loaded and then goes 2-0 on the next batter. Toronto rarely draws walks so those situations just do not arise.

Also, Matsuzaka has a 0.6 home run/nine innings ratio, tied for the lowest of his career. He's the kind of guy that makes things difficult for the Jays.

5:42 p.m: Being in the Red Sox clubhouse Monday in New York it was clear that despite a split they felt pretty good about themselves. The way in which they took the finale surrounded the trip north with a positive vibe. The positivity is positively brimming with the latest on Dustin Pedroia.

Pedroia's big running test Tuesday in Toronto (breaks out of the box, hard sprints, etc.) revealed no issues and Terry Francona said there is a chance he begins a rehab assignment Saturday in Pawtucket.

The final steps toward making that a possibility are a running test again Wednesday and then a medical examination Friday back in Boston. The Sox open a nine-game homestand in a week. Expect Pedroia to be in the lineup and for this club to get a major boost.

Where the Red Sox will be in the standings at that time remains to be seen, but the last 24 hours or so have been very positive.

4:15 p.m.: The lineups are in from Toronto and the Red Sox have a similar look. Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off his four steals Monday in New York, remains at the bottom of the order.

Here is the full starting nine in support of Daisuke Matsuzaka, as well as Toronto's lineup:

Marco Scutaro, SS
J.D. Drew, RF
Victor Martinez, C
David Ortiz, DH
Adrian Beltre, 3B
Mike Lowell, 1B
Bill Hall, LF
Jed Lowrie, 2B
Jacoby Ellsbury, CF

Fred Lewis, CF
Yunel Escobar, SS
Jose Bautista, RF
Aaron Hill, 2B
Adam Lind, DH
Edwin Encarnacion, 3B
Lyle Overbay, 1B
J.P. Arencibia, C
Travis Snider, LF

Back with pregame updates in a bit. Dustin Pedroia is expected to really give his foot a big test Tuesday so we should have more on his situation.

8 a.m.: After splitting a four-game series in New York, the Red Sox are still thinking about winning the American League East. But one of the teams suddenly nipping at their heels in the push for the wild card is the Toronto Blue Jays, who host Boston for three straight starting Tuesday night.

The sluggling Blue Jays remain in the wild-card picture after sweeping Tampa Bay at home over the weekend. Brandon Morrow's 17-strikeout, one-hit performance in Sunday's finale pulled Toronto within eight games of the Rays entering Monday's action.

The Red Sox, who turn to Daisuke Matsuzaka in the series opener, are four-and-a-half games behind Tampa Bay after defeating the Yankees 2-1 on Monday. Jon Lester threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings and the bullpen did the rest.

Ricky Romero, who was rocked by Boston in a start at home before the All-Star break, goes in the opener for the Jays.

First pitch is 7:07 p.m.

Not only was CC Sabathia difficult to solve, but John Lackey had some misfortune with soft hits finding grass and what not. Not much to do but look ahead to the Josh Beckett-A.J. Burnett matchup Sunday night.

Some of the Boston players already are.

"Josh brings the pedigree of a number one guy, so he's a good guy to have on the mound tomorrow," said Mike Lowell, who drove in the Red Sox' last run on a double in the second.

On another note, David Ortiz, who was not pleased with home place umpire Jerry Layne's strike zone, said that umpires trying to speed things up has contributed to some high strikeout totals for him and others.

Ortiz: "Swing, swing, swing, swing and good luck. Can't waste time. It's killing the game, so I guess we gotta rush it."

The designated hitter was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

As for Lackey, he had the latest in a series of starts that did not look good numbers-wise, but could've been better with a few breaks. A handful of hits, including two in the pivotal fifth inning, fell softly near but out of the reach of some Boston defenders.

"The fifth inning, I honestly made a lot of good pitches and they kinda nickel-and-dimed me on that. I executed pitches in the fifth inning and didn't have a lot to show for it."

Among the positives in the contest was the relief outing of Felix Doubront, who struck out two in a 1-2-3 eighth. Another thing the Sox can look forward to is the pitching matchups going forward. Beckett has been excellent since coming off the DL and Monday's Jon Lester-Dustin Moseley matchup would seem to lean heavily in Boston's favor.

Final, Yankees 5-2: The Yankees lose Alex Rodriguez in awkward fashion hours before the game. The Red Sox lose the game. We're back to square one.

CC Sabathia completely outdueled John Lackey to improve to 8-0 at home and drop the Sox six games out in the American League East.

Off to get some reaction.

End 8th, Yankees 5-2: Manny Delcarmen and Felix Doubront combine to strike out four batters in two perfect innings of relief. Enter Sandman. Mariano Rivera is out to one-up them and finish this thing off for the Yankees.

Mid 8th, Yankees 5-2: Quite an afternoon for David Ortiz. He hit into a double play to end the top of the first and has struck out three times since. CC Sabathia's 101st pitch finishes off Ortiz to complete the eighth.

Felix Doubront is about to make his debut as a reliever for the Red Sox. Love this kid and hope this experiment helps him out, not to mention the team.

End 7th, Yankees 5-2: In the search for silver linings we find Manny Delcarmen's effort in the seventh. He strikes out both Mark Teixeira and Robinson Cano during a 1-2-3 frame.

Mid 7th, Yankees 5-2: A double play helps CC Sabathia get through the top of the seventh having thrown just 89 pitches. He has lasted eight inning several times this year, essentially eliminating the need to use the troubled bridge to Mariano Rivera. We may not even need Rivera at this point, but it's likely we'll see him.

John Lackey is done after another lackluster start. Five runs on eight hits and three walks in six innings. Not horrible, but nothing you want to call home about. That's pretty much been the way this season has gone for Lackey.

Manny Delcarmen is the first to step from the Boston bullpen.

End 6th, Yankees 5-2: The Yankees are running on John Lackey and Victor Martinez when they get the opportunity, and it's paying off. Curtis Granderson singled and went to third when Martinez threw the ball into center field trying to cut him down on a stolen base attempt.

