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TORONTO -- Red Sox first baseman Mike Napoli hit the longest home run of his career Wednesday night, a 472-foot drive to dead center field, then followed that three innings later with another tape-measure job, 467 feet into the third deck, with two runners aboard.

But Napoli, the property of the Blue Jays for a grand total of four days in 2011, and the five home runs the Sox hit collectively Wednesday night were only a sideshow to the main event: another seven scoreless innings from Clay Buchholz, who became the major leagues’ first six-game winner and remained unbeaten in six starts after a 10-1 pummeling of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Buchholz gave up a one-out single in the third to Jays shortstop Munenori Kawasaki, who had fouled off two bunt attempts before lining a full-count curveball to center field. In the seventh, after a walk to Adam Lind, he gave up a one-out single to Melky Cabrera, who embarrassed himself and his manager, John Gibbons, by trying to stretch the hit into a double, down by eight runs. He was cut down easily by right-fielder Daniel Nava.

That was the extent of the Blue Jays offense, who advanced only one runner as far as second base all night against Buchholz, Lind taking third on Cabrera’s hit.

Buchholz set down 10 straight Jays after issuing a leadoff walk to Jose Bautista in the fourth. He struck out eight, walked three, and threw an efficient 101 pitches.

His ERA after six starts is 1.01. He has not allowed more than two earned runs yet in any start, and this was the third time in six starts he has held the opposition scoreless. In his last eight starts against the Blue Jays here, dating back to July 17, 2009, he has allowed two runs or fewer.

The last Sox pitcher to go 6-0 with a lower ERA after six starts was Roger Clemens, who was 6-0 with an 0.73 ERA in 1991.

Pick your poison: Put yourself in the shoes of a Toronto hitter -- say, Brett Lawrie -- and experience what it was like to face Buchholz Wednesday night. On Lawrie's first at-bat, Buchholz threw him back-to-back fastballs, came back with a changeup, then got Lawrie to roll over on a cutter for a groundout to second.

On Lawrie's second at-bat, in the third inning, Buchholz went cutter, 4-seamer, cutter, curve, 4-seamer, 2-seamer -- the last pitch Lawrie taking for a called third strike.

Lawrie came to bat for a third time in the sixth. Buchholz started him with back-to-back curveballs, followed that with a four-seamer, a two-seamer, a changeup and then another two-seamer, which Lawrie grounded to second.

Three entirely different pitch sequences, leaving Lawrie no idea what he might be seeing on a given count. Now, multiply that by nine, and you’ll understand what it was like to be a Blue Jay Wednesday night.

Keep the lid on: The Sox have had seven games in which they’ve hit two or more home runs in the 27 games they’ve played. Three of those games have come in the 16 games they’ve played at Fenway Park. Four of those games have come in the five they’ve played here under a closed roof, including three Tuesday night and five Wednesday. Stephen Drew hit his first of the year with a man on in the second, and Napoli and Daniel Nava went back-to-back in the fourth. For both Nava and Napoli, that was No. 5 this season.

All three of those home runs came off Jays starter Mark Buehrle, whose re-entry into the American League has been a horror show. Buehrle, who came to the Jays in the big trade with the Marlins, already has given up 9 home runs in 35 innings, and has a 6.75 ERA.

Napoli hit the first home run into the second deck in dead center field, then devalued Canadian currency even more when he crushed a 3-and-0 pitch from reliever Esmil Rogers into the third deck in left center, with two runners aboard, in the seventh.

Napoli -- who also flied to the track in center in the second inning, walked in the sixth and hit a ground-rule double in the ninth -- rebounded nicely from a 4-K game the night before.

The Sox have hit 31 home runs this season. Sixteen have come here, including the six they hit here on April 7. Their last home run of the night Wednesday came from Mike Carp, who pinch-hit for David Ortiz and homered into the right-field seats, giving him home runs in consecutive at-bats. Carp homered in his last at-bat Tuesday night.

Spreading the wealth: Every Sox player in the lineup reached base safely, with Jonny Gomes, who walked twice, the only Sox player without a hit. The only inning in which the Sox went down in order was the fifth.

BOSTON -- The name gave Mike Napoli pause.

“Hack Wilson?” he repeated. “Sounds familiar.’’

But no, he said, he couldn’t place it.

“190 RBIs,’’ a visitor said. “Hack Wilson drove in 190 runs in 1930. The major-league record.’’

“No, no, no,’’ Napoli said, as if warding off a ghost. “One day at a time. I don’t like looking at stats.’’

He grinned.

“That’s funny,’’ he said.

On Monday night, Napoli drove in five runs with a second-inning double and a fifth-inning grand slam, both off Oakland pitcher A.J. Griffin, who had lost just once in 18 previous career starts in the big leagues.

