BOSTON — It is never a good sign when the highlight of a night at the park comes after a game ends. But that was the case for the Red Sox last night, kind of.

As it was, May began the same way April ended at Fenway, with pitching and defense dominating. The only problem for Boston fans last night was that there was no dramatic last-inning rally. This time, Toronto pitchers shut down Red Sox hitting for nine innings, plus a bit extra.

A.J. Burnett, a budding Red Sox killer, did the honors with relief help from rookie Jesse Carlson and closer B.J. Ryan as the Blue Jays won, 3-0.

The Sox had only four hits, one of which came after the game had apparently ended. It was the weird finish that provided the biggest talking point of the evening.

Coco Crisp was at bat, with Brandon Moss on first (after a walk) with two outs in the ninth. Crisp lofted a routine fly to right. Alex Rios caught it and the Blue Jays’ players began congratulating each other on the victory. Except it was not over. It did not count. A balk had been called on Ryan, nullifying the pitch.

The Sox were the only ones not surprised.

“We saw him call it,” said Boston manager Terry Francona. “He [second base umpire Bruce Dreckman] threw his arms up. It was pretty emphatic.”

Toronto manager John Gibbons came out and argued so strongly he was ejected. When play resumed, Moss went to second and Crisp was back to the plate. He then singled to right. Now, all of a sudden, the tying run was at the plate.

The noise built and got louder when Jed Lowrie got ahead on the count, 3-1. But Ryan threw two straight pitches on the outside corner. Lowrie took them both and the game was over. For real, this time.

The emphasis on pitching was appropriate since that is what dominated the series. The score for the three games was Toronto 4, Boston 3.

“We saw some good pitching,” Francona said. “In a game where you need something to go your way, we took more good swings than the line score will show, but we just saw three really good arms in the last three days.”

“There are times when you’re going to face good pitchers with good stuff,” said Lowrie. “We were able to scratch out a couple [wins] against Toronto. It’s always nice to you win some games when you’re not hitting.”

Burnett has never lost to the Sox. He has started against them five times. He had one no-decision, and now has beaten them four straight times.

Tim Wakefield took the loss, although he completed an impressive run through the Sox rotation.

In the last five games, with each of the starters going once, every guy went at least seven innings. The first four had given up two runs or fewer, the first time four Boston starters have done that since April 12-15 of 1997 when John Wasdin, Tom Gordon, Wakefield and Aaron Sele accomplished it.

Perhaps the most surprising part — and a sign of how the Boston offense is struggling — is that even with the outstanding work on the mound, no Sox starter has won in the last nine games.

Wakefield was solid even though he did not have his best stuff.

“I thought Wake was fighting it all night,” Francona said. “But you look up after seven innings, he’s given up three. He has a knack for doing that. It took him a while to settle in. I think he finally had a 1-2-3 in the sixth inning. He had to fight his way through it, but he does.”

Wakefield agreed.

“I didn’t have the command I’d like to have,” he said. “You go through bouts like that and you have to try and grind it out as best you can.”

Beyond the pitching, the defense also was excellent on both sides. Manny Ramirez kept the game close in the fourth. The Blue Jays loaded the bases with two outs and Rios drilled a shot to left. Ramirez, who was playing shallow, as usual, raced back and made a nice over-the-head catch as he reached the warning track.

The Sox have scored a total of four runs in their last five games. Yet, because their pitching has been excellent, too, they are 2-3 in those games.

pkenyon@projo.com