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BOSTON -- Victor Martinez took a stroll into the Red Sox clubhouse Wednesday afternoon and was greeted with handshakes all around from his former teammates. Then, he laughed, “I lost my son for about 5 to 10 minutes.”

Indeed, 6-year-old Victor Jose Martinez, dressed in a kiddie-sized Tigers uniform with his father’s number on the back, was a superstar in the clubhouse. Dustin Pedroia guided him around, and he hung out in manager Terry Francona’s office before meeting up with little D’Angelo Ortiz for a game of catch out on the field.

Martinez returns to Fenway Park with all smiles and no regrets about his short tenure here.

“I don’t have any word to describe it,” he said, as he spoke to reporters from the visiting dugout. “By far it’s been the best time in my career. To come in here and play with this team, in this city, in front of these great fans, it’s definitely by far the best time I’ve had in my career.”

By the looks of it, perhaps the Sox wouldn’t mind a do-over on their decision to let Martinez go following the 2010 season. They decided to spend their available cash elsewhere, shedding Martinez and Adrian Beltre, signing free agent Carl Crawford and trading for Adrian Gonzalez. Martinez signed a four-year, $50 million deal with the Tigers. The Sox made two offers: a three-year, $36 million deal and a four-year, $42 million deal.

Between the struggles of Jason Varitek (.183/.269/.233) and Jarrod Saltalamacchia (.217/.261/.313), catching has been the glaring weak spot in the batting order. Meanwhile, Martinez has been worth every cent so far in Detroit, putting up .317/.375/.525 numbers in 27 games this season, with an OPS of .900, 23 RBIs and four home runs. He’s also the reigning American League Player of the Week, going 11 for 19 last week with four doubles, two homes and 11 RBIs.

Often playing out of the middle of the order as a designated hitter, Martinez noted the challenging switch, and has been seeking out advice from Travis Hafner -- not to mention, his old friend David Ortiz, too.

“It’s a challenge. It’s not easy,” Martinez said. “It looks easy, you go out there and have four at-bats, five at-bats, but you have to do a lot of stuff to keep warm. That’s the hard part of being a DH.”

Said Francona, “Having the offense at that position is huge. When he was here, he was hitting third a lot of times. You got a guy catching that’s hitting third, doing what you’re doing offensively, that’s a bonus.”

Missed just as much, some suggested, is his leadership in the clubhouse. Francona and players alike noted how quickly he meshed into the clubhouse fabric, and what a veteran presence he crafted in spite of his short time here.

“All the things we heard when he was with Cleveland, they came to fruition in a hurry,” Francona said. “It’s one thing to come into a team and integrate yourself, but to become a leader that quickly is not easy to pull off, especially with a veteran team that’s trying to win. That’s the one thing he really pulled off. Guys followed him, and he had an immediate impact. That’s not so easy to do.”

Said Ortiz, “Oh man, it was great. You can’t have no better teammate than Vic. Just a great personality, incredible human being, great player, it’s like all the good things you can think of somebody.”

Asked by a Detroit reporter what the Tigers have gotten, Ortiz said, “They got a guy that you definitely can build an organization around him. He worked really hard and he’s into it. He brings everything he’s got, every day.”

BOSTON -- The tarp has been on the field at Fenway since last night, but chances of a baseball game being played tonight seem a little brighter than last night. A handful of pitchers are out in right field stretching and tossing. Meanwhile, the Red Sox say there is a "chance of scattered light rain showers during the late afternoon and early evening hours".

All Fenway gates will be opening at their regularly-scheduled time of 5:40 p.m., with a limited opening on Yawkey Way at 5:10, but there is still the possibility of a rain delay tonight.

Here is tonight's Red Sox lineup for the series opener against Victor Martinez and the Tigers:

1. Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
4. Kevin Youkilis, 3B
5. David Ortiz, DH
6. Jed Lowrie, SS
7. Mike Cameron, RF
8. Carl Crawford, LF
9. Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C
SP -- Clay Buchholz, RHP

BOSTON -- This is your job, Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

Victor Martinez is out as the everyday catcher for the Boston Red Sox, which leaves Saltalamacchia, who has 813 big-league at-bats in his career, as No. 1 on the Sox depth chart.

Reports out of Venezuela indicate that Martinez has come to terms on a four-year, $12.5 million deal with the Detroit Tigers, who coveted Martinez as a middle-of-the-order complement to young catcher Alex Avila as well as a DH/first-base alternative to Miguel Cabrera.

The Tigers’ bid eclipsed the two final offers from the Red Sox, according to a baseball source: a three-year, $36 million deal or a four-year deal for $42 million. The Tigers’ deal, assuming it is accurate, averages out to $12.5 million a year, more than the average annual value of Boston’s proposed three-year deal ($12 million) or four-year deal ($10.5 million).