Ramiro Pena's RBI single brought in Granderson.

Pena, who has two RBIs, also stole a base and bothered Lackey enough so that the right-hander wheeled and threw a pickoff attempt into center.

Pena could not advance. Still, it has not been a clean game for the Red Sox. Two errors and a couple of other miscues.

Mid 6th, Yankees 4-2: Adrian Beltre's home run in the second extended his hitting streak to 13 games. He adds an infield single in the sixth but is stranded. Beltre is hitting .337, still somewhat in the mix for an extremely unexpected batting crown.

End 5th, Yankees 4-2: When John Lackey struck out Derek Jeter looking for the second out of the fifth he had retired six in a row and 11 of the last 12. Apparently, he had also hit the wall.

Nick Swisher, Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano and Jorge Posada each single with two outs to bring in a pair of runs. Posada even steals a base for the first time since April 29, 2009, just to rub it in.

Lackey also threw one of his trademark fits when Cano's single landed not far from J.D. Drew in right. He has thrown 98 pitches and the Boston bullpen was busy.

Lance Berkman ended the inning with a weak grounder to Lackey. The boos are getting louder with each Berkman out. He is now 2-for-21 (.095) as a Yankee.

Mid 5th, 2-2: Since Mike Lowell doubled in the Red Sox' second run with nobody out in the second, they have managed just one hit, a Marco Scutaro single to start the third.

End 4th, 2-2: Adrian Beltre makes a spectacular diving catch in foul territory to finish the fourth. John Lackey is up to 67 pitches. Given where he was after the first turn through the lineup, that's pretty good.

Mid 4th, 2-2: Seems as if CC Sabathia has settled down a bit since that difficult second inning. He has allowed just one single among the last 10 batters, although Brett Gardner robbed J.D. Drew of extra bases to finish the fourth.

The great subway race is underway here. I go 'D' every time.

End 3rd, 2-2: There have been a handful of players unhappy with home plate umpire Jerry Layne's somewhat expansive strike zone. The latest was Nick Swisher, who had to be rescued by manager Joe Girardi before he things between he and Layne got heated.

Mid 3rd, 2-2: A leadoff single by Marco Scutaro doesn't amount to much. David Ortiz struck out for the 107th time, third in the American League.

I didn't see Joe Buck's reaction when Alex Rodriguez was hit by the ball in batting practice. Buck and A-Rod were apparently hamming it up when the incident occured.

I did, however, hear Rodriguez scream. In fact, that was what alerted me to the whole thing. My head was down as I was working feverishly for you and all of a sudden A-Rod barked like lab that got stepped on.

End 2nd, 2-2: When you get two early runs off a guy like CC Sabathia, you would love to have your starter go out and put up a zero. John Lackey couldn't do it.

Lance Berkman walked to lead it off (Lackey's third walk among the first six hitters) and Curtis Granderson followed with a triple that missed getting out of here by a few feet.

An RBI groundout by Ramiro Pena tied it.

Lackey has walked eight men in his last 4 1/3 innings going back to his previous start.

Mid 2nd, Red Sox 2-0: CC Sabathia had not allowed a home run since June 3 before Victor Martinez unloaded on a 3-1 fastball to get the scoring started. Two doubles followed, the second by Mike Lowell to plate another run. In the one game that figured to favor the Yankees on paper, the Red Sox are off to a great start.

End 1st, 0-0: A very ugly error by Marco Scutaro, his 15th, prolongs the inning for John Lackey. But a rather spry Mike Lowell, who is making every play at first, smothers a hard grounder by Jorge Posada to retire the side. Lackey strands two after throwing 25 pitches.

Scutaro threw the ball about 10 feet over Lowell's head when the Red Sox had Nick Swisher caught in a rundown.

We know two things that may affect the playoff push. X-rays on Alex Rodriguez's left leg/shin/foot were negative. Also, Toronto already crushed Tampa Bay this afternoon.

Mid 1st, 0-0: The old 3-5-3 double play ends the top of the first inning, the kind of twin killing that only guys like David Ortiz can hit into. With Alex Rodriguez out the Yankees have a guy in Ramiro Pena playing third who is pretty comfortable making the pivot.

Prior to the game Terry Francona said that Jed Lowrie has had "very mature at bats." Lowrie has another with a solid single of CC Sabathia with one out in the first.

4:06 p.m.: As CC Sabathia takes the mound we remind you that he has not lost here since July 2, 2009, a span of 17 starts (the Yankees are 15-2 in those starts). He is 7-0 with a 2.69 ERA at Yankee Stadium this year.

3:18 p.m.: The word is that Alex Rodriguez will get X-rays at the stadium so we may hear more before the day is through.

If A-Rod is OK he at least picked a good day to go down. He is just 9-for-54 (.176) against John Lackey. Four of the hits have been home runs, but Lackey has won most of the battles.

Boston's righty probably had most of his attention aimed at a trio of Yankees hitters who have destroyed him in the past anyway.

Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira and Jorge Posada are a collective 47-for-127 (.370) against Lackey. Interestingly enough, they have combined for just three home runs in those matchups, one less than Rodriguez.

2:34 p.m.: It did not look good when it happened. Alex Rodriguez, hit with a batted ball during BP, has been scratched from the lineup. Here is the new lineup for New York:

Derek Jeter, SS
Nick Swisher, RF
Mark Teixeira, 1B
Robinson Cano, 2B
Jorge Posada, C
Lance Berkman, DH
Curtis Granderson, CF
Brett Gardner, LF
Ramiro Pena, 3B

1:50 p.m.: As the Yankees staff takes a look at Alex Rodriguez, there are a few more updates on the Red Sox end of things.

Jacoby Ellsbury did hit the ground hard on a diving catch Friday night and told some reporters before that game that he had some rib pain. But that may not be the reason he is out of the lineup.

"I was going to give him the day off anyway," Terry Francona said.

