•KEY TO THE GAME: Pawtucket beat Lehigh Valley, 2-0, last night at McCoy Stadium in large part because of the ability to come through in the clutch.

Keith Ginter came through big-time for the PawSox, delivering the game-winning hit. A 10-year veteran who has played for three major-league teams, Ginter singled up the middle with two on and one out in the eighth to break up a scoreless game.

Chris Carter, who had singled, and Brandon Moss, who had doubled Carter to third, scored. The hit was sweet for Ginter, who came to the plate just 2-for-24 this season. One pitch before his game-winning hit he belted a blast down the line in left off Lehigh Valley reliever Kevin Beirne. The shot had plenty of distance to be a home run, but hooked foul. It was not the first time Ginter has done that.

“He’d be leading the world in home runs right now if he had those foul-ball home runs,” pointed out Pawtucket manager Ron Johnson. “If he’d hit the ball maybe 15 feet more this way in the last week he’d have four or five.”

•TIMLIN SHARP: Mike Timlin was all business in his second and almost certainly final rehab appearance for the PawSox. The big right-hander pitched the sixth inning, when the game was still scoreless. He retired the IronPigs on three straight routine ground balls, one to first and two to second.

Timlin, who suffered a lacerated ring finger on his pitching hand in spring training, threw only 10 pitches, 7 for strikes. He hit a high of 92 on the radar gun. Timlin pronounced himself healed.

“Yeah, I do,” he responded when asked whether he was ready to return to Boston. Timlin did not expect to receive official word until today.

“There’s a game going on (in Boston), so it’s kind of hard to give them a call (now),” he said. “I’ve got Theo’s (Epstein) number, but I’m not going to call him during a game. I’ll go back up there, show up tomorrow and see what they want to do.”

The cut on his finger is fully healed, he said.

“I felt good. The ball came out real well. I had decent control. I got three ground balls. That’s what I wanted,” he said.

•THE BULLPEN: Timlin was part of a Pawtucket bullpen that allowed only one base runner, via a walk, in 4 2/3 innings. Jon Switzer, Craig Hansen and Lee Gronkiewicz, who picked up his third save, all were excellent.

That continues a trend. The bullpen now has worked 32 2/3 innings and allowed only 19 hits and seven earned runs. Relievers have retired the first batter they’ve faced 17 of 21 times.

“It makes my stomach feel really good,” Johnson said. “I like that. It’s a comfortable feeling right now.”

Hansen went two perfect innings. He now has allowed only one hit in six innings.

“Craig threw the ball very well,” Johnson said. “The slider was hard. He commanded the fast ball. It was a really good performance from the entire pitching staff.”