Martinez is a Type A free agent, meaning the Red Sox will receive the Tigers’ No. 1 pick (No. 19 overall) and a first-round “sandwich” pick (a pick that will come after the regular first round and before the second round). Next June’s draft class is anticipated to be very strong, and the ’11 draft may be the last in which the Sox will be able to employ their very successful strategy of paying above slot in later rounds for premium talent that dropped because of contract demands.

With the collective bargaining agreement due to expire in November, the draft is expected to undergo extensive revisions as part of negotiations.

Martinez was an extremely productive hitter for the Red Sox since his acquisition from Cleveland at the 2009 trading deadline. Martinez, who turns 32 on Dec. 23, batted .313 in 183 games with the Red Sox, with 28 home runs and 120 RBIs.

Last season, he was the only big-league catcher in the majors to hit .300 or better while hitting 20 or more home runs, despite missing 22 games with a fractured left thumb. He was dominating against left-handed pitchers, batting .400, slugging .742 and posting a 1.173 OPS

Seen in a vacuum, allowing themselves to be outbid for Martinez translates as a major loss for the Sox, who quite likely will wind up parting ways with another great source of right-handed power in their lineup, free agent third baseman Adrian Beltre. While his inability to throw out base-runners (only 17 caught stealing in 133 attempts) was a concern, the Red Sox showed an apparent willingness to live with that, at least for the short term.

How great a loss Martinez’s departure will depend, first, on the bet Boston has placed on Saltalamacchia that he will evolve into the player the Sox believe he will, and two, the other moves the Sox make, not only this winter, but in the next 12 months. If the Sox ultimately succeed in their pursuit of Adrian Gonzalez, sign right-handed power hitter Jayson Werth or execute a trade for Justin Upton (a long shot), then allowing Martinez to go will look a lot better than it does now.

The Sox will sign a complementary veteran catcher behind Saltalamacchia, and it is not out of the question, a baseball source said Tuesday, that it could be long-time team captain, Jason Varitek. The Sox have until midnight Tuesday to decide whether to offer arbitration to Varitek, a Type B free agent who turns 39 next April. Even if they don’t, they can continue to negotiate with him.

ORLANDO -- In the end, one major-league general manager speculated Tuesday, whether Victor Martinez returns to the Boston Red Sox will probably depend on whether the team is willing to give the free-agent catcher a four-year deal, and he doubts that the Sox are.

Regardless, Red Sox GM Theo Epstein gave the strongest sign to date that the team would be willing to go into the 2011 season with Jarrod Saltalamacchia, the only catcher with big-league experience on the roster, as its No. 1 catcher.

Epstein's endorsement of Saltalamacchia on Tuesday dovetailed with reports that the Florida Marlins were about to sign free-agent catcher John Buck, who projected as the second-best option to Martinez on the market. The Red Sox liked Buck, according to league sources, but not at the price -- a reported three-year deal in the $15 million-$16 million range -- that the Marlins evidently are willing to pay for him. The Sox anticipated Buck's price would reach a range they weren't willing to go.

Asked if he would be comfortable with Saltalamacchia opening the season as the No. 1 catcher, Epstein said:

"We'll probably have a more experienced guy than him on the roster as well, but I think we're comfortable with him in a role anywhere from backup to job share to everyday guy, depending on how the rest of the club shapes up," Epstein said. "We like him. Obviously we liked him from a scouting standpoint. We took an opportunity to buy low after he'd been through a rough period.

"He really impressed the staff, which had no vested interest in it. He really opened some eyes, from the manager [Terry Francona] to [catching instructor and bullpen coach] Gary Tuck to the pitching coach. The way he handled the pitchers, the way he threw, the way he conducted himself in the clubhouse, he was impressive to everybody.

"At some point you've got to give a chance to young players, let them build value, and he's one of those guys. [Jed] Lowrie is potentially another. [Ryan] Kalish is potentially another. We're not going to have high-profile solutions to all our needs, so it's good to have those alternatives you can turn to."

For the full report by Gordon Edes, click here.

BOSTON -- Red Sox catchers Victor Martinez and Jason Varitek were among the first players to file for free agency after the World Series, according to the list of 142 players released Monday night by the Major League Players Association.

Third baseman Mike Lowell was the other Red Sox player who filed, although Lowell has announced he is retiring and his listing is believed to be only procedural.

Martinez had expressed his preference in spring training that the Red Sox sign him to an extension rather than filing for free agency, but the Sox held off on doing so. When the season ended, Martinez said returning to the Red Sox remained his preference, but at the same time expressed a definite interest in learning how much interest other teams would have in his services.