Ellsbury has gone 0-for-12 since returning from the disabled list and is 1-for-13 with six strikeouts against CC Sabathia. Probably a good time to sit him down anyway. If you see him sitting against A.J. Burnett on Sunday, against whom he is a .308 hitter, then you can really start asking some questions.

Finishing the Carlos Delgado stuff from the prior post, Francona said he saw Delgado hit in his workout with the team.

"Swung the bat great," Francona said. "Looked like Carlos."

If Delgado does not get called up prior to Sept. 1 he can become a free agent, according to reports.

In other news:

- Jason Varitek has been able to intensify his work on the broken foot, but just barely. He is still far from returning.

- Mike Cameron continues to rest and take it easy while traveling with the club. He seems to be in great spirits. After entering the clubhouse Saturday he had some Michael Jackson pumped up and then asked a clubhouse attendant to turn it down a bit, trying to creat "ambience." "Hotel-style," Cameron said.

- Ryan Kalish gets a day off less than 24 hours after his first major league home run. He had been given one every week or so in the minors and with Sabathia on the mound it's a good time for him to sit. Kalish had played in every game since being brought up from Pawtucket on July 31.

- Jed Lowrie, who is batting second for this one, still wears down rather quickly but continues to get stronger, Francona said. That will remain a day-to-day monitoring situation for the rest of the season.

Finally, on this Alex Rodriguez situation. I couldn't initially see who was in the batting cage but now have learned it was Lance Berkman. In one week in New York Berkman has hit .105 (2-for-19) and may have sidelined the team's best player.

Not the way you want to win over fans.

Back with more later on.

1:38 p.m.: As the Yankees take batting practice down below and the Toronto-Tampa Bay game plays on the big screen, we can give you some updates from the clubhouse, including notes on Carlos Delgado, Jacoby Ellsbury and more.

Terry Francona did confirm the Delgado signing. The former Blue Jays and Mets star, who has not played since last May due to hip issues (sound familiar), will report to Pawtucket on Sunday to begin workouts.

Delgado will play in games some time after that. It is no given he will ever appear with the big club. The Sox are simply seeing what the 38-year-old has left in the event they could use his bat off the bench or, more likely, someone to split time with Mike Lowell at first.

Francona said that projecting Delgado into any future roles is very premature.

"This is us doing our due diligence," Francona said.

Keep an eye on how Delgado does at Pawtucket. That, as much as anything, will determine if we ever see him.

Alex Rodriguez is down on the field below. Hang on for other updates. I'm going to see what happened.

12:49 p.m.: Greetings from Yankee Stadium, where the lineups are in and we are hearing reports that the Red Sox have signed Carlos Delgado to a minor league deal. We should have more on that in a bit. Here are your starters:

Red Sox

Marco Scutaro, SS
Jed Lowrie, 2B
David Ortiz, DH
Victor Martinez, C
Adrian Beltre, 3B
Mike Lowell, 1B
J.D. Drew, RF
Bill Hall, LF
Darnell McDonald, CF

Yankees

Derek Jeter, SS
Nick Swisher, RF
Mark Teixeira, 1B
Alex Rodriguez, 3B
Robinson Cano, 2B
Jorge Posada, C
Lance Berkman, DH
Curtis Granderson, CF
Brett Gardner, LF

8 a.m.: The Red Sox take aim at Yankees ace CC Sabathia in the second game of a four-game series in New York on Saturday.

Sabathia has given up one earned run in 21 2/3 innings against Boston at the new Yankee Stadium and is undefeated in his last 17 starts there overall.

He will be called upon to even the set for the Yanks, who dropped a 6-3 decision to the surging Sox in the opener.

Clay Buchholz pitched 7 1/3 solid innings to give Boston its eighth win in 11 games. The Red Sox are five games behind first-place New York.

John Lackey goes for Boston opposite Sabathia. Lackey is 1-4 with a 6.75 ERA in day games this year, compared to 9-2 with a 3.70 ERA at night.

First pitch is 4:10 p.m.

Rays closer Rafael Soriano, who has allowed just two runs in his last 22 appearances, retires the first two batters he faces on six pitches. He allows a broken-bat single to David Ortiz — his first hit of the night — but Kevin Youkilis flies out to center to end this one.

End 8th, Rays 6-5: For the first time since the fourth, Red Sox pitching gets a quick 1-2-3 inning.

Daniel Bard hasn't allowed a run in his last eight outings, spanning seven full innings. He boasts a .133 average in that span, and in this frame, he retires the top of the Tampa order and tallies two K's.

Middle 8th, Rays 6-5: The pitching parade continues for Tampa Bay, and this time, Joaquin Benoit is called upon.

Benoit boasts a 0.75 ERA in 24 innings with a .177 opponents' batting average. The 32-year-old, who missed last season due to injury, was called up from Triple-A Durham on April 29 and has been lights out ever since.

Daniel Nava pinch-hits for Kevin Cash, but there's no rookie magic for him tonight, as he fans to end the frame.

End 7th, Rays 6-5: You could feel the momentum shift toward the Rays some time around the fifth inning, and now, the shift has completed.

Matt Joyce and Sean Rodriguez promptly lead off with two consecutive singles, and though Carlos Pena sends a grounder to Bill Hall, no one's covering second. As a result, there's no double play, and the runners advance.

A Jason Bartlett fly ball to right is good enough to bring home Upton, giving the Rays the lead.

Middle 7th, 5-5: The Red Sox are 5-4 when tied after six innings, and that mark falls to 5-7 when tied after seven. They fall to 4-6 when tied after eight, so the sooner they can score a run, the better.

The Rays bring on yet another new pitcher, Grant Balfour. With one out, he faces Eric Patterson, who continues to rake, doubling to right.

This is the first time Patterson has had three extra-base hits in the same game.

With first base open, David Ortiz is intentionally walked, and then Kevin Youkilis walks, unintentionally, to load the bases.

Then, the Rays' bullpen goes into shut-down mode.

Adrian Beltre strikes out, chasing one up and out of the strike zone, and that's it for Balfour — even though J.D. Drew is 0-for-6 against him, while he's 3-for-5 against southpaw Randy Choate, who comes on to face the lefty. 

