BOSTON – This is why managers have grey hair. Or, in the case of Red Sox manager Terry Francona, no hair at all.

Fans see that the Sox scored a season-high 18 runs while pounding out a season-high 23 hits in sweeping the Twins Wednesday afternoon at hot and muggy Fenway and figure the game was a blowout, no contest, a rout.

They watch the highlights of Kevin Youkilis and Kevin Cash hitting homers; of Manny being Manny by not only driving in three runs with a couple of doubles, but also throwing out a runner trying to go from first to third; of speedy Jacoby Ellsbury getting four hits and scampering around the bases; of designated hitter Sean Casey banging out three hits; of Dustin Pedroia extending his hitting streak to 17 games with a couple of late-inning hits – including a bases-clearing, three-run double -- and they assume the 18-5 trouncing of the Twins was little more than glorified batting practice.

Francona, bless his managerial soul, looks at it much differently.

"I know what the score ended up being," he said, looking more relieved than elated, "but the game wasn't played out like that.

"In the seventh inning, they’ve got the bases loaded, with [Craig] Hansen pitching, and we’re a pitch away from that game going either way."

The funny thing about this game that turned into a huge laugher for the Sox is that Francona is absolutely right.

Matters were looking very serious for Boston when Hansen was brought in from the bullpen to protect a 7-5 lead with runners at first and second and one out, and quickly gave up a single that loaded the bases.

There was no way Francona was going to use closer Jonathan Papelbon. Not after Boston's bullpen ace had saved back-to-back, one-run nailbiters the previous two nights, after having taken the loss in extra innings against the Yankees in New York on Sunday.

Nor did Francona really want to bring in Hideki Okajima, who’d picked up the win in Monday's 1-0 tweaking of the Twins.

Fortunately, he didn’t have to.

Hansen retired Nick Punto on a fly to shallow left, then escaped the inning unscathed when he got No. 9 hitter Brian Buscher to hit a weak bouncer back to the mound.

"Hansen comes in in a bind," Francona said, "on a tough day to stay out of trouble, but he made some good pitches, got the ground ball back to him, and then our offense took over and spread it out."

Did it ever – exploding for seven runs in the bottom of the seventh, then tacking on four more in the eighth.

Although, for a minute or two, it appeared the Twins were going to get out of the seventh without giving up a run, thanks to a bizarre triple play on what first-base umpire Charlie Reliford ruled was a diving catch by center fielder Denard Span on a sinking liner by slump-plagued Jason Varitek.

Span quickly bounced to his feet, threw to second to retire Casey, who’d already rounded third. Alexi Casilla then threw to third to retire Mike Lowell, who was across home plate and heading for the Boston dugout.

Out of which Francona quickly bounded. He – and just about everybody else in the old park except Reliford -- had seen the ball hit the ground a split-second before bouncing into Span’s glove.

As the replay clearly showed.

"They probably would have had to carry me off in a stretcher," said Francona, speculating on what would have happened had the call not been reversed.

As it was, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire was sent off in a funk after being tossed by another member of the crew, Greg Gibson, for vehemently – and futilely – arguing that Varitek should have been out, rather than standing on second base with a double and an RBI.

Turns out, it's probably just as well Gardenhire wasn't around to watch the Sox pound his pitching staff.

"It was a good game for a while," Gardenhire said, "then it got out of hand."

As it so often seems to do at Fenway.

"The balls fly everywhere here," Gardenhire said. "If you make mistakes here, they make you pay for it. You have scouting reports saying, 'This guy's cold, this guy's not swinging good,' but when they get in this ball park, you throw all that out the window.

"You’re talking about hitters that struggle on the road, then come home and get excited. This place is conducive to hitting. It’s always been that way. There’s been a lot of exciting games at this ball park. These guys play very well at home."

After losing 7 of 10 on their recent trip to Houston, Tampa, and New York and falling five games behind the A.L. East-leading Rays, the Sox now have won three in a row at Fenway and are only two back of Tampa Bay, which was just swept in a two-game series at Yankee Stadium.

"This is a tough place to play," Gardenhire said. "Their hitters come alive here. We’ve seen that over the years, and today was a great example of it. Balls start flying around – balls in the corner, balls all over the place, the whole package. This team gets on a roll here and they’re hard to stop."

Which is one more reason why Gardenhire, as could be seen when he took his hat off in anger at being given heave-ho, has grey hair.