“This is the opportunity every player dreams about, to go out in free agency,’’ he said. “Early in the season I made it clear I didn’t want to be part of free agency. But they [the Red Sox] gave me a chance with the season over [to be a free agent], so I think it’s fair for me and everybody to see what happens.’’

Varitek, meanwhile, is 38 and acknowledged that his great run as Sox catcher may well be at an end, especially with the team having traded for Jarrod Saltalamacchia during the season.

“One thing I’ve always been able to do is be realistic,’’ Varitek said on the season's last day, “so we’ll just have to see. There’s about a billion scenarios in play out there, and we’ll have to see.''

Tick. Tock.

The San Francisco Giants are World Series champions after dismissing the Texas Rangers in Game 5 Monday night at The Ballpark in Arlington, so that means the offseason has officially begun for Major League Baseball.

Significant changes were made to the offseason calendar this year, and that means the Boston Red Sox have until only Thursday to decide whether to pick up the $12.5 million team option on designated hitter David Ortiz.

The Red Sox are expected to pick up the option, but the 34-year-old slugger has said numerous times he would like a multiyear deal from general manager Theo Epstein. The sides are set to talk, and either way, Ortiz will know his future by Thursday.

Because of another date change, the Red Sox now have only five days of exclusive negotiating rights with possible departing free agents. That means Epstein figures to be busy talking with Victor Martinez’s representatives.

Epstein has said he would like to have the catcher/first baseman back in the mix, and Martinez has expressed similar sentiments. If the sides are able to come to an agreement, it’ll have to happen quickly because Martinez is considered one of the top free agent prizes this winter.

Another big free agent is third baseman Adrian Beltre, who successfully accomplished his goal of 2010 by showcasing his ability to compete at a high level. He resurrected his career and is looking for a lucrative long-term deal.

Even though Beltre is looking for a major payday, he’s also made it clear he wants to win a World Series, which could help Boston's chances in negotiations with Beltre and his agent, Scott Boras.

If Beltre is not in the Sox’s plans, the club also could consider going after slugging first baseman Adrian Gonzalez via trade and move Kevin Youkilis back to third base. Youkilis obviously can play the hot corner, but he’s also made is known how comfortable he is as the team’s everyday first baseman.

Once the exclusive grace period ends, it’s a safe bet Epstein (and most of the other 29 GMs) will target free agent outfielders Carl Crawford and Jayson Werth (also a Boras client).

It’s also no secret Boston’s bullpen struggled in 2010, and fixing that problem will be a priority. Lefty reliever Scott Downs, who has pitched for the Blue Jays for the last six seasons, was targeted by Epstein at the trade deadline and likely will be again this winter.

Epstein has proven in the past he’s not afraid to consider almost every possibility. He’ll have a lot of decisions to make this winter, and he’s now officially on the clock.

Just because there’s not much going on with the Red Sox right now doesn’t mean there’s nothing to talk about. Free-agency begins 15 days after the World Series, and with it a key time for the Red Sox as they make critical decisions about building their 2011 roster.

As Theo Epstein and his fellow executives gather on Yawkey Way to determine the direction of this team going forward, these are the six biggest questions they'll be looking for answers to:

1. Will Beltre be back in Boston?: Just how far will the Red Sox be willing to go to bring Adrian Beltre back? Another Adrian -- Gonzalez -- could impact the answer.

2. What should the Red Sox do about Ortiz?: Will David Ortiz be back with the Red Sox? It’s hard to imagine the team without him, but it’s a possibility. Club sources have indicated they intend to pick up his $12.5 million option for 2011, but Big Papi believes he deserves a multiyear extension.

3. Martinez: Yea or nay, and if nay who catches?: Should the Red Sox bring back Victor Martinez -- who's likely to require a long-term contract at a steep price? If not, what happens at catcher? Have we seen the last of Jason Varitek in a Red Sox uniform?

4. How does the outfield line up in 2011?: Despite great efforts from unexpected sources this season, the Red Sox need more from their outfield in 2011. Will they look to free agency? Jayson Werth and Carl Crawford are the big names to watch here.

5. How do the Red Sox improve the bullpen?: Epstein has said fixing the bullpen will be an offseason priority. So where should he begin? And will Jonathan Papelbon be the Red Sox closer next season?

6. Who plays shortstop next season?: Red Sox shortstop Marco Scutaro could face stiff competition next season from resurgent utility man Jed Lowrie. Prospect Jose Iglesias, the shortstop of the future, is probably not ready to contribute on the major league level.

As part of Gordon Edes’ six-part series, we asked you to weigh in on what you’d do to solve each of these dilemmas and to make predictions for what you think the Red Sox will do. Cast your votes here.

BOSTON -- The year began with catcher Victor Martinez saying that he preferred to sign a long-term deal with the Red Sox rather than test free agency.

