CLEVELAND -- For seven years, Jonathan Van Every played in all the tiny and not-so-tiny cities in the Cleveland Indians' farm system.

Mahoning Valley, Ohio and Kinston, N.C. Akron and Buffalo. Along the way, Van Every played with Asdrubal Cabrera, Ryan Garko, Fausto Carmona and many other current Indians. Together, they dreamed about one day starring in the major leagues.

Van Every never got his chance with the Indians. The team released him after the 2007 seasonm and he signed with the Red Sox as a free agent. A strong 2008 with the Pawtucket Red Sox helped pave Van Every's entry into the majors and to Progressive Field on Wednesday night.

Facing an old Akron and Buffalo teammate in Jensen Lewis, Van Every enjoyed his greatest moment as a pro in the 10th inning of a back-and-forth ball game. The 29-year old lefty crushed a changeup 420 feet to dead center that gave the Red Sox a 6-5 victory.

"It feels good. It would be hard to script it any better," he said. "It couldn't have come at a better time. I spent seven years trying to figure out how to get to this point in my career, and luckily I'm here."

As he ran into a jubilant dugout, Van Every was swarmed by his teammates. "They beat me on the head. I've got a headache. But at least I kept my helmet on," he said.

Left for dead after five lifeless innings, the Red Sox awoke and rallied to tied the game at 5-5 and force extra innings. Jonathan Papelbon nailed down his sixth save to secure the win.

"We'll take them any way we can get them," said manager Terry Francona. "That was a good win. I think I'm probably understating it a little bit."

Starting pitcher Jon Lester struggled right out of the box when he mishandled a tap back to the mound by the Indians' leadoff hitter, Grady Sizemore. Hits by Asdrubal Cabrera and Victor Martinez, plus a sacrifice fly, pushed two runs across in the first.

In the second, Mark DeRosa cranked his second home run in two nights with a deep drive into the left-field stands for a 3-0 lead. Lester left two runners stranded on base in the third, but the Indians scored twice more in the fourth as Lester walked Ben Francisco to lead off the frame, and ex-Red Sox Kelly Shoppach hit a two-run homer to right field for a two-run home run and a 5-0 lead.

Lester escaped further damage in retiring the Indians in order in the fifth and sixth innings.

"I was battling myself confidence-wise and execution-wise," said Lester, who lasted six innings and 109 pitches. "Then I found something. I thought, heck, I can't do any worse."

The Sox were shut out through five innings by Cleveland starter Carmona but did their damage the rest of the way. They scored twice in the sixth off Carmona with Mike Lowell (two hits) and Jason Varitek (two hits) hitting back-to-back doubles. David Ortiz (1 for 5) left two men on in the seventh with an inning-ending strikeout, but the Sox strung up three runs in the eighth with Van Every bouncing a single into right and Jacoby Ellsbury (three hits) singling to center.

"We kept battling out there and came all the way back. That shows what kind of club we are," said Van Every.

Manny Delcarmen somehow survived a very messy bottom of the eighth. He retired his first two batters but walked two and hit another to load the bases. But he escaped when Grady Sizemore flied out to center to end the threat.

The Indians threatened again in the last of the ninth, this time off Hideki Okajima. Walks were again the issue as a pair of free passes put two runners on base, but Okajima froze Jhonny Peralta with a bending curveball for strike three.

With two out in the 10th, Van Every took Lewis to the deepest part of the park. The home-run ball nestled into a grove of trees in deep center. "I hit it good. Whether it got there or not, that's all I got. All I could do was put a good swing on it and let the ball go. It found a way to get out," he said.

The Sox gave the ball to Papelbon and while remaining shaky, he ultimately shut the door and gave his team its 12th win in the last 13 games.

kmcnamar@projo.com