It appears to be the right move, as Drew fans and the Rays escape the jam.

End 6th, 5-5: For the first time tonight, Carl Crawford is retired, and this brings a string of good fortune to Boston.

Dustin Richardson (six games, 0-0, 3.00 ERA) is on to replace Daisuke Matsuzaka, and Ben Zobrist drops the bunt right in front of the plate. Kevin Youkilis rushes in, flips it to Cash and Cash tags Jason Bartlett as he slides in for the first out. 

Then, Carl Crawford flies out to right — and good thing Bartlett tried to score on the sacrifice, or else that would've been the go-ahead run for Tampa.

Ramon Ramirez comes on to face Evan Longoria. Longoria, who was 0-for-6 with two K's against Ramirez, walks to reload the bases, but Willy Aybar grounds out to Kevin Youkilis to end the epic inning.

None out, 6th Inning, Red Sox 5-3: After Sean Rodriguez leads off the inning with a double, you know Dice-K's time on the mound is limited.

Rodriguez came into the game with one hit in three at-bats against the hurler, and after striking out twice, he finally is able to get something going.

Carlos Pena walks, so with two on and none out, Jason Bartlett bunts — and Dice-K immediately looks to third to get the lead runner, but no one's at third because Adrian Beltre is charging as well. 

With the bases loaded, No. 9 hitter John Jaso singles up the middle right past Dice-K and Bill Hall, tying the game at five. And as expected, that's the end of the evening for Dice.

Middle 6th, Red Sox 5-3: Andy Sonnanstine's night is over after he allowed one run over two innings. Dan Wheeler becomes the third Rays pitcher of the night.

Mike Cameron is the second batter to face Wheeler, and although he's played sparingly, the outfielder has been productive when he's played. He has hit in six straight games, going 6-for-23 with four runs, two doubles, a home run and six RBIs.

Now, he's having a rough night,  going 0-for-3 with two K's and a double play, putting that streak in jeopardy.

End 5th, Red Sox 5-3: Ben Zobrist and Carl Crawford remain a nuisance to Daisuke Matsuzaka, and along with Evan Longoria, they get something going for Tampa Bay in the fifth.

Zobrist begins by singling with one out in the frame to get on base for the third time tonight. That brings up the dangerous Carl Crawford, who tallies his third hit of the night, putting men at first and third with one out.

Evan Longoria brings in Zobrist with a sacrifice fly, and after striking out twice tonight, Willy Aybar bloops a double inside the left-field line.

Things threaten to fall apart a little after that. Dice-K throws a strike to Matt Joyce but it gets by Kevin Cash, and the speedy Crawford comes home with the third run. But Dice-K retires Matt Joyce for the final out.

Middle 5th, Red Sox 5-1: Earlier tonight, outfielder Mike Cameron issued his personal plea for Red Sox fans to help Kevin Youkilis get into the All-Star Game, telling "anyone with a computer or internet to get on, vote 25 times, get it done."

According to him — and many in Boston — Youk deserves to be there. You can vote here.

The first baseman is the first out in a 1-2-3 frame for Andy Sonnanstine.

Youk concluded a 4-for-19 homestand with a bang, homering against the Orioles on both Saturday and Sunday.

End 4th, Red Sox 5-1: Dice-K has walked four in each of his last two starts, and thus far tonight, he's issued free passes to three.

For the second time tonight, he has a walk-free inning, easily retiring the side and getting his third strikeout.

Middle 4th, Red Sox 5-1: While the Trop is traditionally a house of horrors for the Red Sox, it's Eric Patterson's new favorite place. He goes deep with two out for the second time tonight. 

Just like the first homer, the second came on a breaking ball, but this one was courtesy of Andy Sonnanstine. 

It's the ninth multi-homer game for a member of the Red Sox in 2010. It's the first time Patterson has homered more than once in a game.

Matt Garza's evening is over, but this wasn't his shortest outing of the season. That came in June against the Marlins, when he went 1 1/3 innings.

The final line on Garza is three innings, seven hits, four earned runs, two walks and a strikeout.

End 3rd, Red Sox 4-1: It was a 30-minute wait in between innings for Daisuke Matsuzaka, and unfortunately, and it takes him a little while to regain his bearings.

He walks leadoff man Ben Zobrist, then Carl Crawford victimizes him again, singling to right. Crawford came into this game batting .176 (3-for-17) against Dice, but he's 2-for-2 tonight.

After putting two on with none out, though, Dice-K retires the side, striking out Willy Aybar for the second time tonight in the process.

Middle 3rd, Red Sox 4-1: Matt Garza can't get that fastball to stay down, and it leads to a disastrous third inning for the hurler.

Eric Patterson starts the trouble, tallying his fifth home run of the season and knotting the score at 1.

The two-out bomb twists down the right field line and around the foul
pole, concluding a 10-pitch at-bat.

That opens the floodgates for Matt Garza. He walks David Ortiz for the second time tonight, and after Kevin Youkilis triples deep to right, Ortiz comes around and just barely skids in, avoiding the tag. 

Adrian Beltre brings in Youkilis with a single to left. Then, J.D. Drew gets on with a slow dribbler toward the mound, and Bill Hall brings in the fourth run with a single right up the middle. All four runs came with two outs.

Garza, meanwhile, has thrown over 70 pitches tonight.

End 2nd, Rays 1-0: The first inning troubles are nothing new for Daisuke Matsuzaka. He's given up 32 runs this year, and 16 of them have come in the first.

Fortunately, it's the second, so that means a quick, easy 1-2-3 frame for the hurler.

Middle 2nd, Rays 1-0: J.D. Drew had quite a series against Baltimore, going 5-for-10 with two homers, two doubles and four RBIs. He begins this one, however, with a flyout.

Bill Hall tallies a one-out single for his first-ever hit against Matt Garza, but Mike Cameron erases him on a double play (and he doesn't look awesome making his way to first).