Napoli has 25 RBIs in the team’s first 19 games. He leads the majors. In the last 71 years, Mo Vaughn is the only Sox player besides Napoli to match that number in the same number of games. That was in 1995. Mo was the American League MVP that year.

The Sox have seven games left in April. Manny Ramirez holds the club record for RBIs for the month with 31. He did that in 2001, his first season with the club.

Projected over the course of a 162-game season, Napoli would finish with 213 RBIs, making hash of Hack. He’s not going to maintain that pace for six months, but there’s no harm in trying, is there?

“I’d love it,’’ Will Middlebrooks said. “There’s no one we would rather see up with men on base.’’

He laughed.

“And there’s no one left for me to drive in,’’ he said.

Napoli, you remember, spent a good part of his winter trying to learn not only whether a degenerative hip condition, which had yet to show any symptoms but was detected during a physical administered by the Sox, would allow him to play. Play? He wanted to know what his chances were down the road of being able to walk and play with his kids, as yet unborn.

Those fears may yet be present, but they have been overshadowed by the way Napoli has hit with men on base. Nobody on, and he hasn’t hit a lick. He struck out in his only two at-bats Monday with the bases unoccupied, dropping him below the Mendoza line (.193, 6-for-31) with no one on.

But inhabit the bases, and Napoli is transformed. Monday night in the fifth inning was the sixth time he has come to the plate with the bases loaded. His grand slam was his fourth hit, along with two doubles and a single, all of which have produced a total of 11 runs.

With runners in scoring position, Napoli is batting .379 (10-for-27). In his first three weeks with the Sox, he has almost half as many runs as he drove in all of last season (56), when he was plagued with leg issues that originated with the badly dislocated ankle he sustained during the 2011 World Series.

“Last year I was up and down,’’ he said. “I didn’t feel like this last year. I’m trying to keep my routine the same, have the same feeling every day, see what happens.’’

So far, what has happened has exceeded anyone’s fondest expectations. The inning before the grand slam, Napoli was hit in his right arm, his back arm, by a fastball from Griffin.

“It got inside my biceps,’’ he said. “I never got hit there before. My arm went numb. It kind of freaked me out a little, but I got the feeling back. It’s sore, but I was able to go on.’’

Numb one moment, electrifying the next, as he drove a low serving from Griffin into the Monster seats in left center, a fan in the first row catching it on the fly.

“Just trying to get a job done,’’ Napoli said, a slugger as unassuming as they come. “I try to stay within myself, don’t waste an at-bat with guys in scoring position.’’

Waste? He’s a one-man recycling operation. Who knows, years from now someone may approach another RBI machine who will say, “Mike Napoli? The name sounds familiar.’’

Red Sox right-hander Andrew Bailey and first baseman Mike Napoli were named American League Co-Players of the Week.

Bailey went 1-0 with three saves, one walk and eight strikeouts over five innings in five appearances.

Napoli batted .345 (10-for-29) with five doubles, a triple, a homer and 10 RBIs over seven games. He hit the game-winning double to score Dustin Pedroia to help the Red Sox edge the Rays 3-2 on Patriots Day. It was Napoli’s third career game-winning hit, and gave Bailey his first win of the season.

It's just the third time Red Sox players have shared the weekly honor, joining Mike Lowell and David Ortiz (August 2007) along with Pedro Martinez and Trot Nixon (July 2002).

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- A few takeaways from the Fort, where “The John Lackey Rebirth: Part III” was an unqualified success on a night when flag-waving, airhorn-blowing, drum-pounding, song-singing Team Puerto Rico fans made more noise than Red Sox fans at JetBlue Park.

Lackey, who had given up four earned runs in three innings over two appearances, tossed three scoreless innings, surrendering three hits while striking out two in a 4-3 win over Puerto Rico. He had supreme command of his arsenal, throwing strikes on 31 of his 45 pitches.

“I’m happy with the direction I’m going,” he said. “I definitely felt free and easy tonight. I’ve still got a long way to go. It should get better.”

Lackey said he experimented with his cutter in the bullpen for the first time and liked what he felt, so he mixed that in with a fastball that registered 92 mph.

“I really felt like my command got better,” he said.

Said manager John Farrell, “He was very good. He used all four of his pitches -- strikes with each one. With each additional outing, there’s increased arm strength.”

Best of all, there's no pain as Lackey continues his comeback from Tommy John elbow surgery after the 2011 season.

“It’s a lot of fun when things don’t hurt,” he said. “A lot less to worry about. Just worry about executing your pitches.”

