Tips are quite valuable to Masterson

Justin Masterson keeps a small notebook at his house. He jots in it observations and advice from teammates, "just to remember," the Red Sox rookie reliever said.

The most helpful thing he wrote down came from Josh Beckett, shortly after Masterson was called up from Double A Portland for the first time back in April to make a spot start: "A quality pitch in the minor leagues is a quality pitch here. If you pitch your game, you'll have a chance to be successful."

Masterson, 23, used the advice to become a key piece of the bullpen, and he'll rely on it this week as the Sox begin the American League Division Series against the Los Angeles Angels.

The spotlight will find names such as Ortiz, Matsuzaka, Rodriguez, and Teixeira this week. But Masterson could be a key to the series, representative of two pivotal Sox factions: He is a member of the bullpen, derided for much of the season as a weakness and now hitting its peak. And he will appear in the playoffs for the first time, like Jed Lowrie and Jason Bay.

Masterson helped solidify the bullpen when manager Terry Francona moved him there July 23. In 34 1/3 innings as a reliever, Masterson has a 2.36 ERA, striking out 29 and walking 12.

With Masterson's emergence, the bullpen has turned from shaky to steady. Middle relievers Javier Lopez, Manny Delcarmen, and Hideki Okajima have combined to allow three earned runs in their last 48 innings. Those three, along with Masterson, will be most prominently used in bridging the gap between starters and closer Jonathan Papelbon.

"A lot of these guys that have been around, I'll see that, OK, they're building up to the apex," Masterson said. "You can see in their back of their mind, they're saying, 'OK, I need to lock it in for when it really matters.' "

While this will be Masterson's first playoffs, Francona summoned him in several important situations down the stretch. He brought Masterson in to pitch the ninth inning of a tie game at Tampa Bay, which Francona said displayed the confidence he has in Masterson.

On that night, he loaded the bases - allowing a bloop hit on one 0-2 count and hitting a batter on another - and allowed a walkoff single. Masterson took away more than the loss.

"Those are the things you draw from and learn from," Masterson said. "I felt terrible for what took place. But it's like, 'OK, if you make your pitches, you're able to be successful. You don't need to change who you are. Just make your pitches.' "

The lesson will come in handy for the playoffs. Masterson is laid-back by nature, but Portland manager Arnie Beyeler believes Masterson's demeanor will translate well.

"Without a doubt," Beyeler said. "It didn't faze him when he came up there the first time. He's a very confident kid, expects to succeed. When he crosses that line, he's got as much fire as anybody. He's ready to go. He's not afraid. He likes having the ball. That's what drives his success up here - he's not afraid."

That will be the key for other Red Sox first-timers, too. Second baseman Dustin Pedroia, as a rookie last season, went 2 for 13 in the division series before batting .319 in the next two rounds. He admitted the magnitude of the games affected his performance before he adjusted.

"Just play the game," Pedroia said. "I think my first couple games last year, I put so much pressure on myself wanting to do well. You kind of see yourself doing things you don't normally do. I think just relaxing and playing the game, they'll be fine."

Lowell, Drew work out

Mike Lowell and J.D. Drew participated in yesterday's optional workout at Fenway Park before the Sox left for the airport, and it seemed to go well for both of the injured Sox. For Lowell, though, the real test for his hip will come today in Anaheim, Calif., when he will take ground balls in Angel Stadium.

"I feel pretty good," Lowell said. "It's not really bothering me to swing, so I think today was more just getting into the flow of trying to get ready for the game. Then tomorrow will be a big day for me 'cause I'm going to take ground balls and see how that goes. That will give me a lot more information on how things are going.

"I'd definitely like to [play in Game 1], but I've got to see how I'm moving defensively. But I'm anticipating something good."

As for Drew, who is battling a back injury and who played in the first game of Sunday's doubleheader, "J.D. did OK," Francona said. "Today was optional, and he felt good enough to be able to participate in BP, which was a really good sign."

A few roster hints

Francona declined to name his roster for the first round of the postseason, but he did give some insight into who might not be on the roster. Devern Hansack, David Pauley, and David Aardsma will be going to pitch in the instructional league in Fort Myers, Fla. Hansack and Pauley will be stretched out as starters, while Aardsma pitches in relief. Chris Smith and George Kottaras will be heading home. That leaves the rest of the roster going to Anaheim, where the team will announce its 25 players for the first round by the 10 a.m. deadline tomorrow . . . The Sox did not take ground balls at Fenway because of the field conditions . . . There were about 1,500 people at the pep rally at Fenway . . . Francona, who is not big on team meetings, will sit down with the players for approximately 10 minutes today. But it's not for inspiration. Instead, he'll give a refresher course on signs, bunt defense, and things of that nature. "They know what we're doing," Francona said. "We've been together all year. We view every game as big around here. I think you start viewing games, making them bigger, and that doesn't really help."

New Angel faces

The Red Sox have defeated the Angels six consecutive games in the playoffs, sweeping them out of the ALDS two of the previous four seasons. But the Angels won eight of nine games against Boston this season, clobbering them by a combined score of 61-33. "They're a different team," Pedroia said. "They got Torii Hunter, [Mark] Teixeira. They got some different guys from last year. So we're going to have to go in there and play well. They've been the best team in baseball all year long. It's definitely not going to be easy for us." From the time Teixeira joined the Angels from the Braves July 28, Los Angeles went 34-22. Teixeira, who will become a free agent at season's end, hit .358 and compiled a 1.081 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) with the Angels.

 

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