Pushing the start button

''You mean you didn't know?"

''I'm usually the last to know," lefthander Lenny DiNardo said, his head tilted in a combination of interest and surprise. ''Thanks for telling me."

He laughed. Having just been alerted yesterday by a reporter that he would be starting Saturday in Toronto, DiNardo seemed somewhat relieved to know his fate. At least for the near future.

One day after making a more-than-serviceable spot start -- 5 innings, 6 hits, 2 runs, 1 strikeout, no decision -- in a 7-6 Red Sox win courtesy of a Mark Loretta walkoff homer, the low-key DiNardo wasn't exactly sure about his next move, though he had to know there was a good chance Saturday's lineup would have his name written in. With Bronson Arroyo shipped to the Reds, David Wells on the disabled list, and Jonathan Papelbon dominating as the closer, who else is there?

So, in an announcement that surprised no one, manager Terry Francona confirmed before last night's game against the Devil Rays that DiNardo would be starting Saturday. Which, for a Rule 5 player still trying to keep his seat on the big league plane, is pretty good. He'll take it.

''I've always told myself I want to pitch in the big leagues, [as] a starter, a reliever, a ballboy, whatever," DiNardo said. ''It's just one of those things where this is a dream come true, especially playing for the Red Sox. It's unbelievable.

''Being a starter is icing on the cake. It's really surreal, me pitching for the Boston Red Sox and starting, with guys like Curt Schilling, Tim Wakefield, [Josh] Beckett, [Matt] Clement, all those guys.

''It's unreal. I'm going to ride it for as long as I can."

DiNardo said his week would unfold this way: toss at about 120 feet yesterday, 30-pitch bullpen today, toss tomorrow (with a heavier lower-body workout), and light cardio Friday. It's not much of an adjustment, he said, moving from relief to the rotation, which he did all last season as he went between Boston and Pawtucket.

DiNardo knows how to get outs against whichever level of hitter he's facing.

''Be aggressive, and pitch like I know I'm capable to pitch," he said. ''Don't go out and try to be Curt Schilling. Don't try to be Josh Beckett. Go out and pitch like Lenny DiNardo, which is a guy that's going to let the movement get the guys out. I'm not going to strike a lot of guys out."

With DiNardo having thrown 38 and 49 pitches in his first two appearances this season -- in relief roles at Texas April 4 and against Toronto April 12 -- Francona wasn't about to let him blow out his arm with 120 in his second career big league start. The plan called for 80-90 pitches, and at 81, he was in that range against Seattle.

''I think you can up [the pitch count] a little bit, depending on how the game's going," Francona said. ''I don't want to just get to a number, just so we can say we got to a number. If he's effective, we'll see how the game plays out. The last thing you want to do is go through your whole bullpen."

DiNardo kept his team in the game Monday, handing off to Rudy Seanez with the score tied at 2 in the sixth. As the game went on, he said he felt stronger and was better able to pinpoint his pitches.

That might lead to a longer session in the bullpen before the game Saturday, in an effort to avoid allowing two runs in the first two innings, as he did Monday. Or maybe he'll stretch more. Or spend more time on the exercise bike.

He'll have to figure it out. With Wells hurting, Saturday probably won't be DiNardo's last start of the season. That's fine with him. He'll take it.

No matter who tells him.