New York pitcher Chien-Ming Wang tags out Boston’s Julio Lugo to complete an odd twin-killing in the third inning of yesterday’s series finale at Yankee Stadium.

AP / Ed Betz

NEW YORK — Just your basic 2-3-1 double play, if you’re scoring at home.

Well, hardly basic. This isn’t one you get to fill into your scorebook very often, but it was a rally-killer for the Red Sox in the third inning yesterday.

With Julio Lugo on third and Kevin Youkilis on first and one out and Boston already ahead, 2-0, David Ortiz hit a squibber in front of the plate.

Catcher Jorge Posada pounced on it, looked at Lugo, who had to hold momentarily at third, and then fired a pea to first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz.

As the throw was on its way to first, Lugo broke for home.

Pitcher Chien-Ming Wang, who had started in to field the squibber, alertly covered the plate for a strong throw from Mientkiewicz. He caught the ball, lunged and put his glove in front of the plate a split-second before Lugo got there. And, while he may or may not have tagged Lugo’s front foot, according to replays, plate umpire Rob Drake called him out for the unusual double play.

Technically, it wasn’t a double play, but it was a twin-killing nonetheless.

And one inning later, the Sox hit into another unusual double play. Score this one 4-3-3.

With Manny Ramirez on first base and none out, Eric Hinske chopped one to second baseman Robinson Cano. Cano went to tag Ramirez, but Ramirez stopped, so Cano threw to Mientkiewicz for the out at first.

Ramirez, meanwhile, still was in the middle of the baseline. He hadn’t even tried to race to second after Cano threw to first. So Mientkiewicz had Ramirez in a rundown. He ran hard at Ramirez, who finally started half-heartedly toward second. Mientkiewicz faked a throw, Ramirez stopped and Mientkiewicz slapped the tag on him, completing the double play.

So Mientkiewicz had two putouts on the play.

Inside information

It was no secret when Johnny Damon played center field for Boston that he had a weak throwing arm. Teams would run on him at will.

Damon is in his second year with the Yanks, and his arm hasn’t gotten any better, which didn’t escape the Sox’ scouting report.

Lugo challenged Damon and won easily, advancing from first to third on a sharp single up the middle by Youkilis in the third. Damon’s throw from shallow center had no carry on it, and was a bit wide as Lugo slid in safely.

Whatever works

The way Julian Tavarez throws to first base after fielding comebackers, you might think he has “Matt Young’s Disease.”

The former Red Sox left-hander had a phobia about throwing to first base, to the point to where he wouldn’t even try a pickoff move.

Tavarez doesn’t seem to like to make overhand throws to first. Yesterday, he fielded two balls back to the mound in the opening inning. The first one, off the bat of Damon, took him toward the bag as he fielded it, so he made a simple underhand toss to Youkilis for the out.

On the other one, though, a tapper off the bat of Bobby Abreu on which Tavarez had to come in a few steps toward the plate to field, he still made an underhand toss — from probably about 70 feet away — and the high, arching toss beat Abreu by a step or so.

The double cross

Catcher Jason Varitek didn’t look very good on a pitch from Tavarez that got away from him with runners at first and second and none out in the third.

The pitch clanged off the mitt of Varitek, who didn’t shift his weight to the right and tried to backhand the ball. Varitek was charged with a passed ball.

It turned out, though, that Tavarez crossed up Varitek with the pitch. Varitek was expecting a fastball and got a quick, late-breaking slider instead, accounting for his uncharacteristically poor approach to catch the ball.

The runner moved up a base. Mientkiewicz was the hitter and he was being called on to bunt. But instead of the Sox, who led, 2-0, at the time, getting the cheap “out” if he had moved up the runners, they had to pitch to him. And Mientkiewicz clubbed a three-run homer, giving the Yanks a short-lived 3-2 lead.

Two can play that game

Both teams were a bit “shifty,” as is their defensive custom.

The Sox swing around in an exaggerated shift when Jason Giambi bats, and the maneuver paid off when the Yankee designated hitter pulled a hot shot through what normally is the hole. Second baseman Alex Cora was stationed there, in shallow right field.

So he calmly fielded the ball and threw out Giambi.

The Sox had to modify their shift the next time Giambi came to the plate, and he lined a base hit.

skrasner@projo.com