Red Sox leadoff hitter Jacoby Ellsbury drops his bat and prepares to touch them all after clubbing a home run into the Royals’ bullpen in the first inning last night at Fenway Park.

The Providence Journal / Gretchen Ertl

BOSTON — It’s been a special week for the Red Sox and their pitching staff.

Red Sox starter Jon Lester tossed a no-hitter against the Royals on Monday, rookie call-up Justin Masterson earned his first major-league victory in only his second start for Boston, and veteran Bartolo Colon made his Red Sox debut last night.

Lost in the shuffle is the fact that former Sox reliever Julian Tavarez accepted his minor-league assignment and will join the Pawtucket Red Sox in the next couple of days. Plus, with the Red Sox purchasing the contract of Colon yesterday, the club optioned Masterson to Pawtucket.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona said yesterday that Masterson will join the PawSox’ starting rotation, but there is a possibility he could help Boston’s bullpen later in the season.

“Yeah, he could probably help us in the ’pen,” Francona said. “I think the starters’ innings are really, really beneficial (right now). Where that takes him the rest of the year, I don’t know.”

Masterson pitched the Sox to victory over Kansas City Tuesday night, then was told that rather than going back to Portland, he was being assigned to Pawtucket. It is expected he will start for the PawSox Sunday or Monday.

It is not sure how long Tavarez that will last or even what role he will fill once he joins the PawSox. When Francona was asked about the situation, he said Tavarez’ fate would be an organizational decision.

“If I said something I’d be making it up. I’d rather not do that,” he said. But he did make a prediction when asked if he was surprised Tavarez had cleared waivers.

“You know what, I never try to manage another team, let alone be a general manager,” Francona said. “I think I feel better saying he is going to pitch in the big leagues. He’ll be in the big leagues (before the season is over).”

Rest prescribed for Drew

Red Sox outfielder J.D. Drew was out of the starting lineup last night. He smoked a foul ball off his knee during Tuesday’s game against the Royals, but Francona said yesterday afternoon that Drew still could have played last night. Due to today’s matinee game, the manager thought it best to give Drew a rest. Plus, Francona said he’s pleased with the way the outfielder rotation of Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, Manny Ramirez and Coco Crisp has worked this season.

Manny loses timing at plate

Speaking of Manny, he’s stuck on home run No. 498, but Francona doesn’t feel like the slugger is pressing. The manager joked that he would rather have Manny at 498 instead of 14 (Francona hit 16 career homers during his playing days).

“He’s not pressing, but his timing has been off a bit,” said the manager. “On some of his swings you can tell he doesn’t have all of his balance or leverage, but that will change.

Ramirez went 0-for-3 last night.

Mills gets signals straight

Red Sox third-base coach DeMarlo Hale could rejoin the club in Oakland this weekend. He is in Orlando, Fla., to attend to his wife, who is undergoing undisclosed medical exams. Francona said Hale has the club’s blessing to take as long as he needs. In the meantime, bench coach Brad Mills has been filling in at third.

It’s been a while since Mills has directed runners and has given signs on the base paths. He served as Francona’s first-base coach in Philadelphia from 1997 to 2000. The last time Mills worked the third-base side was as a minor-league manager for the Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas in 2002.

“The fact he went out there and didn’t look out of place was really pretty amazing,” said Francona. “I bet the game looked like it was going 100 mph. That’s hard to do.”

Ex-Sox Hash dies at 97

Former Red Sox right-handed pitcher Herb Hash died Tuesday morning in Cullpeper, Va. He was 97. He was the second oldest living Red Sox player behind Billy Werber, who turns 100 on June 25. Hash was 8-7 with a 4.98 ERA in 38 games for Boston from 1940 to 1941.

A job well done

While Colon was being praised for his effort last night, the bullpen also deserved a share of the credit for the 6-3 victory.

Craig Hansen, Javier Lopez and Manny Delcarmen each chipped in with a scoreless inning. Mike Timlin was nicked for a run with two outs in the ninth, but nailed down Boston’s sixth win in a row.

The relievers were aware they’d be on call a little earlier than normal.

“We knew Bartolo was on a pitch count of 75 or 80, so in that case, you have to get your mind right a little faster,” said Lopez, who worked around a leadoff walk, fanning two in the seventh inning.

Around the horn

The Sox boosted their home winning streak to nine games, the longest such streak since a nine-game June 19-29, 2006. The last time Boston won more games in a row was a 14-game streak from July 19-Aug. 26, 2005. … The Red Sox have a chance to sweep the seven-game homestand today, when they will host the Royals in a matinee (1:35) before heading to Oakland for the start of a 10-game trip. … Boston has scored at least one run in the first inning in 33 of 49 games, going 25-8 in those games . . . Red Sox starters are 5-0 with a 2.72 earned-run average in the last seven games. … Ellsbury scored three runs, the fourth time he has accomplished that feat. He also swiped his 19th base, tying him for sixth on the team’s rookie list with Patsy Dougherty (1902) and Heinie Wagner (1907). … Of Crisp’s last eight hits, seven have been for extra bases, including his double last night.

skrasner@projo.com