* The Green Monster (Fenway South version) met Mike Napoli and was no match for the new Red Sox slugger. Napoli took a 3-1 offering from Orlando Roman and sent a towering shot that ricocheted off the back of the concourse on the top deck and landed on the clubhouse roof. A security guard retrieved it and threw it to a kid on top of The Monster.

It was Napoli’s second homer in six at-bats this spring. The first was a shot over the 420-foot sign in right-center.

“He can hit balls a long way,” Lackey said. “It’s going to be a fun year. He’s going to add a lot. … You’ve seen the pop. That ball he hit to center field, that’s legit.”

* Jacoby Ellsbury missed the game with a viral infection. “We got him out (of the clubhouse) before it started to spread,” Farrell said.

* Outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. has been one of the camp sensations (.471/.529/.550, with his batting average ranking him third in the Grapefruit League going into Tuesday’s game). Although Farrell said it’s likely that he will start the year in Triple-A Pawtucket, “you never want to put limits on anyone either. He’s making the best of the opportunity and he’s making a very strong impression.” Bradley ripped a line-drive rope for a double in the eighth inning, his second of the spring.

* Closer Joel Hanrahan’s ERA and walks nearly doubled last year from 2011. Farrell said it might have been due to a lighter workload in September, rather than any mechanical issues.

“From a mechanical standpoint, we haven’t really addressed much other than when men are on base to shorten down in the unloading time,” he said. “Looking back into his usage in September, it was less frequent. Bigger-bodied guys, (when there’s) consistency to get them to the mound, they have a feel for where their delivery is and that ultimately leads to better command overall.”

* Pitcher Andrew Miller apparently hasn’t cut his hair or shaved his beard since last season and has veered rather dramatically into Grizzly Adams territory. Asked how long it will be before team rules are instituted, Farrell said, “Those conversations take place.”

Miller had a rebound year in 2012 (3.35 ERA), which Farrell attributes to finding a consistent role in the bullpen.

“The ability to pitch more frequently gets him to the mound without having to wait five days, so repeating his delivery and taking the mound more consistently lends into that as well,” he said.

Farrell said Miller has reduced his leg kick, which gives the 6-foot-7 left-hander better ability to control his delivery and command the strike zone.

* Farrell on shortstop Stephen Drew: “What he’s shown is, the range at shortstop has returned to the level that he showed prior to the ankle injury. He’s shown a good and consistent swing at the plate.” Drew, who was unable to throw out Mike Aviles on a fourth-inning hit up the middle, made a superb relay throw to catcher Ryan Lavarnway one batter later to save a run.

* Xander Bogaerts, Boston’s No. 1 prospect, started at third base for the Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic on Monday night and went 1-for-3 with a double in a 4-1 win over Australia. He’s 1-for-8 in three games. The Netherlands has advanced to the second round in Tokyo.

* The Red Sox were having trouble selling tickets for Tuesday’s game, and it showed. The announced attendance was 7,901 -- 2,089 below capacity. The irony is that Team Puerto Rico put a more glamorous lineup on the field than the Yankees did on Sunday.

* Jon Lester starts against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Wednesday’s Grapefruit League game (1:35 p.m.). Also scheduled to pitch are Rubby De La Rosa, Steven Wright, Junichi Tazawa and Anthony Carter. In two starts, Lester hasn’t given up a run in five innings and has allowed a .063 batting average.

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- This is how Ryan Dempster gauged the distance of Mike Napoli’s home run Sunday against the Yankees.

“I thought it was awesome, eight pitches later, when the section of fans started clapping,’’ the Red Sox pitcher said. “We figured that’s when it landed.

“That ball was hit. It was hit a long way. If you’re going to give one up, I guess don’t be a wall scraper.’’

Napoli’s home run, which came leading off the second inning, easily cleared the center-field wall, just to the left of the 420-foot sign. It was his first home run of the spring and came off right-hander Adam Warren, who figures to open the season in Triple-A. Napoli’s dad was in the stands, having made the drive over from his home on the other side of the state, near Fort Lauderdale.

“I got a pitch I can drive,’’ Napoli said. “I tried to put a good swing on it and hit it pretty well. That was a nice one. It feels good, my timing feels good. You work, you do your BPs, and it’s nice when it carries over to the game.’’

Maybe when he was younger, Napoli said, getting the first home run out of the way early would have meant more.

“Sometimes you go a long time in spring training and say, ‘Man, where’s my power at?’’’ he said. “I’ve always felt that I do have power and it’ll come eventually. It feels good to get one, but it’s just one. I’ve still got some things to work on.’’

Napoli played in his first game here Friday night and is on an every-other-day game schedule. He said he had some soreness Saturday, but it was “good soreness,” and did not keep him from working out.