Now that the season is over, Martinez still says his first choice is to stay here, and GM Theo Epstein says he and the Red Sox would like to keep him, but with the Sox electing to let Martinez go to free agency, moving on looms as a much stronger possibility.

And Martinez sounded intrigued about testing the waters.

“This is the opportunity every player dreams about, to go out in free agency,’’ he said. “Early in the season I made it clear I didn’t want to be part of free agency. But they [the Red Sox] gave me a chance with the season over [to be a free agent], so I think it’s fair for me and everybody to see what happens.’’

Martinez also appears to have softened his position about only wanting to catch. Asked if a team wanting him as a catcher would have more appeal than another thinking of using him in a variety of roles, Martinez said, “You know what? I’ll do anything. I just want to go and win. I do want to win. I’ll do anything I have to do to make a team better, but the only thing I ask is be treated fair.

“I’m young enough. I work really hard. I just want to win. I want to put a ring on my finger.’’

Despite missing more than a month with a broken thumb, Martinez put up another outstanding season offensively, much in line with his career performance. He finished with a .302 batting average, just above his career average of .299 coming into 2010, placing him 10th in the American League and second to Minnesota’s Joe Mauer (.327) among all big-league catchers.

Martinez’s .844 OPS (on-base plus slugging) also was second to Mauer (.871), and his 20 home runs were tied with Toronto’s John Buck, one fewer than Atlanta’s Brian McCann. His 79 RBIs led all catchers.

The flip side was his performance defensively. Teams ran at will against the Red Sox. Martinez threw out just 17 of 133 baserunners attempting to steal, or 14.7 percent. The impression the Red Sox have left is that they were hesitant to commit to Martinez because they weren’t sure he was their permanent successor to Jason Varitek as catcher.

But Epstein was effusive in his praise of Martinez on Sunday, though he hedged when asked if he was comfortable with Martinez as the team’s catcher.

“At this point, now that he’s eligible for free agency, I’ll probably put that in the category of things we should just probably talk about with him,’’ Epstein said, “because it touches upon negotiations and whatnot.

“Vic’s done an unbelievable job since he’s been here. When we got him in a trade we knew we were getting a first-class person, someone who prioritized winning, and a natural hitter. But I don’t think we quite understood the impact he would have here. He’s done a great job and we’d love to see the relationship continue. We’ll see what happens.’’

Asked if he’d seen improvement in Martinez defensively, Epstein said, “From where he was in April to where he was in September, I don’t think there was any comparison. He worked really hard at it, he made some improvements, worked with Gary Tuck and did a great job of leading the pitching staff all year.’’

Martinez said the uncertainty of not knowing where he would be playing come February was weird.

“I know for sure I’m going to have a job somewhere,’’ he said. “That’s the question. Somewhere, I just don’t know. Like I’ve been saying, let’s see what happens. It’s time to wait now and go back home, relax, enjoy my family, and go from there.’’

Still, he remained adamant that re-signing with Boston is his first choice.

“It is, it definitely is,’’ he said. “This is a great place to play. Man, these fans are great. Sometimes I feel a little tired, but as soon as I see those fans get loud, it’s like you don’t get tired. They get you going, it’s amazing.

“For me, it’s an honor to play here and wear this uniform and be in front of these great fans. If they’re not the best, they’re one of the best in sports. We’ll see what happens. Like I say, I’ll do anything.’’

NEW YORK -- Shh! Don’t say it. You can think it, but don’t say it.

The Boston Red Sox would rather not discuss it now that they have won the first two games of this three-game set against the New York Yankees, who have lost four straight games.

With eight games remaining in the regular season, the Red Sox are seven games back of the Tampa Bay Rays for the top spot in the American League East, and only 5½ games behind the Yankees for the wild card. Plus, Boston and New York will play four more times.

The Sox have a chance to sweep the Yankees with a victory Sunday night, with Daisuke Matsuzaka (9-6, 4.86 ERA) taking the mound for Boston against New York’s Dustin Moseley (4-3, 4.94).

“I think we’ve got a chance,” said Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester, who improved to 19-8 after pitching seven scoreless innings Saturday. “With that being said, it’s a long road. You wouldn’t think [eight games remaining] is a long road, but weirder things have happened in baseball. We’ve got four more against the Yankees, and we’ll see. All we can do is go out and play hard, put up a good effort, and we don’t expect anything less from the guys in this clubhouse.

“We’re going to go out and battle and grind it out. We’ll see where we’re at in a couple of days.”

The Red Sox players are taking a one-game-at-a-time attitude, but it’s now realistic to believe they could actually pull this off.

“We’ll keep going out there and keep playing and see what happens,” Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez said. “We’re making sure we’re finishing the season strong.

