BOSTON -- Jason Bay, acquired as part of the non-waiver deadline deal that shipped disgruntled Manny Ramirez to Los Angeles, has been everything he was advertised to be, Red Sox manager Terry Francona said.

“I’d been told by a lot of people that he would be a pleasure,” the manager said. “He’s upbeat, he gets here early, he wants to play, he gets down the line, goes from first to third, steals bases. He’s a really good baseball player. That’s what we thought we were getting.”

Bay began play last night hitting .340 (17-for-50) with three doubles, one triple, one homer and 11 RBI in his first 12 games.

-STEVEN KRASNER