After a winter of talking about hips and contracts and such, Napoli was asked if it was refreshing to be answering questions about a home run.

“I’ve never felt anything in my hips,’’ he said. “I’m not even thinking about it on the field. I’m just thinking about the game. It’s nice to show people who don’t really understand the situation that everything’s all right, we’re moving forward.

“I feel great. It’s not a question for me. I guess it shows people I can still play the game.’’

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Good morning from the Fort, where the ESPN Baseball Tonight bus has pulled into town, just in time to see Mike Napoli play in his first exhibition game since doctors scared the bejeezus out of him by telling him the bone tissue in his hips was in danger of dying.

Napoli ran the bases on Wednesday with no problem, a step up from the running in a swimming pool and other agility drills he has been doing. He said no symptoms of his condition, avascular necrosis, have manifested themselves since Red Sox doctors diagnosed him during a physical administered after he agreed to sign as a free agent last December.

He is scheduled to play first base Friday night in JetBlue Park against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and since one month remains before the April 1 regular-season opener in New York against the Yankees, he should have plenty of time to prepare for the season ahead.

Napoli was plagued with leg issues last season, a consequence, he believes, of the left ankle he severely sprained while running the bases in Game 6 of the 2011 World Series. Incredibly, he caught Game 7 despite grotesquely turning the ankle under his body, but the following season had a left quadriceps issue, which ultimately placed him on the disabled list for 34 games.

One teammate with a particular interest in how Napoli fares is pitcher John Lackey, who became close friends with the man who was his catcher for parts of four seasons with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Only Bengie Molina has caught more of Lackey’s games (76) than Napoli (61); with Napoli behind the plate, Lackey had a 3.63 ERA.

“It’ll be fun,’’ Lackey said of Napoli returning to play Friday night. “He’s a good teammate and a good buddy. I root for all my teammates, but when you’ve got a personal relationship, a guy you hang out with, you might pull for him a little bit extra, sure.’’

Napoli said he first met Lackey in 2005 during his first big-league camp. At the time, Lackey was 26, only three years older than the 23-year-old Napoli, but the pitcher already had three years in the big leagues and as a rookie had won a World Series Game 7. Napoli was fresh from playing for Rancho Cucamonga in the Class A California League.

“When I first met Lack, I was a young guy just trying to keep my cool and staying out of the way of the veteran guys,’’ Napoli said.

“I think our relationship started when I started catching him. I caught a bullpen here or there, then started catching him in ’06, my first year in the big leagues.

“He was awesome. He kind of showed me the way. He and Adam Kennedy were the two guys I kind of looked up to. They showed me how to carry myself on the field and off the field. He just showed me and [catcher Jeff] Mathis and all the young guys. When we got into a city, we’d have dinner with him. He always took care of everything, made sure everything was good with us.

“He kind of told us, ‘This is the way you do it. When you’re a veteran, make sure you take care of the young guys. Keep it going.’’’

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FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Takeaways from Camp Farrell, Day 12:

* It’s called the ladder, and you’ve probably seen it in your health clubs at home. This ladder is not intended to be leaned against a wall but placed on the ground, not to be climbed but to be stepped through with rapid movements -- advancing forward with stutter steps, going side to side while quick-stepping, often followed with a brief sprint. That was the drill David Ortiz went through Friday, the latest test for his strained Achilles tendon under the direction of strength and conditioning coach Pat Santora, and he seemed quite encouraged by the progress. He’s getting closer, he said, to running the bases and then playing in a game.

* Mike Napoli has been cleared to run the bases on Sunday, manager John Farrell said, which puts him on track to play in a game sometime next week, perhaps by midweek.

* John Lackey will take the mound Saturday for the first time in 517 days. It’s scheduled to be just an inning, but Farrell calls it a “significant step” in Lackey’s comeback.

* Pedro Martinez was very hands on with Alfredo Aceves during the latter’s side session Friday, and also has been closely watching Rubby De La Rosa.

“He’s been impressive, not just in terms of his stuff, but his ability to manipulate a baseball,’’ Farrell said of De La Rosa. “He has a good feel for a changeup, throws his breaking ball for strikes. Coming off Tommy John, we’re a little more slow-paced with Rubby, but he’s been really impressive early on.’’

* Allen Webster is the other good-looking arm who came over with De La Rosa from the Dodgers in the Adrian Gonzalez/Carl Crawford/Josh Beckett deal. The baby-faced Webster, who is from North Carolina and is listed at 6-foot-3 and 185 pounds, sits at the far end of the Sox clubhouse, and keeps a watchful eye on things.