“This just shows everybody what kind of team we’ve got. Obviously, we’ve had a really tough time earlier in the season, and we’ve lost a lot of guys in the lineup, and there’s nothing you can do about that. We’re trying to win ballgames. We’ll go out there and play hard.”

Daisuke Matsuzaka did not pitch badly Monday night, but walks hurt the right-hander, who was saddled with the 4-2 loss when Daniel Bard allowed two inherited runners to score in the seventh, snapping a 2-2 deadlock.

Dice-K walked five, and two of those base runners ended up scoring.

“Walks have a way of coming around to score,” said manager Terry Francona. “Not all the time, but even if they don’t score they force you to pitch out of the stretch and make it a lot more difficult inning.”

With the game tied at 2-2, Dice-K’s final walk was to Brian Roberts with one out in the seventh. And when Nick Markakis went with an outside pitch and drilled a double into the left-field corner, Francona called in Bard.

Francona was hoping for a strikeout from Bard, but Ty Wigginton hit a fly ball to center, delivering Roberts on the sacrifice fly that put the Orioles on top, 3-2. A hanging slider from Bard was then smacked into right by Luke Scott, giving Baltimore a two-run cushion.

The loss dropped Matsuzaka’s record to 9-6. He has given up at least four earned runs in seven straight starts, going 1-3 with a 6.91 earned-run average over that stretch.

Hall helps keep it close

Bill Hall, playing left field, had two assists, keeping Baltimore from opening up a bigger lead early on.

In the third inning, Hall gunned down Roberts trying to score from second on Scott’s two-out single. In the fourth, after retrieving an errant throw from first baseman Victor Martinez on a potential force-out at second, Hall threw out Felix Pie trying to advance from first to third on the error.

“On the first one I kind of cheated in a little bit,” said Hall, who also drove in one of the Red Sox runs on a single in the sixth that tied the game at 2-2.

“The wind was blowing in, so I knew if the ball was hit over my head I’d still be able to get it,” said Hall. “I got the ball, got a good four-seam grip for the first time in a long time and the ball carried [to the plate] the way I wanted it to.”

Hall’s throw was in plenty of time for the out, with catcher Jason Varitek blocking the plate and slapping the tag on Roberts.

His second assist came in part from his hustle. Hall got into position to back up Martinez’ throw, scooped up the bouncing ball and threw to third baseman Adrian Beltre, getting Pie with plenty of time to spare, short-circuiting what could have been a big inning.

Hall became the third Red Sox outfielder to rack up two assists in one game, joining Darnell McDonald (May 8 against the Yankees) and Mike Cameron (April 21 at Oakland).

V-Mart stays hot; Beltre's streak ends

Martinez went 3 for 4, extending his home hitting streak to 12 games. It was Martinez’ seventh multi-hit game in his last 12 ... Beltre’s hitting streak was snapped at nine games ... Hideki Okajima worked a spotless eighth, with the Orioles failing to get the ball out of the infield. He stretched his scoreless streak to 9 1/3 innings ... The Red Sox fell to 8-8 against the last-place Orioles, who have won only 60 games this year. Baltimore has improved under manager Buck Showalter, though, recording a 28-17 record since he took over.

OAKLAND -- “Salary drive” is usually spat out as a term of derision, suggesting the only reason a ballplayer is playing hard is that his contract is up at the end of the season and he's trying to impress prospective employers.

The corollary that often goes unspoken is that the only time Player X is engaged is when he is worrying about next year’s contract, and once that is resolved his effort tends to drop off accordingly.

Which brings us to Adrian Beltre and Victor Martinez of the Red Sox, both of whom are staging impressive salary drives as they head toward free agency. Neither shows the least inclination to come out of the lineup.

Beltre leads the Red Sox in games played with 139 (135 starts), including Sunday, missing just four games all season. This will be his 54th consecutive game since sitting out the first game after the All-Star break on July 15 with a sore hamstring.

Beltre is tearing it up this month, batting .351/.455/.730/1.184, with four home runs and eight RBIs in September's first 10 games.

Martinez, meanwhile, has not missed a game since coming off the disabled list on July 26 after missing a month with a fractured thumb. Martinez will be starting his 54th consecutive game Sunday, which includes both ends of doubleheaders against the Mariners in late August and the White Sox last weekend.

Martinez, too, is on a roll, if anything an even more impressive one than Beltre, batting .393 (22-for-56) with five home runs and 12 RBIs over his last 14 games dating back to Aug. 27. The switch-hitter came into Sunday leading the majors with a .411 average against left-handers and while he had a chance to improve those numbers against Athletics starter Dallas Braden, Martinez went 0-for-5 on the day.

