The Red Sox ace looked good on the mound during spring training, but the season's 35 starts will be a tougher job for the 39year-old hurler.

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

Is the glass half full? Or half empty?

How do you predict the strength of the Red Sox' veteran starting rotation?

Curt Schilling, the ace of the staff, looked solid in spring training, much better than he had a year ago when he was only a few months removed from major surgery on his right ankle as he limped into camp.

The right-hander's velocity was up appreciably from the facsimile of the Schilling the Sox fans saw in 2005, when he went 8-8 with a 5.69 earned-run average and nine saves, working around two stints on the disabled list and a tour of duty as Boston's closer.

But Schilling, a three-time 20-game winner and postseason stud, also happens to be 39 years old. Can the Sox' hero of the 2004 World Championship sustain his promising spring performances over the course of 35 regular-season starts?

Josh Beckett, the flame-throwing 25-year-old right-hander obtained from the Marlins over the winter, is a bulldog on the mound and a budding ace. Indeed, some may say he's already an ace, given the fact he helped pitch Florida to the 2003 World Series title over the New York Yankees.

But Beckett, who also had a strong spring, has yet to throw 200 innings in a season, coming closest last year when he logged 178 2/3 for the Marlins. In order for Beckett, who has been plagued by blister troubles and shoulder woes, to become the superstar some envision him becoming, he has to stay off the disabled list. Can he do that?

Matt Clement had a great first half last year, earning his first All-Star Game selection. But then the right-hander crashed and burned in the second half, most notably in a playoff debacle in the first game of the American League Division Series against the White Sox, who ultimately swept the three-game series.

Will Clement, who, fairly or not, does not have the reputation for mental toughness, be able to rebound from the memory of his playoff collapse? Will Clement, who has outstanding stuff, be able to come through for the Sox when the season heats up down the stretch?

Then there's David Wells, a corpulent, soon-to-be 43-year-old left-hander coming off surgery to his right knee in a season that he has already announced will be his last. What does he have left in the tank?

The most solid, consistent member of the rotation is Tim Wakefield, who will turn 40 in August. His knuckleball will dance, unhittable at times. It will flatten out at times, becoming extremely hittable. And he has lost his security blanket behind the plate, Doug Mirabelli. How much of a factor will it be for Wakefield to have a new catcher, Josh Bard?

The Red Sox, though, do have some options should any of the veterans falter for whatever reason. Rising star Jonathan Papelbon begins the year in the bullpen, but at some point, either this year or next, he'll be a young gun in the rotation. And then there's Jon Lester, a prized left-hander in Pawtucket, who could be ready to help out the second half of the season.

skrasner@projo.com / (401) 277-7340