In case you haven't heard, Clay Buchholz has officially been added to the disabled list, and as expected, Felix Doubront has been called up to make Tuesday's start at Tampa Bay.

End 1st, Rays 1-0: Daisuke Matsuzaka faces the Rays for the second time in the last week, and much like last week, the first frame is a bit of a disaster.

A walk to Ben Zobrist, a stolen base and a deep double to right by Carl Crawford, and the Rays are up 1-0.

Then, in a strange play, Evan Longoria hits a little dribbler right in front of the plate. Everyone thinks it's foul, but it's not — so Crawford doesn't advance and Longoria is out. 

Two strikeouts and another walk later, Dice-K is out of the inning. For anyone who's counting, he's thrown 31 through one.

The red-hot Crawford is now 21 for his last 46.

Middle 1st: Matt Garza escapes a couple speed bumps to get out of the first.

He runs into some leadoff trouble, allowing a bunt to Marco Scutaro and then walking David Ortiz with one out. After inducing Kevin Youkilis into a flyout, both runners advance on a passed ball that sails over John Jaso's head — then Adrian Beltre flies out to right to end the frame.

Garza's last win came against the Red Sox (and Daisuke Matsuzaka) last Wednesday at Fenway Park, a 9-4 affair. Tonight, though, he's having some trouble locating his fastball.

6:36 p.m.: Lineups are in at the Trop.

For the first time since Saturday against Baltimore, injury-addled center fielder Mike Cameron returns to the lineup, hitting eighth against Matt Garza.

Cameron has been afflicted by abdominal issues since a stint on the DL in May but, according to manager Terry Francona, is doing as much as humanly possible to make himself available.

Red Sox
1. Marco Scutaro, SS
2. Eric Patterson, LF
3. David Ortiz, DH
4. Kevin Youkilis, 1B
5. Adrian Beltre, 3B
6. J.D. Drew, RF
7. Bill Hall, 2B
8. Mike Cameron, CF
9. Kevin Cash, C

Rays
1. Ben Zobrist, CF
2. Carl Crawford, LF
3. Evan Longoria, 3B
4. Willy Aybar, DH
5. Matt Joyce, RF
6. Sean Rodriguez, 2B
7. Carlos Pena, 1B
8. Jason Bartlett, SS
9. John Jaso, C

3:44 p.m.: Now comes the real test.

A three-game set against the Orioles was no big deal, but in the final week leading up to the All-Star break, the beaten-up Red Sox face some of the best the AL East has to offer, beginning with the first of three at Tampa Bay on Monday.

Earlier this week, manager Terry Francona said he’d only start Clay Buchholz if he was extremely close to "100 percent" recovered from a hamstring injury, and it appears that he’s not close enough. In his stead, Daisuke Matsuzaka will face Matt Garza, while Buchholz will most likely head to the disabled list.

Though Dice-K hasn’t pitched at Tampa Bay since 2008, he faced the Rays at Fenway Park on Wednesday, going six innings and allowing three runs on four hits. He took the loss; at 7:10 p.m., we’ll see if he can redeem himself.

Off to the clubhouse to get a sense of the frustration level for the 4-7 Red Sox. Back in a bit to wrap things up.

Mid 9th, Rays 6-5: At least the Sox will have the right guys up to do this. Dustin Pedroia, Victor Martinez and Kevin Youkilis are due up against Rays closer Rafael Soriano, who already has a save Saturday.

End 8th, Rays 6-5: For all the noise the Red Sox made in the seventh inning, they still will only have three outs to work with in order to salvage something from this day. They get runners on first and second with one out in the eighth but once again can't do anything to get them in. Boston would be lost if not for the home run ball,. All six of its runs over the last 30 innings have come via the longball.

Adrian Beltre pinch ran for Mike Lowell in the eighth. As pointed out by NESN.com's own Evan Brunell, that was the first time Beltre has been a pinch runner in 1,692 career games. Hard to imagine.

Mid 8th, Rays 6-5: Ramon Ramirez works a perfect eighth. Mike Lowell leads things off to start the bottom of the inning against Dan Wheeler.

This is the only game going on in the country right now. San Diego? Los Angeles? Oakland? Seattle? All done. The 20-inning affair in St. Louis? Done.

End 7th, Rays 6-5: James Shields got the first two outs of the seventh. The next four batters went single, home run, single, home run.

Ramon Ramirez is on to try to keep this a one-run deficit.

Bottom 7th, Rays 6-5: Kevin Youkilis does his best Dustin Pedroia immitation with a two-run shot into the same neighborhood. Andy Sonnanstine is out. Randy Choate is in. The Red Sox are suddenly alive.

Bottom 7th, Rays 6-3: There is life at Fenway. Dustin Pedroia (who else?) rockets one into the Monster seats for a two-run homer. It is his fifth of the season, making him the first Red Sox second baseman ever to hit that many in the first month of the year. James Shields is taken out one batter later in favor of Andy Sonnanstine.

Mid 7th, Rays 6-1: Scott Atchison threw an absolute meatball to Evan Longoria with two outs in the bottom of the seventh. Longoria usually knows what to do with those.

The ball Longoria hit bounced about halfway up the light tower over the Green Monster and back onto the rain-soaked field. I'm not even sure if anyone in the stands even noticed.

End 6th, Rays 5-1: The highlight of the sixth is Mike Lowell getting a single to right. That's it.

Mid 6th, Rays 5-1: Moments after Marco Scutaro hit a solo shot to get the Sox on the scoreboard, he bobbles a B.J. Upton grounder for his team-leading third error. After the requisite stolen base by Upton and then a wild pitch by Scott Atchison, the Rays get their fifth unearned run of the game on a double by catcher John Jaso.

With some rain still falling and the Red Sox offering little to no resistance, this is about as dead as you will see Fenway midway through a game. I could count the fans in the bleachers if I wanted to.

End 5th, Rays 4-1: Marco Scutaro hits his first home run in a Red Sox uniform with two outs in the fifth to get Boston on the board. That is two solo homers in 26 innings for the Sox. Nothing but zeroes in every other frame.