“I’m posted up here in the corner,’’ the 23-year-old Webster said. “Just peeking around.’’

This is Webster’s first big-league camp, but so far, he said, the acclimation has been smooth.

“It’s not taken near as much time as I was thinking,’’ Webster said. “I didn’t know what to expect when I got traded over. Everybody’s been really nice to me, acting like I’ve been here the whole time.’’

Asked what he foresees as the team’s plans for him, Webster said: “I don’t really know how to answer that. I can only do what I can.’’

* Ortiz, upon hearing that Bobby Valentine will be named athletic director at Sacred Heart University: “Good. Good for him.’’

* Daniel Nava turned 30 on Friday, becoming the 12th player on the Sox roster to be 30 or older. On March 16, Stephen Drew will become the 13th 30-something, and Dustin Pedroia (Aug. 17) and Jacoby Ellsbury (Sept. 11) will also cross that threshold this season. Am I the only one finding it hard to believe that Pedroia and Ellsbury will soon be 30?

The Sox have three roster players who were born in the 1990s: Webster (Feb. 10, 1990), shortstop Jose Iglesias (Jan. 5, 1990) and catcher Christian Vazquez (Aug. 21, 1990). The youngest player in camp, of course, is shortstop Xander Bogaerts, who turned 20 last Oct. 1. Shortstop Deven Marrero (Aug. 25, 1990) and outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (April 19, 1990) are the other ‘90s babies.

Vazquez is in his first big-league camp. A native of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, Vazquez was drafted on the ninth round in 2008. He began last season with Class-A Salem before being promoted to Double-A Portland for 20 games.

If the Dominican Republic can be considered the cradle of shortstops (28 natives of the island nation have played at least 500 games at short in the big leagues, including such notables as Jose Reyes, Hanley Ramirez, Tony Fernandez, Rafael Furcal, Rafael Ramirez, Juan Uribe, Jose Uribe, Neifi Perez), Puerto Rico can make a similar claim for catchers. Pudge Rodriguez, Jorge Posada, Benito Santiago, Sandy Alomar Jr., Ozzie Virgil, Javy Lopez, Geovany Soto, Javier Valentin, Ellie Rodriguez, Ramon Castro, Junior Ortiz and the Molina brothers (Jose, Yadier and Bengie) all have come from Puerto Rico.

Vazquez is from Bayamon, close to San Juan, which is also home to the brothers Molina. He was drafted out of the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy.

“I was 15 when I tried out,’’ Vazquez said Friday. “If you make the tryout, you can study there. I started there in the 11th grade and graduated from there. Two years of school.

“The school was one hour’s drive from where I live. I would get up at 5:30 every morning, because school started at 7. The day ended at 5. We did baseball first, 8 to 11. We ate lunch, and then we studied from 1 to 5.’’

Vazquez is regarded as a very good defensive catcher, with a strong arm. “I’m quick to second base,’’ he said.

With so many catchers to choose from, Vazquez was not invited to play in the World Baseball Classic for Puerto Rico. “But I’m learning a lot in this camp,’’ he said. “The veterans, Salty and David Ross they’re good guys.’’

Here’s the scouting report on Vazquez, courtesy of Soxprospects.com:

“Excellent defensive catcher with a strong wide frame and solid agility behind the plate. Plus arm strength. Struggled in the past blocking balls in the dirt, but has made strong strides improving with controlling his body to front offerings. Firm when receiving pitches. Quick feet. Smooth footwork when firing out of crouch. Learning to lead behind the plate. Average batspeed. Has worked to quicken swing load. Extends on offerings middle-to-away well. Gets tied up by higher velocity fastballs on inner third. Must increase hitting zones to make consistent contact in higher levels. Tends to be fooled by sharp breaking balls. Fringe-average-to-average power potential. Capable of driving balls into the gap hard. Ceiling of backup/platoon catcher at the major league level.”

* The final word belongs to Farrell. When someone suggested to Farrell that maybe every pitcher should undergo Tommy John surgery since so many seem to be stronger than before the operation, Farrell said:

“Having gone through it twice, I wouldn’t wish it on anybody, nor would I recommend it before they got hurt.’’

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- A day after being cleared to begin all baseball activity, Red Sox first baseman Mike Napoli (hip) participated in early fielding drills and later finished his day taking 50 ground balls at first base.

Since he arrived at camp a week ago, his participation has been limited. He underwent a scheduled MRI on Thursday and was cleared on Saturday.

“It feels good,” he said. “The first couple of days I was sitting around and was telling everybody, ‘Yeah, I want to play, too.’ It’s finally nice to get out there and be a part of everything and to be able to do everything.”

