BALTIMORE — It happens often during a game.

The hitter asks for time and steps out of the batter’s box. Almost always, the plate umpire grants time. The hitter usually takes it for granted that his request will be honored.

But that didn’t happen last night.

Julio Lugo asked for time as he was getting ready for Daniel Cabrera’s first pitch after Alex Cora’s homer in the third inning. Lugo backed away from the batter’s box.

Angel Hernandez, apparently feeling that Lugo had asked too late and that Cabrera already was in his motion, did not grant time. The pitch came in with Lugo on the outskirts of the dirt circle around home plate, and Hernandez called it a strike.

As per Rule 6.02b, the batter has to stay in the box once the pitcher has come to his set position or is ready to throw the ball. If the hitter backs out, and the pitch is delivered, the umpire calls it a ball or strike depending on where it winds up in the strike zone.

Lugo walked up to Hernandez and began a discussion. He kept up his discussion. Twice, Hernandez pointed to the batter’s box, seemingly telling him to get back in there and hit.

The Sox’ shortstop kept talking. Hernandez motioned to Cabrera to pitch. The right-hander was on the rubber and quickly delivered another pitch, again with Lugo out of the box. Hernandez called it a strike, putting Lugo in an 0-and-2 hole.

Boston manager Terry Francona marched out to ask Hernandez what was going on.

Eventually, that discussion ran its course, Lugo got back in the box and grounded out to second on a 2-and-2 pitch.

"(Hernandez) told him he didn't call time," said Francona, who was afraid Lugo might get tossed.

"I told him I understood, but explain it to (Lugo). I understand there are some rules, but just give an explanation (to the player) and it will go away and not provoke it more. You can make those things go away. I went out because I wanted to make sure it didn't escalate. I didn't want to lose my shortstop."

There’s more

Hernandez was a focal point in something unusual in the first inning, too.

Boston captain Jason Varitek was called for catcher’s interference during Miguel Tejada’s first-inning at-bat.

With the count 1-and-2, Curt Schilling threw a splitter. Varitek reached to catch the ball, and as Tejada took a swing at the diving pitch, his bat ticked off the top of the catcher’s mitt. Tejada also got a piece of the ball, sending it foul toward the Baltimore dugout.

But Hernandez heard that “tick” of the glove, so he awarded Tejada first base. On such a play, the catcher is charged with an error and Tejada does not get charged with an at-bat.

Francona talked with Hernandez for a while, but the call wasn’t changed.

Familiar scenario

Schilling benefited from the Orioles’ aggressiveness at the plate, as he did two starts ago when the Angels were so aggressive.

The scouting report must be to swing early in the count against Schilling because he throws strikes, rarely issuing walks.

Over the first five innings, of the 13 outs he recorded when the O’s put the ball in play (there were two strikeouts), seven of them came on either one pitch (2) or two pitches (5). He needed only 63 pitches to get through the first five innings last night.

For his seven innings, Schilling, who fanned three, had four one-pitch outs and five two-pitch outs. Of the Orioles’ five hits, two came on the first pitch and one came on the second pitch.

It was similar against the Angels on April 14. Through six innings he had thrown only 64 pitches, getting many first-pitch (6) and second-pitch (5) outs.

Things were a little different in his start in between, against the more patient Yanks last weekend. Schilling had six first-pitch outs in seven innings, but threw 103 pitches over that stretch.

Decisions, decisions

Baltimore third baseman Chris Gomez made a bad defensive decision in the sixth.

It didn’t cost the Orioles a run in the inning, but it may have led to the Sox’ tie-breaking three-run outburst in the seventh.

With runners at first and second and one out and the Orioles trailing, 1-0, in the sixth, Mike Lowell hit a chopper to Gomez. He came in on the ball and picked up the ball on the short hop.

But instead of starting an “around-the-horn” double play on Lowell, who is a slow runner, Gomez ran to his right and tagged the third-base bag for the force there and then threw to first base. Lowell, though, beat his throw, prolonging the inning.

The Orioles didn’t pay for the mental lapse on the scoreboard. Cabrera whiffed Varitek on a 3-and-2 pitch. But it did cost a laboring Cabrera six more pitches, bringing his total to 101.

It’s hard to say how much of a toll those six extra pitches took on Cabrera, but he clearly was fatigued in the seventh, issuing a leadoff walk to Wily Mo Pena, who had fanned two last night and in eight of his last 10 at-bats.

Cabrera finally was lifted, after 117 pitches, with runners on first and second and two out in a 1-1 game. He got ahead of his last batter, Kevin Youkilis, but then walked him.

And when David Ortiz looped a single off Jamie Walker on the 11th pitch of his at-bat, Cabrera was on the hook for the loss. It was a 4-1 Boston lead by the end of the inning.

Schilling’s soft stuff

Schilling, apparently, did not want to give the Orioles’ young right fielder, Nick Markakis, a fastball. At least not in his first at-bat in the opening inning, not even when the right-hander fell behind in the count at 2-and-0 and 3-and-1.

After missing with a pair of changeups, each one at 73 mph, Schilling went with a slider (85), and Markakis took it for a strike. After a 76-mph curve made the count 3-and-1, Schilling again opted not to throw a fastball, again throwing a slider, which Markakis fouled off.

And on the 3-and-2 pitch, with Markakis clearly geared for a fastball, Schilling threw a 74-mph pitch that had the hitter way out front. Markakis lofted a lazy fly ball to left field for the out.

It was more of the same in the third, with Markakis grounding out to short on an off-speed pitch. Markakis got a few fastballs in his third at-bat, but was handled easily, on a groundout.

Oops

How many outs?

Varitek had a momentary lapse in the second inning. With a runner at second and two outs, Gomez hit a low liner to the left of Youkilis, who made the shoe-top catch.

The runner was at third base when the catch was made. Varitek, standing at the plate, was pointing to second, thinking the Sox could double up the runner. But, obviously, there was no need for that. The inning was over, which Varitek quickly realized as his teammates began running off the field.

Too slow for comfort

Sometimes a base is stolen on the pitcher. Sometimes it’s stolen on the catcher.

The Orioles’ Corey Patterson, though, stole second base in the second inning on the pitch selection.

Patterson took off from first base on a 1-and-0 pitch to Gomez. It turned out to be a 74-mph curveball. It was a strike. But because the pitch was slow, Varitek had no chance to throw out Patterson. His throw was late.

skrasner@projo.com