Lester pitches in with advice for Buchholz

There is one person with the Red Sox who understands what Clay Buchholz is going through. His experiences mirror Buchholz's enough that when manager Terry Francona and pitching coach John Farrell spoke to Buchholz about his struggles Monday, they brought up Jon Lester's name. Because, as Lester's season has made clear, emerging from the chasm is a real possibility.

Though Lester hasn't talked to Buchholz, deferring that responsibility to veterans such as Tim Wakefield, Curt Schilling, and Mike Timlin, there's no question that Lester knows what Buchholz is dealing with. And he'll be pulling for Buchholz when the righthander starts Sunday against Toronto, pitching in Wakefield's slot.

"It's a tough time to go through because you think you prepare and you do everything you're supposed to do to go out and pitch, and you don't get the results you want," Lester said. "That's real tough. But that's what kind of [stinks] about being a starting pitcher, you only get to do it every five days, so you get a lot of time to think about it and overanalyze. I think he just needs to go out and pitch and eventually it will work itself out.

"I don't think it's mechanics. His mechanics have been the same. He's throwing the ball the same, his stuff's the same, it's just a matter of, 'OK, I believe I'm going to get this guy out with this pitch and you're not going to touch it.' With pitching, it's a fragile game. The fine line [is] between having that confidence and kind of doubting yourself, 'OK, is he going to hit this off my forehead, or is he going to swing and miss?' "

There was little Lester could do to erase those doubts, and little Buchholz can do. Lester heard catcher Jason Varitek and Farrell tell him he was close, over and over again, finally seeing the small improvements. That was when things started to change, when Lester started to believe he could be the pitcher his teammates and coaching staff saw.

Despite the acquisition of Paul Byrd, who will take Buchholz's originally scheduled spot tonight, and Buchholz's 0-6 record and 8.19 ERA in his last eight starts, the righthander will remain part of the rotation. There will be key elements for him to improve upon, including his tempo. Lester's advice on how to correct that problem? "Speed up," he said. "Just eliminate the thought process, eliminate the million things running through your head, and just focus on one thing and get back up on the rubber."

Lester learned he had to get rid of the bad thoughts, and just throw.

"It becomes easier, it does," Lester said. "Even if you make a mistake, you can live with a mistake because it's, 'You know what, I believed in that pitch, and he hit it.' That's part of pitching in the big leagues. You're going to make mistakes, and they're going to hit it, and you're going to make mistakes and they hit a weak ground ball to Mike Lowell at third.

"As long as you're convicted with your pitches, that's the biggest thing."

Springing to Sarasota?

The city of Sarasota, Fla., released plans to construct a 10,000-seat ballpark at Payne Park, a former site of Red Sox spring training in the 1940s and '50s, to lure the Sox away from Fort Myers, Fla. The Red Sox can opt out of their lease with Fort Myers in 2009, and have been exploring other options for spring training sites, including Sarasota and Estero, Fla.

"Officials in Sarasota have made us aware of new potential sites for Red Sox spring training facilities," chief operating officer Mike Dee said in a statement. "While we have yet to review and study these new alternatives, we appreciate and are encouraged by the ongoing effort of both the elected officials and community leaders to collaborate on a plan that addresses our criteria."

Blank account

The Red Sox' 10-0 win over the Rangers last night tied them with the Indians for the most shutouts in the American League with 12 . . . The last time the Sox scored more than 37 runs in a three-game series was June 27-29, 2003, when they scored 45 against the Marlins . . . Daisuke Matsuzaka's win last night gave him 29 in his first two seasons, matching Hideo Nomo for the most in that time span by a Japanese-born pitcher . . . Jed Lowrie tied a career high with three hits. He also accomplished the feat May 10 at Minnesota. Lowrie has three straight multihit games, and has hits in 12 of his last 13. He also has at least one double and one RBI in each of his last four games.

Ellsbury still ailing

Jacoby Ellsbury was out of the starting lineup against the Rangers last night for the third straight game (he was used as a pinch hitter in Tuesday's game). Ellsbury is still hurting from a bruise near his tailbone after being hit by a pitch from John Danks in Monday's game against the White Sox in Chicago. "He's doing much better," Francona said. "I watched him yesterday sitting down. He was on one of those self-made cushions, thought he was Larry Bird. I think he's fine to play [last night]." Coco Crisp started in center field last night, though Ellsbury came into the game defensively for J.D. Drew in right field in the sixth inning and struck out in his only at-bat . . . Byrd's last outing was also against Toronto, last Saturday, when he allowed six hits and pitched a complete game for a Cleveland win. He will be the first pitcher to make consecutive starts against the same team after an in-season trade since Kason Gabbard did it in 2007 for the Red Sox and Rangers against Cleveland . . . The Sox recalled outfielder Jeff Bailey and sent pitcher David Pauley back to Pawtucket. Bailey pinch hit for Kevin Youkilis in the eighth and produced an RBI single.