Depending how he feels on a daily basis, Napoli will slowly progress this spring with the intention of being ready for the season opener on April 1 against the Yankees in New York.

"It’s day-to-day but we’re going to try to ramp it up pretty quickly,” Napoli said. “Spring’s a little longer this year, so we’ve got some time. We’re going to be smart about it, but the goal is to be ready for Opening Day.”

Red Sox manager John Farrell believes Napoli will make a difference once he’s completely ready to play.

“He’s got very soft hands. Even watching him take BP, his movements are smooth,” Farrell said. “We’re confident he’s going to be a very good first baseman.”

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- First baseman Mike Napoli is scheduled to undergo an MRI on his hip Thursday, manager John Farrell said, but it sounds like it will be some time before he is able to work out regularly at first base.

“There will be a gradual increase of baseball activity,’’ Farrell said. “Right now, obviously, there is no pounding, impact activity. We’ll get the evaluation from his doctor in New York, once it’s reviewed, then there will be a work plan laid out, not only volume, but the type of work that will follow from that point.

“The next couple of days will give us a lot of information on how to start his progression with more on-field baseball activity.’’

Napoli has a serious hip condition -- avascular necrosis -- that the Red Sox discovered during a physical exam last December.

Other quick hits from Farrell’s post-workout media session:

* Clay Buchholz’s right hamstring was re-evaluated, and he was cleared to throw on flat ground Wednesday morning.

“He’s responded favorably to treatment,’’ Farrell said. “His range of motion is good, his strength is good, he still has some sensation in a smaller spot than yesterday. He was able to put a ball back in his hand. An encouraging day for us.’’

* Left-hander Felix Doubront was throwing at 75 feet Wednesday. That will be gradually increased, and the projected date for his return to the mound is next Wednesday.

* On John Lackey's first official bullpen session: “A good work day today. Freeness in his delivery, freeness in his arm, staying behind the ball, repeating his delivery. All the things we’re looking for right now, he did very well. He’s in great condition, so a 35-pitch bullpen was not taxing for him."

* Two outfielders, Daniel Nava and non-roster invitee Mitch Maier, joined Mauro Gomez and non-roster invitee Lyle Overbay taking ground balls at first base. Farrell said they will continue to do so, as the club looks to see if there is a left-handed hitter who could serve as a backup at both positions. Gomez hits right-handed.

* Farrell mentioned some of the areas new infield instructor/third-base coach Brian Butterfield will emphasize with third baseman Will Middlebrooks, who begins his first full season as the regular at that position.

“Consistency of his footwork, maybe his range to his glove side, I know are focal points he’ll work on with Brian here. Once again, when you talk about a young, talented player, going through that cycle of a full season for the first time, we’ll get to know more about him as well. I know one thing: I’m glad he’s here.’’

* Team psychologist Bob Tewksbury, the former big-league pitcher, will have an expanded role with the club this season, spending as much as 85 days with the team during the season, including some road trips. Tewksbury is conducting the morning mental skills sessions that have preceded the day’s workouts.

“I’m a huge believer in the mental side of the game,’’ he said.

* Outfielder Shane Victorino is the only position player who has yet to make an appearance.

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- First baseman Lyle Overbay was not quite an afterthought for the Red Sox, but he was close.

“It was late," said Overbay, who on Jan. 31 signed a minor league contract with the team, with an invitation to big league camp.

“They were kind of going down the line, losing out on guys. I guess if you wait long enough and they lose out enough, the opportunity comes about."

With the uncertainty regarding Mike Napoli’s hip, the 36-year-old Overbay, who has lived something of a gypsy existence in baseball the last few seasons, gives the Sox potential insurance at the position and a possible backup.

“In the beginning, I was saying I need Napoli to sign with Boston and then I can give him a day or something," said Overbay.

Overbay’s career has been in eclipse since a five-year run as the Blue Jays’ every-day first baseman ended after the 2010 season. He has been with three teams since -- the Pirates, Diamondbacks and Braves -- and made just 131 plate appearances last season.
“It’s been different," he said. “I knew last year going in, I knew my role. In a perfect world, you want to play more, but at this point it’s like, what’s more important: Do I want to be miserable and lose 150 games or have a chance to win a World Series? That’s a big plus for me, if I can be part of that."

He said he doesn’t want that chance at any expense to Napoli, who won’t be cleared to take ground balls at first base until he undergoes another MRI.

“I don’t think anybody knows," Overbay said when asked about how playing time at first base might be impacted. “I know he’s got the hip disease. I don’t think he knows. There’s that possibility [he might be limited].

“I didn’t look at it that way. I’d love to see him play 162 games, and play 81 games at Fenway. I’ve seen a lot of fly balls in Anaheim Stadium [Napoli began his career with the Angels] that were at the warning track, and those things are gone in Fenway.

