Pedroia gets hot at the right time

ARLINGTON, Texas - Paul Byrd uttered the magic words this week. Not when he called Dustin Pedroia the MVP. No, it was when Byrd said, "As he goes, we go." That, especially on a star-laden team like the Red Sox, is the mark of a valuable player.

But this campaign - the one in which every Pedroia at-bat is accompanied by "MVP" chants - is reminiscent of another. Kevin Youkilis was the Sox' candidate and darling just last week. Now it's Pedroia.

"That's why I shy away from those conversations," manager Terry Francona said. "I mean, we can't have two. I think fans and media tend to be a little flavor-of-the-weekish. Now [Pedroia is] not flavor of the week, but you know what I'm saying. I got these same exact questions last week about Youk. So that's why we just keep playing, and then when it's over, you kind of see what's going on."

Pedroia, though, could have staying power.

"You can't get him out right now," Jacoby Ellsbury said Wednesday after another three-hit game by Pedroia, including a home run. "As a teammate, it's fun to watch someone play as well as he has. He's played well for a long time now, pretty much all season, and it's been fun to watch him."

As if to illustrate Byrd's point, Pedroia has batted .369 with a .408 on-base percentage, 82 runs, and 58 RBIs in Red Sox wins. In losses, Pedroia is batting .278 with a .322 OBP, 28 runs, and 18 RBIs. As Pedroia goes, so go the Red Sox.

But are those numbers good enough to win the MVP?

Statistically, this is how Pedroia stacks up against some top candidates: Carlos Quentin of the White Sox, Josh Hamilton of the Rangers, plus that nominee from his own club. Pedroia has a .333 batting average, tops in the American League; his slugging percentage is .505, and he has 17 home runs, 110 runs, and 76 RBIs. Quentin, on a team battling for a postseason spot, is hitting .288, with a .571 slugging percentage, 36 home runs, 96 runs, and 100 RBIs. Hamilton, playing for an out-of-contention team, is batting .301 and slugging .542, with 86 runs, 31 homers, and 121 RBIs. Youkilis has a .315 average, .560 slugging percentage, 24 homers, 82 runs, and 94 RBIs.

In a season in which there isn't a slam-dunk candidate - like the Yankees' Alex Rodriguez last year - Pedroia can win the award, especially if he continues his hot streak through September. Over his last eight games, the second baseman is batting .618 with six multihit games, and that's after hitting .374 in August.

"I'm very proud of what he's doing," Alex Cora said. "I mentioned it [Tuesday], but my favorite player growing up was Roberto Alomar. What [Pedroia is] doing right now, he reminds me a lot of Robby. And Robby's career wasn't that bad."

Masterson masterful

Justin Masterson earned his first relief win Wednesday when he threw two perfect innings against the Orioles. The situation in which he entered demonstrates the Sox' increasing confidence in the converted starter. Since being turned into a reliever, Masterson has a 2.28 ERA in 23 2/3 innings. He has inherited 12 runners and allowed three to score.

In August, Masterson threw 15 1/3 innings and allowed just three runs (1.76 ERA), establishing his reliability in a bullpen that has sometimes been unreliable this season.

"He's done great," Francona said after Wednesday's 5-4 win. "Especially when we get into the ninth inning and we have [Jonathan Papelbon] up, but we don't feel the need to [go to him immediately]. They've got three righthanded hitters, and we were going to wait until we got to [Brian ] Roberts to go to Pap. I think that tells you what we think of Masterson."

Reinforcements

The Red Sox expect to get Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, and Sean Casey back for tonight's game, barring setbacks. Youkilis, who missed the last two games with back spasms, might also return . . . After Pawtucket and Portland lost Wednesday in the openers of their postseason series, the Sox affiliates split yesterday. Portland lost its second game in the Eastern League playoffs to host Trenton, 4-3. Starter Clay Buchholz allowed three runs on six hits with one walk in six innings. He struck out nine and got a no-decision. That series continues tonight at Hadlock Field in Portland, Maine, at 7 as the Sea Dogs try to avoid a sweep in the best-of-five series. Host Pawtucket pulled out Game 2 of the International League series against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (the Yankees' Triple A affiliate), 3-1. Jason Lane and Jeff Corsaletti hit home runs, making Devern Hansack a winner. Game 3 is tonight at 7:05.

Amalie Benjamin can be reached at abenjamin@globe.com.