It was turn for worse for Mantei

The best pitchers figure out a way to climb out of the holes they dig, but Red Sox reliever Matt Mantei last night fell into a hole behind third base that ultimately was too steep to scale.

"A freak thing," said the righthander, following his abbreviated appearance in last night's 8-4 loss to the Orioles at Fenway Park. "I turned my ankle, and since it's my landing [left] foot, we figured, why rush it? A tighter game, I might have stayed in there, but we figured it was better to get out."

According to the 30-year-old Mantei, X-rays taken at the ballpark immediately after the mishap showed no structural damage. He expects to be back at Fenway this afternoon, in uniform, ready to pitch, and prepared to conduct his own turf inspection.

"I want to see what's there," said Mantei, who opened the seventh inning with the Orioles in command of a 7-3 lead, "to see if it's a hole or if I just turned the ankle -- I'm not sure."

For certain, though, was the anxiety Mantei felt immediately. By his count, he has sprained the ankle some 10 times over his lifetime, and he initially feared he was seriously hurt.

"It felt bad at first. When the pain hit my brain, it was like, `Oh, my gosh, what did I just do?' " said Mantei, who raced over to third as standard procedure, preparing to back up the bag after yielding a double to Javy Lopez. "But it went away, thankfully."

The chilly April evening was not kind to the Sox' pitching staff. Earlier, starter David Wells injured his right foot and was down the street at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center undergoing tests as Mantei prepared to leave the clubhouse. Suddenly, the injuries are piling up for the defending world champs.

"I said in spring training that, if we stayed healthy, we'd be OK this year," said Sox outfielder Johnny Damon. "Now, [Curt] Schilling's not totally healthy, and both Mantei and Wells are possibly hurt. That's not good for us."

For his part, Mantei did not sound very concerned. He made his way around the clubhouse after the game, both feet in sneakers, without any significant hitch in his walk. The clear X-rays eased his concerns, he said, and he was sent home without painkillers or anti-inflammatories. Just another day at the office, albeit slightly more treacherous than usual.

"I started to feel better right away," he said. "I think I could have walked it off, but . . . it was just a hole in the grass. I'm going to try to find it and step on it."

The expert hands of massage therapist Russell Nua played a part in Mantei's quick turnaround.

"He put some of his bruise juice on it," said Mantei. "It's his miracle juice. And believe it or not, it felt better right away."

No word, as the lights dimmed in the Fens late last night, whether the grounds crew will take to the turf today with Nua's bruise juice.