“I’m just interested in seeing what he can do there. Him in that lineup will make everyone better," said Overbay. "I didn’t come in here thinking and hoping he’s injured, anything like that. Potentially, I might have had an opportunity with someone else, where I might have had more playing time, but I’d rather have this."

To that end, Overbay said he has spoken to the Sox about taking fly balls in the outfield, if that would increase his chances of making the club. He grew up as an outfielder and played maybe three games as a first baseman, all in Legion ball, before being drafted by Arizona and told he’d be playing first base.

“I said, ‘You got a first baseman’s glove, because I don’t,'" he said. “I’m willing to play the [outfield]. If it’s something that helps my cause, I’m all ears. I’m game."

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- This was not the offseason Mike Napoli had intended, spending much of his time soliciting opinions from doctors while trying to learn as much as he could about avascular necrosis, the serious hip condition that the Red Sox discovered during a physical exam last December.

That physical was supposed to be the last perfunctory step before he signed a three-year, $39 million deal with the Sox, the first multiyear contract of his career. Instead, it cast into doubt not only his professional career, but his overall well-being.

“It was definitely tough, but the Red Sox, they stuck with me,’’ said Napoli, who eventually signed an incentive-laden one-year, $5 million contract with the Sox. “It took so long because I had to go see about my health. I had to look at my health before my professional career.’’

Avascular necrosis, known by its acronym AVN and also known as osteonecrosis (ON), is a progressive, degenerative disorder that kills bone tissue. According to AVNSupport.org, it is caused by a blockage or loss of blood flow to a joint or bone, causing the joint/bone to die.

Surgery was one option considered, Napoli said Tuesday.

“There were a lot of different options,’’ he said. “I could have had surgery where they drill into my bone and inject blood. That didn’t make any sense when I didn’t have any symptoms. I’ve never felt this. I’ve never had any problem with this. I’ve never been on the DL for it.’’

Napoli traced many of his physical problems last in season in Texas, where his batting average fell from .320 to .227, to the severely sprained ankle he sustained during the 2011 World Series. He said when the Rangers lost the Series, he didn’t immediately attend to the ankle, and only two weeks later placed it in a boot.

“I rehabbed it,’’ he said, “but it wasn’t 100 percent going into the spring. I just taped it and went out there. I had a little hip labrum since 2009. That started bothering me. My whole left side bothered me.’’

He eventually strained his left quadriceps in a home-plate collision and missed 34 games.

“But I had a good offseason,’’ he said. “I’m healthy, no problems. I do all the stuff for my hips and legs, and no problem.’’

Still, the Red Sox plan to limit him to hitting while restricting any activity that involves any hard impact or pounding, manager John Farrell said Tuesday.

“He’ll go through another MRI later this week for an update," Farrell said. "Provided everything goes as we anticipate at this point, then we’ll start to introduce more baseball activities, including the defensive side.”

Farrell said he expects Napoli to start to get some reps at first base either by the end of the weekend or early next week.

“It was pretty tough,’’ Napoli said. “When you go from a three-year contract to all of a sudden you don’t have a job and [wonder] where you’re going to play, it was tough. But I got a pretty strong head. I try to take the positive out of everything, come here and do the best I can, stay healthy, and go from there.’’

The Associated Press passes along the incentives in Mike Napoli's contract:

Mike Napoli has two ways to boost his income with the Boston Red Sox to $13 million this year: stay on the active roster for at least 165 days or get 625 plate appearances with at least 120 days on the roster.

Napoli and Boston reached a $39 million, three-year agreement on Dec. 3, subject to a physical. After doctors detected a hip condition, the sides finalized a one-year deal Tuesday guaranteeing $5 million and allowing him to earn $8 million in bonuses.

Napoli would get the full $8 million for 165 days on the active roster, not including the disabled list.

If he doesn't achieve that, a second set of bonus opportunities kicks in: $500,000 each for 30, 60, 90 and 120 days on the active roster; $500,000 apiece for 300, 235, 350 and 375 plate appearances; and $1 million each for 400, 475, 550 and 625 plate appearances.

BOSTON -- A California orthopedist who has treated Olympic volleyball players and professional bicycle racers for the same degenerative hip condition afflicting new Red Sox first baseman Mike Napoli said Tuesday that the 31-year-old Napoli has a chance of continuing his baseball career if the condition was indeed detected in the early stages, as Napoli and his agent contend.

“He potentially could go on and heal from this and be perfectly fine,’’ said Dr. Stephen Mikulak, a hip and knee specialist with California Orthopaedic Specialists in Newport Beach, Calif., in discussing Napoli’s public admission Tuesday that he has avascular necrosis in both hips.