Dustin Pedroia follows with a double off the Green Monster. After a long at-bat, Victor Martinez lines out to center.

Mid 5th, Rays 4-0: That ought to do it for Clay Buchholz, who deserved a better fate. If in fact he is done after throwing 108 pitches, he allows four unearned runs and just three hits in five innings while striking out seven.

It looked like Scott Atchison warming in the Red Sox bullpen.

The Mets and Cardinals are tied at 1-1 in the 19th. If you get a chance to check out the box score, please do.

End 4th, Rays 4-0: All you David Ortiz haters may not have noticed that he has now doubled in four straight games and in five of his last six. He leads the club in that category.

But Ortiz's latest two-bagger was just the precursor to another spoiled opportunity for Boston. The hit put runners at second and third with just one out. Mike Lowell popped to right. J.D. Drew grounded to first. One run in 26 innings for the Sox.

Mid 4th, Rays 4-0: Six of the last 11 Rays hitters have struck out. Clay Buchholz is cruising right along. However, that lengthy first inning has his pitch count up to 94. It looks like another five-inning effort for the righty.

End 3rd, Rays 4-0: The Sox make James Shields work a bit, but remain off the board. Mike Cameron doubled with one out and moved to third on a drive by Jeremy Hermida that was caught against the short wall in the right-field corner. After a walk to Marco Scutaro, Dustin Pedroia grounded out.

Mid 3rd, Rays 4-0: Clay Buchholz has quietly set down seven straight, four of them on strikeouts. Remember, he should've been out of the first inning with a zero on the board.

End 2nd, Rays 4-0: That's a seven-pitch inning for James Shields. The Red Sox have now scored one run in their last 24 innings. That one run was Jason Varitek's solo shot Friday night.

Mid 2nd, Rays 4-0: Clay Buchholz looks a whole lot better in the second inning. He strikes out Ben Zobrist to end an easy 1-2-3 inning, and didn't seem to be staring at the mound to check on where his foot was landing, as he did repeatedly in the first.

End 1st, Rays 4-0: The Sox respond to an atrocious top of the first inning with two strikeouts and a groundout in the bottom of the frame.

Great play by Evan Longoria to get Dustin Pedroia for the second out.

Ubaldo Jimenez just threw a no-hitter for Colorado. Just thought you might like to know. Also, last I looked, the Mets and Cardinals were in the 16th still scoreless. Crazy night in baseball.

Mid 1st, Rays 4-0: There are boos and then there are boos, the kind that come from deep down and are delivered with some meaning. That's the kind we heard in the top of the first inning after Mike Cameron allows a two-out line drive to glance off his glove in center and a run to come in from third. We heard them again when Pat Burrell lined a three-run double to right, tacking three more unearned runs on Clay Buchholz's line.

Cameron may have lost track of the ball or it tailed on him. Not sure. What is clear is that it was a play any center fielder should make, especially a Gold Glover. And when he didn't, it allowed Carl Crawford to score the game's first run and added to the Red Sox' misery.

That's four errors in the last three games. But if you recall the first part of Friday's game, there were two misplays ruled as hits. Adrian Beltre lost a flare to third in the lights and Jeremy Hermida let a lazy fly to left fall about five feet away from him. The defense has been pathetic of late.

Now, Buchholz should've been out of the inning, but he didn't do anything to pick up Cameron. He walked the next man before Burrell's double and then walked another before striking out Sean Rodriguez to end it. That turned the boos into sarcastic cheers.

Burrell has five RBI in two games in about an hour.

9:01 p.m.: Mike Lowell will be at third base in the second game. Here are the complete lineups for both teams:

Red Sox
Marco Scutaro SS
Dustin Pedroia 2B
Victor Martinez C
Kevin Youkilis 1B
David Ortiz DH
Mike Lowell 3B
J.D. Drew RF
Mike Cameron CF
Jeremy Hermida LF

Rays
Jason Bartlett SS
Carl Crawford LF
Ben Zobrist RF
Evan Longoria 3B
Carlos Pena 1B
B.J. Upton CF
Pat Burrell DH
John Jaso C
Sean Rodriguez 2B

8:51 p.m.: Not surprisingly, 99 percent of those at the park went for shelter and got something to eat or drink after the last out, preventing me from bullying my way to hear from Joe Maddon on his defensive tactics in the 11th. But we did get the word from Terry Francona. Here is a sampling.

On the bottom of the 11th and failing to come up with a run: "We had a great opportunity. I mean you can't get a better opportunity. We needed to elevate something and we couldn't. A cutter to David, breaking balls to Adrian. Middle of the order, bases loaded, that's about as good an opportunity as you are going to get."

On Daniel Bard, who struck out two in two perfect innings: "He was tremendous. He was really good. … He was efficient enough in the first inning that we could send him back out in the second with no qualms. He was terrific."

On Manny Delcarmen serving one up to Pat Burrell: "Got behind in the count. Gave him too much to hit."

On the quick turnaround: "We're home, we're in a game like that, that's a game we feel we should've won. Now we gotta strap them on pretty quick and go back out and try to get one."

Francona also said that Jonathan Papelbon will be at the park Monday after his wife gave birth Saturday afternoon.

8:37 p.m.: We'll give you Terry Francona's frustrated take on things in a second. Second game will start at 9:05 p.m., provided the weather does not get worse — the rain is light enough right now.

Final, Rays 3-1: Remember Jeremy Hermida's three-run double in the top of the eighth the other day in Minnesota? It was a big hit that helped seal what was a very satisfying win for the Red Sox. Almost nothing has gone right since.

Boston has been outscored 11-1 in two games spread over three nights and now must find a way to get going again in the cold and rain at Fenway Park. The Sox have scored one run in 22 innings since the Hermida hit.

The questions will surround the bottom of the 11th, when the Sox failed to get a runner in after loading the bases with nobody out. We will head down to briefly hear from Terry Francona and then return, fill you in on what he said, and get ready for the originally scheduled game. That will begin in 30-45 minutes.