Beltre, meanwhile, stayed hot, going 2-for-4 with two runs scored Sunday.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona has spoken of an obligation to players who have been there day-in, day-out for him, which is why he continues to put Beltre and Martinez on his lineup cards, even with the team out of contention. This is their livelihood, after all, and they deserve the right to put themselves in the best possible position going forward.

But beyond that, there is this: Beltre and Martinez both play the game in a way that is the antithesis of whatever negative meaning “salary drive” connotes. Beltre played five straight seasons in which he didn't miss more than six games in a single season, and last year was the first time since 2001 he has played fewer than 140 games.

“It’s not only what he’s done for the Red Sox this season,’’ one talent evaluator said a couple of weeks ago when the Sox were in St. Petersburg, Fla., to play the Rays. “It’s the way he goes about his business. Plays hard every day, runs everything out, maximum effort.’’

The same applies to Martinez. He played in a career-high 155 games last season, won immediate acceptance as a team leader upon his arrival after last July’s trade, and has been a model of professionalism every day he has been here.

It’s possible, of course, that neither will be back next season. By signing a one-year deal with the Sox at the urging of agent Scott Boras, Beltre has re-established his market value in spectacular fashion. He will be in demand -- the Tigers, White Sox, Angels all are potential suitors, and there will be others. The Red Sox, meanwhile, must decide whether they intend to commit to Martinez as their everyday catcher for the next three or four years; Martinez defines himself as a catcher, and he is likely to sign with the team that views him the same way.

But these “salary drives” of Beltre and Martinez represent a perfect meshing of what has been best for the team and their own personal interests.

BOSTON -- After reports surfaced recently that the Boston Red Sox and soon-to-be free-agent catcher Victor Martinez have begun contracts talks, both sides are saying they’ll wait until season’s end to get down to serious negotiations.

Both the Boston Globe and WEEI.com reported the Red Sox offered Martinez a two-year deal, but Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein told ESPNBoston.com, “There’s nothing going on.”

When approached about the subject, Martinez said, “I’m not talking about that. Is that what you want to talk about? Nope. Pass.”

Martinez told WEEI.com that the Red Sox offered a two-year contract, but that he was looking for a longer-term deal, calling two years a starting point.

Martinez’s agent Alan Nero responded to a text message sent by ESPNBoston.com, asking for an update on contract talks, by saying, "Nothing really to report. We'll talk at season's end."

Martinez, whose current five-year, $15.5 million deal expires at the end of the season, figures to be a priority for the Red Sox this offseason.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- After the Boston Red Sox dropped two of three games to the Tampa Bay Rays this weekend at Tropicana Field, the notion of whether their postseason chances are still intact was on the mind of many.

But not the Red Sox players.

The Rays posted a 5-3 victory here Sunday night to take the series and leave Boston 6 ½ games behind Tampa and New York with 31 games remaining in the regular season. These teams face each other three more times in September at Fenway Park, and the Sox also have six games remaining against the Yankees, who share the AL East lead with the Rays.

“It’s not over yet,” said Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez. “We’ll keep playing hard and see what happens.”

Following Sunday’s loss, the Red Sox packed their bags and traveled to Baltimore, where they’ll face the Orioles in a three-game set, beginning Tuesday at Camden Yards.

Red Sox starter John Lackey worked 6 1/3 innings against the Rays and allowed five runs on nine hits with three walks and seven strikeouts. The right-hander surrendered a pair of home runs, to Carlos Pena (solo shot in the fourth) and Carl Crawford (two-run blast in the sixth with Boston ahead 3-1).

“[Lackey] did a lot of good things, but when he made the mistakes he really paid for them,” said Red Sox manager Terry Francona.

Lackey cruised through the first five innings, but Tampa touched him for three runs in the sixth and added another in the seventh.

“I’m still trying to figure it out,” Lackey said. “I felt way too good to give up five runs.”

Lackey said after the game that he thought it was the best he’s thrown the ball in years.

“Tonight I had as good of stuff as I’ve had in a long time,” he said.

But he only has a loss to show for it, dropping his record to 12-8.

“He threw the ball well,” said Martinez. “Crawford and Pena got two pitches that we were trying to go away, but [the pitches] came back over the middle and they both put a good swing on it.”

Despite the loss and the missed opportunities this weekend, Lackey believes the Sox can remain in contention over the final five weeks of the season.

“I’m not a math whiz, but I think it’s doable,” Lackey said.

Big game, James: Rays starter James Shields earned the victory to become the club’s all-time leader in wins (56) and games started (145), surpassing Scott Kazmir in both categories.

“It means a lot,” Shields said. “This organization has given me the opportunity to be able to pitch as long as I have here and hopefully I get a ton more. It definitely means a lot, but my focus right now is to go to the playoffs and win a World Series.”

