BOSTON — Doug Mirabelli owes his baseball life in Boston to the fact that he is adept at handling Tim Wakefield’s knuckleball.

That’s why he was re-signed in the offseason. It wasn’t because of his bat.

But last night, while doing his usual quality job behind the plate for Wakefield, Mirabelli was the early, and most important, offensive star of the game for Boston in its 10-1 win over the Angels.

Mirabelli pulled the Sox even at 1-1 with a homer to right-center off tough Angels starter John Lackey in the fifth. And his RBI single in the sixth opened up a 3-1 lead for the Red Sox at chilly Fenway Park.

The hits were the first two of the season for Mirabelli, who was 0 for 4 entering the game.

“Hitting doesn’t come easy for me. I have to work hard at it,”said Mirabelli, who batted a mere .193 in 161 at-bats for Boston last season.

“This does a lot for my confidence. It makes me happy when I can contribute offensively for us in a win. I’m very proud of the hard work I put in, and there were some rewards tonight,” he said.

Manager Terry Francona said Mirabelli’s production, which gave the faltering Sox’ offense a much-needed jump-start, was greatly appreciated.

“When a guy who does not play every day gives you an offensive punch like that, it gives the entire team a lift,” said Francona.

Wakefield also complimented Mirabelli, his personal catcher for the better part of the last four years.

“He does such a good job. He’s that good. I don’t think he gets enough praise for what he does,” said Wakefield.

Wakefield, meanwhile, turned in a second superb start in as many outings this season. He limited the Angels to five hits and one run in seven-plus innings, raising his record to 1-1 and lowering his earned-run average to 1.38.

Wakefield said the cold didn’t bother him as much as he thought it would. Mirabelli liked what he was seeing from Wakefield from behind the plate.

“He was very sharp,” said Mirabelli. “He was sharp in the bullpen and he carried that into the game. He didn’t spin any knuckleballs the whole night. We couldn’t have drawn it up any better. The ball was dancing through the (strike) zone. They weren’t too comfortable up there trying to hit it.”

The beat goes on

Dice-K Mania keeps making its presence felt. Sometimes more than Francona would like. The latest example was brought on by Thursday’s rainout.

Because of the postponement, the Sox shifted their rotation, skipping Julian Tavares and moving Daisuke Matsuzaka back a day, from Monday to Tuesday. It seemed reasonable, all the more so since many Japanese teams use six-man rotations, meaning starters get five days’ rest between starts. But any moves with their new attraction create news in Japan. In the middle of his pregame media briefing yesterday, one of the two dozen or so Japanese reporters asked Francona if he was aware that pushing back Matsuzaka a day had created a stir in Japan.

“I’m aware of that,” Francona responded. “I found out the hard way.”

Francona tried to explain how he felt he was helping both his team and Matsuzaka by making the move, one that includes keeping Josh Beckett and Curt Schilling in their normal rotation.

On the other hand . . .

In contrast to the waves made with changing Matsuzaka’s schedule, the decision to bypass Tavarez drew scant attention.

But Francona made note of it. And he appreciates both the willingness and ability of Tavarez to make the change.

“Getting a guy that is willing and can do it certainly helps,” Francona said. “This is one of those situations. We kind of gave him the scenarios we saw. He said fine. It does help. He doesn’t give you that look like, ‘Oh, my goodness. How do you expect me to win a game?’ He’s just trying to figure out how to prepare for it. That’s good. It’s appreciated, also.”

“You try to affect fewer people,” Francona said of dealing with the change in the schedule. “Sometimes one guy has to bite the bullet to not affect the whole staff.”

Phils claim Durbin

The Red Sox have decided to go with only one J.D. at a time.

The Sox had claimed right-handed pitcher J.D. Durbin on waivers from Arizona on Monday. However, Durbin was designated for assignment on Tuesday and was claimed yesterday by Philadelphia.

Special activities

The Sox will have a number of special activities planned for this weekend’s games with the Angels.

It will be Kids’ Weekend Presented by Hood, with events planned for both days. Also, tomorrow, the Sox will join all of Major League Baseball in celebrating the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s breaking the Major League Baseball color barrier. on As a tribute to Robinson, outfielder Coco Crisp, designated hitter David Ortiz and third base coach DeMarlo Hale all will wear No. 42. The ceremonial first pitch on Jackie Robinson Day will be thrown by Professor Charles J. Ogletree Jr., a professor of law and the founder and executive director of the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard Law School.

skrasner@projo.com