Ortiz keeps on ticking...

...even though wrist is clicking

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - No matter how many times David Ortiz had been warned by doctors that his injured wrist might click at some point, it didn't make it any easier to take when it did just that on a swing in the ninth inning Monday night. Even though he knew, and his manager knew, it was likely to happen, there is a mental strain that takes place.

"At some point, it gets in your head," Ortiz said. "Should I take another swing? Should I hold it? Whatever, it happens. That's the way injuries are."

Though Ortiz was back in the lineup last night, he acknowledged that he might have to take a day off at some point. Red Sox manager Terry Francona raised the issue with him, saying that having Ortiz "9 out of 10 is better than nothing."

But for now, Ortiz doesn't seem overly concerned about the clicking, which he felt on a swing, after which he shook his wrist. He iced the wrist after Monday's game.

"I'm going to keep playing," said Ortiz, who knocked in a run with a first-inning single in last night's 8-2 win. "Tito talked to me about, at some point, slow me down for a minute. But I'll be out there."

"It's part of the injury. The doctor warned me about it. He said, 'You're going to be like that until you stop playing for a few months.' It happened a few times, but I haven't really felt it like I felt it last night."

While advising reporters that reports of Ortiz's demise have been greatly exaggerated, Francona seemed hopeful that this was simply another step toward having his designated hitter back as he was.

"Maybe it's a good thing," Francona said. "To know that you're maybe going to feel something at some point, maybe it does mess with you. Maybe this will be good. He felt it. You know, [Pat ] Burrell went through the whole thing with me. He goes, 'I had to get through this. I was fine.' Maybe it's a good step."

Taking a shot at it
Though he didn't quite know what doctors injected into his right hip Monday - he said it was a mix of an anti-inflammatory and something to coat the hip joint - Mike Lowell seemed optimistic about it alleviating the pain he's been having since a late June trip to Tampa Bay. A team source confirmed the shot was cortisone, the second such shot Lowell has received in the past month. He also had one around the All-Star break.

"I know getting out of bed my abs didn't hurt, so I've got to believe that's a good sign," said Lowell, who batted fifth and played third base last night.

Doctors told him they could give him shots every six weeks, but Lowell wasn't sure he wanted to go that route. So he hopes the shot lasts at least that long. To aid it, Lowell is likely going to try some water treatments, non-weight-bearing exercises, to help make the hip more comfortable. Part of the problem is bone spurs in both hips that doctors have told him are genetic.

"They say the problem is your ball-and-socket joint - when you move, there's usually a nice little leeway," Lowell said. "Just with the regular wear and tear of the season, you get a little inflammation. With the bone spurs I have, it kind of pinches every time. When it pinches it, it kind of irritates it more and more; it kind of snowballs from there."

While there is a surgical option to correct the problem - shaving the bone spurs - Lowell said the recovery time, about six weeks, means he isn't interested in that at this point. He'll likely turn to an offseason workout program that involves more hip exercises so the wear and tear are delayed through the course of the season.

They're out of control
It wasn't exactly a night of control for the two rehabbing pitchers with Pawtucket in Scranton, Pa. Bartolo Colon (lower back strain), who was scheduled to throw two innings, went just two-thirds of an inning, giving up three earned runs on four hits and a walk. He struck out one, throwing 32 pitches, of which 18 went for strikes. Reliever David Aardsma (right groin strain) managed to go a full inning, but he walked two, throwing 21 pitches, just nine for strikes. The hope was that Aardsma would throw two rehab outings, then be ready to rejoin the Red Sox in Chicago this weekend . . . Kevin Youkilis extended his hitting streak to 12 games with an infield single in the first last night . . . J.D. Drew was back in the leadoff spot, even with Lowell in the lineup. Jacoby Ellsbury batted ninth. "I don't think J.D. has any aspirations of becoming the next Rickey Henderson," said Francona, "but he's doing it kind of for the good of our team, which I really appreciate."

Penalty box
Royals catcher Miguel Olivo and pitcher Zack Greinke yesterday received five-game suspensions for a bench-clearing incident in a weekend game with the White Sox, though they appealed the penalties and remain available for this series. Manager Trey Hillman was suspended one game, which he served last night. White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen was suspended two games . . . Two members of the Red Sox organization, Lancaster infielder Chih-Hsien Chiang and Greenville outfielder Che-Hsaun Lin, are headed to Beijing to play in the Olympics, both for Chinese Taipei . . . Not to let the Braves have all the fun, the Red Sox have built their own road losing streak in one-run games. While the Braves have a 25-game losing streak in one-run games on the road, the Sox own a 15-game streak. That's a club record, beating their 14-game stretch from Sept. 24, 1988, to June 27, 1989.

Ellsbury on run
Even though Ellsbury hadn't stolen a base in more than a month (July 1), he came into last night's game tied for the American League lead with Ichiro Suzuki. Along with registering his 23rd multihit game (and second since July 9), Ellsbury stole his 36th and 37th bases. That pushed him into ninth on the club's season steal list, passing Harry Lord (1909). It was Ellsbury's 11th multisteal game. "He had some good at-bats over his last few starts; we just ran into a lot of lefties," Jason Varitek said. "It was good. When he gets on base, it creates a lot of havoc, and that's a great thing." . . . Dustin Pedroia extended his road hitting streak to 26 games. He could break Tris Speaker's record (29) on this trip . . . Jed Lowrie hit his second triple of the week - and his career - in the seventh. He hit this one lefthanded, a bookend to the one he hit righthanded Sunday against Oakland.

Amalie Benjamin can be reached at abenjamin@globe.com