The official time of this one was four hours, 18 minutes. But we know the truth. It took over a day to add to the Red Sox' woes.

Mid 12th, Rays 3-1: The Sox fail to score a run after loading the bases with nobody out, and then Pat Burrell takes Manny Delcarmen deep with a man on first. That has to hurt in the Red Sox dugout.

It was a 92 mph fastball from Delcarmen.

Rafael Soriano will come on to try to save this one for the Rays.

End 11th, 1-1: With the bases loaded and nobody out after two singles and an error, Rays manager Joe Maddon employs the five-man infield against David Ortiz, bringing right fielder Ben Zobrist in to stand near second base. It works. Ortiz grounds into a 3-2 force at home. Maddon sticks with the strategy with one out against Adrian Beltre. It works. Beltre grounds into a 5-3 double play. Inning over. The Sox blow a golden opportunity to finally end this thing. Instead we head to the 12th with Manny Delcarmen on for the Sox.

Mid 11th, 1-1: In two innings, Daniel Bard threw 16 of his 17 pitches for strikes. Nobody warming in either bullpen as Lance Cormier begins his third inning for the Rays.

End 10th, 1-1: Mike Cameron, who was slated to play in the second game, will get into the first after Victor Martinez bats for Bill Hall. That leaves only Mike Lowell and an injured Jacoby Ellsbury on the bench. Ellsbury will not play, of course.

Daniel Bard is out for his second inning of work.

Mid 10th, 1-1: Here is an interesting observation. The Rays are all wearing different numbers than they were when this game started, perhaps a first in baseball history. On Friday, Tampa Bay was sporting No. 42 on its jerseys in honor of Jackie Robinson Day on Thursday, which was a off-day for the club.

Anyway, Daniel Bard sets the Rays down in order in the 10th, striking out two. His first victim, Pat Burrell, is the Rays' emergency pitcher for either the first or second game, according to manager Joe Maddon.

End 9th, 1-1: This is awkward for all of us, but bear with me. We picked it up in the bottom of the ninth at 7:13 p.m. At 7:14 p.m. David Ortiz hit a bomb down the line in right that nearly went into the books as his 11th career game-winning homer. Alas, it went foul and Ortiz was retired on a grounder to first.

Two more outs and we head to extra innings in a game that started 24 hours ago. Daniel Bard will be on the mound for the Sox.

6:40 p.m.: OK, the tarp is off the field and they are working feverishly to get things ready for 7:10 p.m. While we wait, here is a take from both sides on the Rays' running game, which has wreaked havoc on the Sox (successful on 35-of-39 attempts since the start of 2009).

Terry Francona admitted that the club's 8 percent success rate on throwing out runners this year needs work, but he doesn't want to do too much to alter what his pitcher is doing.

"Some of the things that they do really well, we have not defended well," Francona said. "That's just the way it is. When they have first and second you have to hold a guy at second, it creates some of the holes in the infield. That's what makes them good. Some of the strengths of other teams, you don't want to let it get in the way of what we're doing."

The skipper pointed to Josh Beckett as an example. The righty was in such fine form Friday that making him alter his delivery in order to prevent 90 feet of advancement does not always make sense.

"You don't want to get in the way of the way guys are throwing," he said.

Francona had hinted Friday night that he cares about other teams stealing bases, but doesn't need to worry about every single one. He picks and chooses his moments to combat an attempt.

The same goes for Joe Maddon on the other side. He talked at length about the topic.

"That's part of our game," he said. "In regards to taking chances or taking risks, we're always going to be that group, but we're gonna try to do it when the odds are in our favor, not just for the sake of doing it."

Maddon then grabbed his team's game notes for Saturday night and glanced at the upcoming pitchers, reading them off one by one: Lester, Lackey, Danks, Buehrle, Peavy.

"One of the things I've always felt is that when you're facing guys like that, those are the guys you really want to do that against. If you're waiting around for four straight singles or a three-run homer you're going to wait a long time. That's part of our overall philosophy. When you're facing the good pitchers, those are the guys you want to get under their skin because they're not gonna give up big points very readily."

Maddon then stressed running hard in general, pointing to an infield single for Carlos Pena in a recent game that allowed the go-ahead run to score. He said that in addition to mental mistakes, he cannot stand guys not hustling down the line, always wanting to create a reputation as a team that will run hard every time.

"That's what I want out of our group. Pretty simple, really."

6:30 p.m.: The grounds crew has pounced on the tarp here. Fifteen fans are clapping, but they may just be dumping the water. The rain is still rather steady.

5:45 p.m.: Word just passed down from Red Sox officials: Jonathan Papelbon and his wife, Ashley, have just welcomed into the world a baby boy, their second child. Gunner Robert Papelbon came in at eight pounds, eight ounces and 21.5 inches long. Papelbon, who was going to resume the top of the 10th if the Red Sox needed him, will not be at the park tonight. Daniel Bard will pitch the 10th if it comes to that, according to manager Terry Francona.

Here are a few other quick updates, and I'll add some color once I get down a few quotes (Joe Maddon likes to talk):

• Jacoby Ellsbury is targetting a mid-week return. He took swings and threw Saturday and said it was his best day since the rib injury six days ago.
• Mike Cameron is expected to play in the second game.
• Lance Cormier, who was announced as the Rays pitcher just before the tarp was put on Friday night, will be the Tampa Bay pitcher.

As I mentioned, there is plenty to comb through from the clubhouses, including Maddon's take on hooded sweatshirts and Bill Belichick. I'll provide more in a bit.

As far as the weather is concerned, there is a light rain falling and the tarp is on the field. We have no updates from the Sox on if/when the games will resume.

3:13 p.m.: I just meandered through the caverns of Fenway Park and overheard two conversations. One was among a group of women who were arriving for work and how they are going to have to stay at each other's houses to get through the next couple of days without having to commute. The second involved a wager as to when the final out of the second game will be recorded.

