01:00 AM EST on Sunday, April 2, 2006

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA -- Bob Watson, Major League Baseball's vice president of on-field operations, visited the Red Sox clubhouse yesterday but didn't speak with pitcher Julian Tavarez, whom he suspended Thursday.

Tavarez was suspended for the first 10 days of the season for his part in an altercation with Tampa Bay's Joey Gathright. Tavarez has decided not to appeal his sentence, meaning the Sox will play the first eight games of this season with just 24 players.

"I did what I did; he has options," said Watson.

When asked if Tavarez's notorious past entered into his decision-making (the veteran reliever had previously been suspended six times), Watson responded: "What do you think? It didn't help."

The agreement was handed down without the use of videotape (the game wasn't televised), but Watson said he spoke to enough people involved to form a picture for himself. He added that ruling without videotape was hardly unusual.

Watson did meet briefly with manager Terry Francona and expressed his concern about the number of incidents in which the Sox have been involved, including the Tavarez-Gathright fight, the confrontation between Josh Beckett and the Phillies' Ryan Howard, and the exchange of beanballs between the Sox and Yankees two weeks ago in Tampa.

Mounds of relief

Francona will use Tavarez for an inning of relief today before the suspension begins. The manager doesn't think the Sox will be short-handed without the reliever.

"If we run into trouble (with two off-days on the schedule)," said Francona, "things haven't gone right. The only problem is, Julian gets outs. He's a good pitcher."

Yesterday, Keith Foulke, Mike Timlin and Jonathan Papelbon each pitched an inning.

Foulke gave up two runs on three hits, but was happy with his fastball. The radar gun had him topping out at 87 mph, but Francona thought that was slow and was encouraged that the reliever got some swings and misses on his fastball.

"As long as I can keep them off-balance with it, that's fine," Foulke said. "My mechanics are still a little sloppy, but when I do it right, I get that good snap and it sneaks up on guys, while the change gets them out front."

Coming up short

The Phillies moved the fences back five feet at cozy Citizen's Bank Park, but it did not make any difference yesterday.

The Phils and Red Sox combined for 14 runs and five homers in a 9-5 win for the Phillies.

Chase Utley hit a three-run shot to right in the bottom of the first before Mike Lowell and Kevin Youkilis answered with back-to-back solo shots in the top of the second.

Trot Nixon later added another solo homer for the Sox.

Extra bases

Mike Lowell, who struggled in the first few weeks of spring, is finishing strong. He was 3-for-3 yesterday to lift his spring average to .320. Lowell has traditionally gotten off to strong starts, with the notable exception of last year, when he hit .198 . . . The Phils granted the Red Sox' request to use the DH, enabling Ortiz to get some at-bats . . . Don't expect the regulars to stay in long today, with the opener tomorrow . . . The Sox did some roster housekeeping when they placed left-hander David Wells (knee) and first baseman Hee Seop Choi (left hamstring) on the disabled list. Wells was placed on the DL retroactive to March 28, while Choi was backdated to March 29.

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