Pedro Martinez rebounds from one of his worst outings as a member of the Red Sox, holding Toronto to an earned run in the climate controlled SkyDome.

08:26 AM EDT on Wednesday, April 21, 2004

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

AP photo Pedro Martinez retires 15 of his first 17 batters and limits Toronto to two runs and five hits in pacing the Red Sox to a 4-2 win last night.

TORONTO -- As it turns out, there was nothing ailing Pedro Martinez that another look at the Toronto Blue Jays and some climate control couldn't cure.

Five days after one of his worst outings as a member of the Red Sox, Martinez reverted to form last night, limiting the Blue Jays to a single earned run over seven innings as the Sox doubled up the slumping Jays, 4-2.

Martinez outdueled fellow Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay, who dropped to 1-3. The Sox backed Martinez with solo runs in the first, fourth, fifth and seventh.

It was Martinez's second win of the season. Both have come against Toronto, which is off to one of its worst starts ever, losing the first seven games of its home schedule and matching the franchise's mark for futility at the start of the season, falling to 3-10.

In two outings against the Blue Jays, who entered the night hitting .219 as a team, Martinez has yielded just two earned runs in 14 1/3 innings. In his two other starts, both against Baltimore, Martinez has given up nine earned runs on 15 hits in 11 innings.

But the presence of the Jays wasn't the only variable for Martinez last night. Pitching with the SkyDome roof closed and the indoor temperature at 68 degrees, Martinez was clearly more comfortable. In his last start, Martinez pitched in a bitter chill and had difficulty getting loose. Thanks to consecutive rainouts, he also had little opportunity to throw between starts.

"I felt a lot better inside here than I did the last time (at Fenway)," Martinez said in a statement relayed to a Red Sox spokesman. "I felt looser. I didn't have a hard time warming up. I had my breaking ball back and I had my routine back. That was the difference."

From the very beginning, it was obvious this was a different Martinez than the one who couldn't locate any of his pitches against the Orioles. Through five innings, he had allowed just two hits -- a leadoff double in the second to Carlos Delgado and a two-out single to Delgado in the fourth. Delgado failed to advance either time.

He froze hitters with a sharp curve, striking out five through the first five innings, three of them on called strikes.

"He had a good feel tonight -- plain and simple," said catcher Jason Varitek. "He was able to establish his fastball down and away and go from there."

"I thought he was outstanding," echoed manager Terry Francona. "He worked so quick. He got the ball on the mound, threw strikes with all of his pitches and hit his spots with all his pitches."

A two-out double by David Ortiz and a ground single driven up the middle by Manny Ramirez produced a quick lead in the first as the Sox continued their habit of producing early, outscoring opponents in the first inning thus far, 9-1.

The Sox stalled in the second and third innings when they missed opportunities to pad their lead on Halladay. A leadoff double in the second from Varitek and a grounder to the right side by Mark Bellhorn gave the Sox a baserunner at third with one out, but Halladay fanned Gabe Kapler, then got Pokey Reese to pop to first.

It was more of the same when Johnny Damon reached on a chopper in front of the plate, took second on Halladay's errant throw to first and moved to third on a Bill Mueller groundout.

But with two chances to get the runner home, the Sox came up short once more as Halladay struck out Ortiz and Ramirez bounced to third.

"He's a different pitcher with guys on base," said Francona of Halladay. "He's got that extra gear."

In the fourth, Halladay helped the Sox do what they couldn't do on their own. With Varitek (single) on third and Kapler (single) on second, Halladay flinched in the his delivery, causing home plate umpire Ron Kulpa to call a balk, scoring Varitek and moving Kapler to third.

A run-scoring double by Millar in the fifth and an RBI double from Varitek (three hits) upped the Boston lead to 4-0.

Martinez bailed himself out of trouble in the seventh when he froze Johnson at third after a one-out triple, but in the seventh, his pitch count climbing, he tired. A sacrifice fly by Kevin Cash snapped Toronto's shutout string at 19 innings and a bloop single from Orlando Hudson plated Eric Hinske.

But after a walk to pinch-hitter Greg Myers, Martinez got Reed Johnson on an inning-ending flyout. Martinez is unbeaten (3-0) in SkyDome and is 9-2 lifetime in 16 starts against Toronto.

"He didn't have to prove anything to me," said Francona of Martinez. "I'm in his corner. The guy's a great pitcher."

Scott Williamson took care of the eighth and Keith Foulke had a perfect ninth for his fourth save.