The right-hander worked 6 2/3 innings Sunday and allowed three runs on seven hits with one walk and eight strikeouts.

CC's in fine company: Crawford’s homer in the sixth inning was the 100th of his career, allowing the Rays left fielder to become the eighth player since 1900 to reach 100 homers, 100 triples and 400 stolen bases. He joins Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, Lou Brock, Frankie Frisch, Kenny Lofton, Paul Molitor and Tim Raines.

“Feels good,” Crawford said of his achievement. “I’m proud to be in elite company. It makes me want to see how far I can go.”

Crawford finished the night 2-for-4 and now has a career .467 average against Lackey.

Stopped cold: Martinez is not afraid to block the plate and he showed that again on Sunday when Pena attempted to score from second on a base hit to center field. Red Sox outfielder Darnell McDonald made a strong throw home, where Martinez was waiting for the one-hopper as Pena slid in and spiked Boston’s catcher. Pena was out and Martinez was in pain. After a few minutes, he was able to shake it off and remained in the game. He said everything was fine afterward.

May I assist you? McDonald now has eight outfield assists this season. He notched his seventh as a center fielder in gunning down Pena and becomes the first Red Sox center fielder to reach that mark since Coco Crisp in 2007.

A first for Navarro: Red Sox rookie infielder Yamaico Navarro recorded his first career RBI, a tying single in the fifth inning off Shields. “We played him because we thought he could help us win,” Francona said.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- The Boston Red Sox accomplished exactly what they needed to in the first of a three-game set against the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night at Tropicana Field.

Red Sox starter Jon Lester rebounded from a career-worst performance in his last outing to completely dominate the Rays en route to a 3-1 victory. The southpaw worked seven innings and allowed one unearned run on two hits with five walks and 10 strikeouts. He also tossed three wild pitches and hit a batter, and finished with 106 pitches (58 strikes).

The Sox’s Victor Martinez hit a pair of solo home runs and Jed Lowrie provided an RBI single in the win.

“This was a big one for us and we needed it,” said Lester. “We had some good at-bats and we battled. That’s what we’ve been doing all season long, and if we continue to do that, it’ll put us in a good position hopefully at the end of the year.”

PLAY OF THE GAME: The Red Sox held a 2-1 lead heading into the bottom of the sixth inning. Lester allowed a leadoff walk to the Rays’ B.J. Upton. Tampa’s speedster notched his 37th stolen base of the season when he swiped second. Teammate Jason Bartlett then lined a shot to center field and it appeared the Rays would tie the game.

Upton actually eased up around third a bit as Red Sox center fielder Darnell McDonald made a perfect one-hop throw home to Martinez, who blocked the plate and applied the tag for the out. Martinez whipped off his mask and pumped his fist.

“That was a great throw,” Lester said. “It changed the momentum of that inning. These guys play off momentum and I think that helped get it back on our side.”

GOING YARD: Martinez had been held to only one home run since he was activated from the disabled list (fractured left thumb) on July 26. He produced a pair of solo homers Friday night off Rays’ starter David Price. It was Martinez’s fifth career multi-homer game and his second this season.

He gave Boston a spark in the top of the first inning Friday when he took Price deep to left field for a solo shot. The homer was Martinez’s 11th of the season and only his second since Aug. 7 at New York. V-Mart crushed his second of the night in the top of the seventh with two outs and deposited it into the left-field seats to give Boston a 3-1 lead.

“I got two good pitches to hit,” Martinez said. “Obviously, David Price has some great stuff and I have a lot of respect for him. Whenever he gives you a pitch to hit, you’ve got to make sure you don’t miss it because you don’t know if you’re going to get another one.”

SAVED: Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon recorded his 33rd save of the season.

BILLIONS SERVED: The last time the Red Sox visited Tropicana Field in early July, McDonald had been designated for assignment and didn’t know what his future held. He was quickly reinstated before the official paperwork was sent to the league. D-Mac has been a major contributor this season. He posted his third triple of the season Friday night. Then, of course, he assisted on the play of the game when he threw out Upton.

STRIKES: Lester got himself in a little bit of a jam in the bottom of the fourth when the Rays’ Jason Bartlett and Carlos Pena reached base to lead off the inning by way of an error and a base hit, respectively. Even though Lester tossed a pair of wild pitches, allowing Tampa to score its first run of the game, the southpaw posted two big strikeouts, getting Evan Longoria and Willy Aybar to end the threat.

Lester accomplished the feat again the sixth inning when he struck out Longoria and got Aybar to ground out, stranding two runners.

Lester finished the game with 10 strikeouts.

