ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- David Ortiz shrugged off two previous frustrating at-bats, when the Rays' shift robbed him of singles to right.

Once again, he found the best way to defeat the various imaginative Tampa Bay shifts -- hit the ball over it.

The Sox designated hitter crushed a line-drive homer over the right-field fence in the fifth, snapping a 2-2 tie. It was his 40th homer of the season and 109th RBI, totals that are tops in the majors.

Ortiz became the first player in Red Sox history to post three 40-homer seasons in a row. Carl Yastrzemski (1967, 1969-1970) and Manny Ramirez (2001, 2004, 2005) each can boast three 40-homer campaigns, but they didn't come consecutively.

The 40 homers are the most ever by a member of the Sox through Aug. 6, coming in Boston's 110th game. Jimmie Foxx holds the team record with 50 homers, in 1938. Foxx clubbed his 40th homer in his team's 127th game.

Despite the Rays' shifts, Ortiz feasted on Tampa Bay pitching at Tropicana Field. In 10 games here, Ortiz went 11 for 37 (.297) with 7 homers and 12 RBI. His hits included a bunt single when the Devil Rays left no one on the left side of the infield because of one of their shifts on Saturday night, but it was his power that beat the alignments on a regular basis.

"Until you can put someone behind that fence, [a shift] is never going to completely stop him," said manager Terry Francona over the weekend.

Johnson's best outing

Jason Johnson turned in his best outing in four starts for Boston.

The veteran right-hander, who worked at a consistently quicker pace than in his previous starts, gave up two runs on three hits in six innings. An errant pickoff throw by Johnson, who left with a 6-2 lead, caused one of those runs to be unearned.

"He had been fighting a knot in his back all game, so after six innings and us up by four, we felt good where he got us," said Francona.

"My sinker is my main pitch and it for the majority of the game it was down for me," said Johnson, who also gave up a solo homer to Ben Zobrist. "But it was just a start. We didn't win, so it's not that encouraging."

Lowell should go tomorrow

Mike Lowell still wasn't ready to return to action yesterday, but the third baseman, who suffered a bad bruise on his left foot after fouling off a ball Thursday night, took some batting practice off a tee yesterday for the first time since that night.

Lowell was wearing a protective shin guard with a pad that also covered the top of his foot. He said after testing the foot gingerly in swings, he was able to forget about it and take his normal stride, which told him he should be able to play tomorrow night in the opener of a three-game series in Kansas City.

Pitchers are still learning

Craig Hansen is only one year removed from pitching for St. John's in Big East competition.

That's one fact that Francona is taking into account as the rookie right-hander continues to struggle with consistency, especially since the All-Star break.

Hansen was tagged for three runs in an inning Saturday night, enabling the Devil Rays to pull away and withstand Boston's ninth-inning rally. Hansen has been charged with at least one run in three of his last four appearances, his earned-run average rising from 4.12 to 5.47.

Francona said such ups and downs are to be expected with young pitchers.

The same can be said for Manny Delcarmen. Another young right-hander, Delcarmen has been bothered by a problem with his right thumb.

Yesterday Delcarmen surrendered two runs on three hits in the seventh. It was the fourth time in his last six outings that he has given up at least one run, his earned-run average rising from 3.00 to 4.14.

Coach still recuperating

Pitching coach Dave Wallace, still recovering from hip replacement surgery, is working himself back into the role, which has been filled on an interim basis by Al Nipper, who initially had been brought back by the Sox to serve as the bullpen coach.

Francona said when Wallace is ready to assume full-time pitching-coach duties, which includes going out to the mound and working with pitchers in the bullpen among other tasks, he would take back his position. But Nipper and Ralph Treuel, called up to be bullpen coach when Nipper's duties changed this spring, would remain with the team in various capacities.

There is no timetable for the transition.

Crawford's speed a factor

Before the game, Francona was asked how he was going to slow down Carl Crawford if the speedy Rays' left fielder got on first base.

"Throw to third to cut him off at the pass," joked Francona.

The Sox' Johnson should have paid attention to his manager. He tried to pick off Crawford at first in the fourth inning and made a wild throw down the right-field line, enabling Crawford to race to third. He scored on a groundout, tying the game at 2-2.

Around the bases

Corky Miller, who started behind the plate, became the sixth catcher used by the Sox this season, the most since 1987, when they also used six. Miller went 0 for 4, and is 1 for 55 in his big-league action over the past three years . . .Justin Varitek, brother of Sox captain Jason, managed the Altamonte Springs Snappers against the Winter Park Diamond Dawgs in the Florida Collegiate Summer League championship game yesterday after the Sox-Rays game.

Coco Crisp, who had at least two hits in five of his previous six games (11 for 25), struck out in each of his first four at-bats before finally getting his bat on the ball, a soft line drive right to the shortstop for an out in the seventh. It was the second four-whiff game of his career, the other coming as a member of the Indians in Oakland on Sept. 12, 2004. Crisp, though, grounded a single up the middle in the 10th and swiped second base, his 15th stolen base of the year and third in as many games.

Manny Ramirez stretched his career-best hitting streak to 22 games -- with a lot of help from the Devil Rays. He was 0 for 3 when he lofted a seemingly harmless high fly ball to right-center with two outs in the eighth. But center fielder Damon Hollins and right fielder Russell Branyan got their signals crossed. The ball fell safely to the turf, about five feet behind Branyan and about five feet over from Hollins. The play was ruled a single . . . Mark Loretta notched his 43rd multiple-hit game. The Mariners' Ichiro Suzuki led the league, with 49, prior to yesterday's action.

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