Avascular necrosis, known by its acronym AVN and also known as osteonecrosis (ON), is a progressive, degenerative disorder that kills bone tissue. According to AVNSupport.org, it is caused by a blockage or loss of blood flow to a joint or bone, causing the joint/bone to die. The condition caused a premature end to the career of two-sports star Bo Jackson in the 1990s.

But it all depends on what stage the disease is in, warned Mikulak, a former gymnast on the U.S. national team who grew up in Hyannis, Mass.

“There’s a 30 percent chance of being OK without doing anything,’’ he said. “[If advanced], there’s a 70 percent chance there will be a progressive death of bone tissue that will cause the ball portion of the ball and socket joint to collapse. And a square peg in a round hole doesn’t work. He could develop arthritis and have a lot of pain.

“If the ball collapses, he could wind up needing hip replacement surgery [as Jackson did], or a resurfacing of the hip joints.’’

Mikulak qualified his remarks by saying he has not seen Napoli’s X-rays nor the magnetic resonance imaging exam (MRI) that the Red Sox administered in December that revealed the condition, and thus can’t speak specifically to his case.

In hindsight, Mikulak said, he can’t help but wonder if the left quadriceps injury that was cited by the Texas Rangers as the reason that Napoli was sidelined for 36 games after a mid-July collision was actually “referred” pain radiating from the AVN in the hip down to the thigh.

“A 30-year-old guy usually doesn’t miss 36 games with a quad strain,’’ he said.

CLICK HERE for more on the Napoli signing.

The Boston Red Sox on Monday officially signed Mike Napoli to a one-year deal, according to a league source, more than seven weeks after originally agreeing to terms with the free-agent first baseman/catcher on a three-year contract. The deal could be announced as soon as Tuesday.

Napoli's contract is for one year with a base salary of $5 million, sources told ESPN last week. With incentives, he can play himself to a $13 million payday, which boosts the compensation to the level of the three-year deal he first agreed to with Boston early this offseason.

The 31-year-old Napoli originally agreed to a three-year, $39 million deal with Boston on Dec. 3. That deal was taken off the table when Napoli, in the judgment of the team's medical staff, failed his physical because of a hip condition that never had surfaced publicly in his seven previous years in the big leagues, the first five with the Los Angeles Angels and the past two with the Rangers.

Cherington said last week that there has been no animosity between the sides as the negotiations have dragged on.

"I think it's good. I think there will be a time to talk about that more, but we tried and did have a consistent dialogue throughout the winter and a lot of conversations," Cherington said.

The Red Sox view Napoli's swing as an ideal fit in Fenway Park, where he has slugged .710 with a 1.107 OPS, seven home runs and 17 RBIs in 19 games as a visiting player.

Boston is betting that Napoli will come closer to his career-best season of 2011, when he batted .320 with 30 home runs and a 1.046 OPS in his first year in Texas, than to 2012, when he dropped off to .227 with 24 home runs.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Boston Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington said Thursday night that there's nothing official to report on the Mike Napoli situation.

"Hopefully soon, but it won’t be in the next couple of days,” Cherington said.

Even though it’s been reported that the Red Sox and Napoli agreed on a one-year deal worth $5 million plus incentives that could take it to $13 million, Cherington did not confirm the deal.

“No, but we’re making some progress,” he said. “It’s fair to say we’ve made some progress the last day or so. Hopefully we’ll have something more formal to say soon, but not tonight.”

At no point since the winter meetings in December has Cherington had any doubt the deal would get done, he said.

“I don’t know if doubtful was a word that I thought about. We’ve kept talking the entire time and when there’s dialogue there’s always a chance to get somewhere. It means there’s some interest on both sides, there’s a chance, and you’re hopeful. Hopefully we are getting somewhere."

The Red Sox and Napoli had originally settled on a three-year contract worth $39 million before the deal began to crumble due to a hip issue. Now that the sides are on the verge of a one-year deal, Cherington said there’s no animosity between the sides.

"I think it’s good. I think there will be a time to talk about that more, but we tried and did have a consistent dialogue throughout the winter and a lot of conversations. But I think there will be a chance to talk about that more hopefully soon."

Cherington and Red Sox manager John Farrell participated in the Red Sox’s annual offseason Town Hall on Thursday night. This year it was staged at La Salle Academy.

For his part, Farrell said he's hoping the Napoli deal does get done.

“I know there’s some progress being made with Mike, so hopefully that continues to head in that directions and we’ve got more of a look of who we’re going to have report to camp in Fort Myers here in three weeks.”