Lilly-livered

The Sox (25-20) wake up in Ontario this morning in second place in the East, four games behind Baltimore (29-16). However, a loss tonight in the series finale against Toronto (25-21), coupled with a win by the Yankees (25-21), and the Sox will head to the Stadium for a weekend series in the Bronx ahead of only Tampa Bay.

''They seem to be more balanced, even without [Carlos] Delgado," said Kevin Millar, who went 0 for 3 against Lilly, lowering Millar's average against lefthanders this season to a perplexing .162 (6 for 37). ''They do a good job of using everybody. They're scrappy. And they've gotten good starting pitching, with [Roy] Halladay and Lilly at the top."

The game lasted a National League-esque 2 hours 20 minutes, and so it shouldn't come as much surprise to hear that Edgar Renteria's third-inning single was the Sox's lone hit off Lilly through six innings. They did manage six base runners in that span, on the hit, three walks, a hit batsman, and an error, but not one advanced beyond second base.

Lilly outlasted Bronson Arroyo, who'd gone eight days between starts while serving his six-game suspension. His performance, off the top, reflected his lack of work. He hit the leadoff man, Reed Johnson, with a cutter. (Varitek was quick to point out that Arroyo did not intentionally hit Johnson, who'd homered in his final two at-bats Tuesday night). Millar followed that with an error on an Orlando Hudson grounder hit right at the Sox first baseman.

Arroyo made an error himself in the fifth. No. 9 hitter Russ Adams doubled to lead off the inning, and Johnson followed with a high chopper toward shortstop. Arroyo and Bill Mueller converged on the ball, Arroyo gloved it, and his throw sailed over Millar's head, scoring Adams to make it 4-0. Johnson reached third on the error and scored on a Hudson sacrifice fly.