We're all wondering how this night will go, but as I sit here the one encouraging thing is a tiny dose of sunshine to the southeast and no rain to speak of. There is wet stuff, including the chance of snow, later on.

We will provide updates on anything weather-related going forward.

Last night there was a lot of talk as to the last time we had seen a game suspended heading into the bottom of the ninth. We don't have that information, but we did learn that the Sox have not had a game suspended since May 3, 1996, when their contest with Toronto at Fenway was halted in the sixth and finished the next day.

Boston won 8-7.

Also, for any of you who were at Friday night's suspended game and want to come back to catch the end of it, your ticket will not be honored. Only those with tickets for Saturday's originally scheduled game will be allowed in the park.

11:20 a.m.: It will be a doubleheader, sort of, when the Red Sox and Rays get together at Fenway Park on Saturday night.

The two teams will finish a 1-1 game that was suspended in the bottom of the ninth Friday night. Boston was about to send David Ortiz to the plate to start the frame.

The originally scheduled contest will begin 30 minutes after the suspended game is completed, just enough time for the Sox to switch from their red to white jerseys.

Clay Buchholz will make his second start of the year for Boston in the second game. James Shields is on the bump for the Rays.

We will follow all the events of what should be a wild night in the rain at Fenway.

The C's enter the playoffs as a No. 4 seed, and they're not on anyone's radar as a serious threat to return to the NBA Finals. Will they thrive in their role as a sleeper? It's possible, but they've got to take it one step at a time. Step one is a playoff opener Saturday night against Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat.

When and Where

Celtics (50-32) vs. Heat (47-35)
Saturday, April 17, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
TD Garden, Boston, Mass.

Head to Head

The Celtics should consider themselves lucky — there are only three teams in the Eastern Conference that they swept this season, and Miami's one of them. (The other two are Charlotte and Toronto.)

But all three Boston wins this season were close — the C's won 92-85 in November, 112-106 in overtime in January and 107-102 in February. The Heat have kept it close every time, and Wade has gone off for 27, 44 and 30 in the three games. If the C's let Wade go crazy again, and just one other guy slips through the cracks for a big game, you never know what could happen.

Key Matchup

Rajon Rondo vs. Dwyane Wade
This isn't necessarily the one-on-one matchup you'll see all night — Rajon Rondo is a pure point guard, and Wade has the ability to play off the ball when Carlos Arroyo or Mario Chalmers runs the offense for Miami. But with Wade's boundless athleticism and scoring ability, Rondo's got to be the guy that steps up defensively and slows down Miami's former Finals MVP. Rondo's battled the flu this week and there's no guarantee he'll be 100 percent. But it doesn't matter, this is the playoffs. He's got to leave it all on the floor for the Celtics to win this series.

Starting Lineups

Celtics
Point guard: Rajon Rondo
Shooting guard: Ray Allen
Small forward: Paul Pierce
Power forward: Kevin Garnett
Center: Kendrick Perkins

Heat
Point guard: Carlos Arroyo
Shooting guard: Dwyane Wade
Small forward: Quentin Richardson
Power forward: Michael Beasley
Center: Jermaine O'Neal

Stat Sheet

Celtics

• Rajon Rondo set a new single-season Celtics records for assists (794) and steals (189) this season.
• Ray Allen made 47 of his last 48 regular-season free-throw attempts. He finished the season shooting 91.3 percent from the line.
• Paul Pierce has averaged 22.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game in the postseason in his career.

Heat

• The Heat finished fourth in the NBA with 457 blocks, led by Joel Anthony with 109 and Jermaine O'Neal with 95.
• Dwyane Wade finished the year fifth in the NBA with 26.6 points per game. It was his sixth consecutive season averaging over 24.
• Michael Beasley averaged 14.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.6 blocks in his sophomore season with the Heat, all improvements upon his rookie campaign.

Black and Blue

Celtics
The flu bug has struck the Celtics this week, hitting Tony Allen, Glen Davis and Rondo. The Celtics are confident that all will be ready to go in Game 1.

Heat
O'Neal sat out Miami's last two games with a sprained left ankle. He is probable for Saturday.

Outlook

The Celtics have had countless problems late this year with superstar scorers. LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Derrick Rose — you name the guy, he goes off for 40 when he comes to Boston. If the C's don't take a stand in this series, you can add Dwyane Wade's name to that list. They've got a decision to make — do they focus on Wade and let his supporting cast do their worst, or do they shut down everyone else and let Wade get his? This aging lineup might not have the energy to do both. The road ahead is long, and the Celtics had better pace themselves.

Amidst the festivities involved with the Sunday night opener, the Red Sox put together a dramatic rally from four runs down, scoring eight times between the fifth and eighth innings.

The 9-7 triumph included a monstrous game for both Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis, who combined for five extra-base hits and five RBIs.

There figures to be a little less pomp and circumstance in this one, but there will be another fine pitching matchup with Jon Lester and A.J. Burnett on the mound.

WHEN AND WHERE

HEAD TO HEAD

The Sox took the season opener on Sunday to improve to 25-8 against the Yankees in the month of April since the start of the 2002 season.

New York led 5-1 and 7-5 on Sunday before its bullpen faltered.

PITCHING MATCHUP

Although he was unofficially given the No. 2 tag in the Red Sox rotation, Lester is on several preseason watch lists for the Cy Young award. He has won 31 total games the last two seasons but appears primed for his best season yet.

Lester is 3-1 with a 3.88 ERA lifetime against New York.

Befitting his up-and-down nature, Burnett had some horrid starts against the Red Sox last season before tossing a gem in his final matchup with Boston late in the season.

In 12 career starts versus the Sox, he is 5-2 with a 4.23 ERA.

LINEUPS

STAT SHEET

BLACK AND BLUE

OUTLOOK

Lester has usually had good success against the Yankees. You never quite know what you’re going to get with Burnett. If both are on their game, this figures to be a bit different than the 16-run, 24-hit affair we saw on Sunday.

Then again, you never quite know what you’re going to get with the Sox and Yanks as well.