“He was able to use his off-speed pitches when he was behind in the count and he was able to keep them off-balance,” Martinez said of Lester. “He did a great job tonight."

NOW THAT’S HUSTLE: With the Red Sox clinging onto a 2-1 lead to begin the fifth inning, Boston leadoff man Marco Scutaro hit a chopper up the middle that was snared by Rays second baseman Sean Rodriguez, who quickly made the accurate throw to first. Scutaro, however, never let up out of the box and slid head first to beat the throw. Unfortunately, he was left stranded.

SHIFTED: If it weren’t for the dreaded, yet successful, infield shift on David Ortiz, the Sox’s slugger would finish each season with many more hits. He’s been able to go to the opposite field more this season, but Friday was the perfect example how the shift can be successful.

With Boston leading 2-1 with two on and two outs in the top of the fifth inning, Ortiz lined a shot to shallow right field -- and if it had fallen, the Sox would have pushed across another run. However, due to the shift, Rays’ second baseman Sean Rodriguez was positioned perfectly and made the easy catch. Ortiz was disgusted.

PICKED: Lester has one of the best pickoff moves in the AL and he showcased it again Friday night. With two outs and the potential tying run on second base, the Rays’ Sean Rodriguez attempted to swipe third, but Lester stepped off the rubber and picked the runner off to end the threat and the inning. It was Lester’s sixth pickoff of the season.

UP NEXT: Game 2 of this series won’t disappoint, either. The Red Sox send Clay Buchholz (15-5, 2.26 ERA) to the hill against the Rays’ Matt Garza (13-7, 3.62) at 7:10 p.m. on Saturday.

BOSTON -- When David Ortiz crushed a pitch to the gap in left-center leading off the fifth, he motored around the bases.

And by the time he was done, punctuating his dash with a slide into third base, Ortiz not only had the Sox’ first hit of the game, he had hit first triple of the year.

Believe it or not, Ortiz, all 6-foot-4, 230 pounds of him (so says the media guide) thus became only the third active player with at least one triple in each of his last 11 years in the American League, joining Johnny Damon and Carlos Guillen. It was Ortiz's 15th career triple.

“I’ve got speed,” Ortiz said with a smile. “I’m a speed killer.”

Ortiz was asked if he was winded by the time he got to third.

“I was fine,” he said, still smiling. “I’m an athlete, man.”

Scare for Martinez

There was immediate concern in the Boston dugout when catcher Victor Martinez was struck on his mitt by Jose Bautista on a third-inning strikeout.

Manager Terry Francona and a trainer came out to check on Martinez, who spent time on the disabled list because of a broken left thumb, the thumb inside the catcher’s mitt.

Martinez was down for a while, but it turned out all right for the catcher and the Red Sox.

“[The bat] hit him on the back of his hand,” said Francona. “I know it hurt. It took a little time for him to shake it off.”

But at least it wasn’t the thumb. Martinez stayed in the game and contributed a run-scoring single in the Sox’ two-run eighth that put away the game.

All Hall

Bill Hall owns Toronto’s Shaun Marcum.

And while it’s a small sample, it’s very loud sample.

Hall entered Sunday’s game boasting two hits in two at-bats against the Jays right-hander. Those two hits were home runs, smacked in Toronto on Aug. 11.

On Sunday, after hitting a weak tapper in front of the plate in his first at-bat, Hall again took Marcum deep, launching a two-run homer over the Green Monster, giving the Red Sox a 3-0 lead in the fifth inning. So he’s now 3-for-4 with three homers and five RBIs in his career against Marcum.

The homer was Hall’s 17th of the year. He has four homers and eight RBIs in his last nine games.

Rain on the brain

The rain and forecasts of imminent rain caused manager Terry Francona to alter his pitching plans.

Thinking that more rain might bring another delay and possibly even end the game, Francona had Daniel Bard get up in the bullpen in the sixth inning. Generally Bard will get in the game in the eighth, though Francona did call on him for the seventh and eighth innings in Saturday’s win over the Jays.

Starter Clay Buchholz got out of a jam in the sixth, but since Bard already had gotten warm, and there were forecasts that more rain was on the way, Francona put him in the game in the seventh. Bard responded with a scoreless inning -- two whiffs and a walk -- but that was all for him, especially since he had worked the night before.

Felix Doubront blanked Toronto in the eighth, and when Boston pushed across two more runs in the bottom of the inning, closer Jonathan Papelbon, who had been warming up in preparation for a save opportunity, sat back down. Doubront finished the game for his second big-league save.

Hurry up and wait

The two rain delays totaled 2:43. The time of the game was 2:45 . . . Jed Lowrie’s career-best hitting streak was snapped at nine games . . . Kevin Cash went 1-for-4 with a double for Lowell in catching seven innings in a rehab appearance.