Feeling some heat at the hot corner

There was no getting around the fact that Orlando Hudson tagged Coco Crisp during a rundown, but Crisp was awarded second because of first baseman Conor Jackson's interference. (PAUL CONNORS/ASSOCIATED PRESS)

PHOENIX -- Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell was charged with his 11th error yesterday when he couldn't handle Carlos Quentin's ground ball in the fourth. The ball caromed off Lowell's glove to shortstop Julio Lugo, but he didn't have a play, the error allowing the Diamondbacks to load the bases. Daisuke Matsuzaka avoided calamity by striking out the next two batters, Chris Snyder and Randy Johnson.

Lowell, who won a Gold Glove in 2005 while with Florida, leads American League third basemen in errors, and is one behind Florida's Miguel Cabrera, who may be playing his way back to the outfield. Only twice in his career has Lowell hit double digits in errors, 14 in 160 games in 2002 and 12 in 140 games 2000. His fielding percentage of .936 entering the game also was the lowest in the league. The spate of errors is threatening Lowell's hold on the all-time best fielding percentage for third basemen. He entered the year at .977, but after yesterday's game he was down to .975, four-100ths of a percentage point better than Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson.

Lowell has been playing since last Sunday with a sprained ligament in his left thumb. It had been reported incorrectly in a web story that Lowell injured the thumb when struck by a pitch by Chien-Ming Wang of the Yankees, but Lowell said it happened when he landed awkwardly trying to field a grounder hit by Josh Phelps.

Manager Terry Francona said he and pitching coach John Farrell plan to have Jon Lester throw a side session in Boston today, then meet with the lefthander to discuss his progress. Lester's latest 30-day rehab assignment ends June 18. He pitched just 2 2/3 innings Saturday night for Pawtucket, giving up three runs on five hits.

"You guys have been ahead of me all along, and you might as well stay ahead of me," Francona said. "We have never, ever put [Lester] on a timetable. Everybody has written that [Julian ] Tavarez isn't going to start past May 8. No, we want to talk to Jon. It's never been one start, one start. This is a long-term commitment with this kid."

The implication is the Sox will option Lester to Pawtucket when his rehab ends.

Tavarez revealed he has been pitching with a blister on the middle finger of his pitching hand. "[Josh ] Beckett would be on the DL with this," Tavarez said, showing the blister. Tavarez said he pops the blister and dries it out by rubbing in some Red Bull and ground-up aspirin.

Tavarez went six innings in Saturday night's 4-3 win, giving up three runs on six hits while walking one and striking out five. He left trailing, 3-2.

Tavarez on his half-swing, half-bunt hit Saturday night, his first hit since Aug. 24, 2002: "Anything to help this team win. People look at you as a clown, dumb and stupid. People, fans, players, teammates look at you as a clown, as stupid, as a dummy who always does something to make people laugh," he said. "They don't admit the truth and say, 'You know what, the guy who is stupid and a dummy, he's going to make something happen to win. Pain is nothing to him. He'll do something to find a way to win.' And that's me. Dumb like a fox."

Coco Crisp had a single in each of the three games here, and drove a ball into the left-center gap that was run down by Chris Young in the seventh, but he still has shown little sign of going on a hot streak that would shake an offensive slump that is entering its sixth week.

In Saturday's game, leading off the third inning, Crisp elected to bunt with a 3-and-1 count. At first, Francona defended that decision. "I don't think that's a good thing to say," Francona said when someone questioned the decision. "Coco's supposed to get on base. You guys sometimes ask me questions about guys bunting on their own, and they sort of surprise me. If a guy is playing back, Coco's trying to get on base."

Francona then acknowledged that Crisp bunting in such a hitter's count was a bit surprising. "Three and one, that's probably a nice pitch to get a nice fastball, which most hitters, including Coco, are probably looking for. But if he's safe, you guys are going to say, 'That's smart baseball.' So we try to keep it in perspective. I like the idea that he's trying to get on base, but it's also a very good hitting count."

If Crisp was feeling good about himself, would he have been bunting in that situation?

"Good question," Francona said. "I didn't ask him. Me and Mags [hitting coach Dave Magadan] were talking about that right when it was over. Kind of wondering if he saw something that he knows he can beat out, or he didn't feel good about his swing."

Despite three hits in each of the first two games here, J.D. Drew was not in the starting lineup yesterday against Randy Johnson. Drew has just one hit in eight at-bats against the Big Unit. "He's swinging the bat so well now," said Francona, who had Wily Mo Peña in right field. "This guy [Johnson] makes you [keep lefties on the bench]. This is our best chance to win the game. Sometimes you need him to make a mistake and for somebody to hit it." Drew pinch hit for Peña in the eighth and flied out . . . Matsuzaka struck out twice on a total of six pitches in his two at-bats against Johnson, managing one foul ball. Matsuzaka only batted in interleague in Japan, going 4 for 19 (.211). "He said he was good," Francona said before the game. "I asked him if he wanted to bat cleanup, and he said, 'Randy Johnson, no, no.' " Matsuzaka did hit a home run in Japan. "I saw it on YouTube," Francona said. "It was on the way to Bradenton or Clearwater, and I said, 'Nice swing, but you're not swinging here.' " Matsuzaka was not permitted to swing during spring training games . . . David Ortiz, who did not play, acknowledged that after two days of playing in the field, he felt sore all over. But that didn't keep him from scoring on Mike Lowell's sacrifice fly in the 10th Saturday night, the deciding run in Boston's 4-3 win. "I told [third base coach DeMarlo] Hale, any fly ball I'm going, bro. I'm sore but I'm going." Ortiz scored standing up.

Jonathan Papelbon picked up his 14th save Saturday night, but he struggled with the command of his off-speed stuff, hitting a batter and giving up an infield hit before Arizona rookie Mark Reynolds popped up to end it. The save was Papelbon's first since May 28; he hadn't pitched in six days. "It's been really weird for me lately," Papelbon had said earlier in the week. "It's been like I've come into games where we're tied or we're up a lot. My workload has been really weird for me. So it's been kind of a grind for me to stay on top of what I know because I've been going into roles that I'm not really accustomed to. That's just the way I feel." . . . Lowell revealed he has plans to start a blog. "Not for me," he said. "My philosophy is, if Manny is willing to sell a grill for $20,000, I'll tell him just to talk to me, and I'll type a blog for him --Mannysblog.com. And I'll pay him $21,000, he'll think he sold a grill, and I'll negotiate a dollar a hit. I'll be a gazillionaire, and Manny will be happy because he can buy a new barbecue . . . Everyone wants to know what Manny's saying, so all he has to do is give me two legitimate answers and after that I'll make up anything I want, and nobody will know the difference."

Gordon Edes can be reached at edes@globe.com.