ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) – Texas goes for its first victory of 2011 on Friday in its most-anticipated opener. The Rangers raise their AL championship flag before playing reloaded Boston.

The Red Sox missed the playoffs last season, but are widely considered the AL East favorite after adding Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez, two of baseball’s most productive players.

There are some predictions of 100 wins, but like Texas, the Red Sox are focused on trying to get the first one and building from there.

“I don’t put numbers out there,” Kevin Youkilis said. “I just go out and just play the game and all the numbers and all the wins will play themselves out after 162 games.”

With the addition of Gonzalez at first base, Youkilis switched back to third base for the Red Sox, filling a vacancy created when Adrian Beltre turned down a $10 million option to stay and instead signed an $80 million, five-year deal with Texas that includes the likelihood of another $16 million in 2016.

Beltre, a two-time Gold Glove winner, hit .321 with a league-best 49 doubles, 28 home runs and 102 RBIs in his only season with the Red Sox. He was an All-Star for the first time in his 13-season career, and faces his old team in his Rangers debut.

“It’s kind of a little weird, but it’s just another game,” Beltre said. “Hopefully get the first couple of games out of the way and start the long journey.”

Beltre missed the first two weeks of spring training games because of a right calf strain, and played only 10 games in Arizona. But he said he’s ready for the season and an opening week reunion for him that also includes a three-game series against Seattle, the team he spent five seasons with before Boston.

C.J. Wilson, who won a Rangers-high 15 games last season after moving from the bullpen to the rotation, starts the opener against Jon Lester in a matchup of left-handers.

“I like pitching against good teams and I like pitching in those kind of big situations,” Wilson said. “Every victory is important, but last year I pitched really well against the Red Sox, so I’m sure they have a little bit of a bone to pick with me.”

Wilson was 3-0 with an 0.86 ERA in his three starts against Boston last year. The Red Sox hit only .157 against him with 20 strikeouts and only two runs in 21 innings.

Red Sox manager Terry Francona made a couple of tweaks to his expected regular lineup against Wilson.

Though J.D. Drew is expected to be the everyday right fielder, Mike Cameron will start in right Friday and hit seventh. Youkilis will bat fourth with Gonzalez fifth, though Francona plans for it to be Gonzalez then Youkilis against right-handers.

Lester, who got the opening assignment ahead of Josh Beckett or John Lackey, has also been pretty good against the Rangers. He threw eight shutout innings in 100-degree heat at Rangers Ballpark last August and has a 3-1 record with a 2.94 ERA in seven career starts against them.

Ryan expects the Rangers to win the AL West again, and likes that they are opening the season against Boston.

“Well, you might as well start with who you think is probably the favorite in that division over there,” Ryan said. “I really think that they’re going to have the kind of club and the kind of year we expect, so we know we’re going to see good pitching out of them this series. So we’re going to have to be ready.”

The Red Sox worked out Thursday in Houston, where they played an exhibition game the night before, instead of Rangers Ballpark.

Gonzalez made his major league debut with Texas in 2004, and was traded to San Diego before the 2006 season. Crawford’s last game with Tampa Bay was the deciding Game 5 of the AL division series last season against Texas.

The Rangers opener comes exactly five months after San Francisco clinched the World Series with a Game 5 victory in Texas.

“It’s an opportunity for the team to go out and raise the bar,” said Michael Young, the longest-tenured Ranger starting his 11th season. “That’s really what being a winning team is all about — experiencing some success, getting used to it and finding a way to get back on top of the mountain. … So we’ll start from scratch and try to build our way back up.”

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The first two words of Josh Beckett’s post-game remarks said volumes.

“Results aside, I think I did some things we’d been working on and felt comfortable for the first time,” the Boston Red Sox right-hander said after Friday night’s 11-8 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Results aside – that is the slogan for these Red Sox, who have lost eight straight but look at spring training as preparation time and nothing more.

“I want to win at everything, be it checkers or spring training. But I think (keeping) perspective is huge here,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said.

“I don’t think Oscar Tejeda making an error will cost us a game in Texas.”

No, a seventh-inning error by a minor league second baseman won’t be a fact by next week, when the Red Sox open against the Rangers. But no one questions that the time when results will matter is coming into view.

No player is relying on the meaning of meaningless results more than Beckett, who is coming off an injury-plagued 2010 season and says he feels great.

But he is not pitching great. In six-plus innings, Beckett allowed seven runs and 11 hits, raising his spring ERA to 6.64.

“The results are not good. They stink, but there were some good things,” Beckett said.

“I have to take positives from this.”

Big innings have hurt him in recent starts. This time, it was a more consistent attack.

Beckett thought he made particular strides in working out of the stretch.

“I had plenty of practice at that,” he said.

“Two good things – he got really stretched out and he felt great,” Francona said.

“He made some mistakes. Some pitches wandered back over the plate, but when that happened, he also made some good pitches.

“You’re just glad he feels good and the runs don’t count.”

Beckett will have one more spring training start, against the Astros in Houston on Wednesday. After he left Friday’s game, lefty reliever Dennys Reyes didn’t steady his balance on the roster bubble.

On the last night before the Red Sox had to decide whether to keep him, Reyes was raked for three runs (two earned) on two hits with a walk in the seventh.

In an 0-4 spring, Beckett has allowed 27 hits and 19 runs (15 earned) in 20 1/3 innings.

Boston’s good signs Friday involved solid hitting up and down the lineup. The Red Sox had 17 hits.

Adrian Gonzalez hit the ball solidly and had two hits. So did David Ortiz, Carl Crawford, J.D. Drew and Jason Varitek

Jonathan Papelbon looked crisp in a one-hit, scoreless ninth with two strikeouts.

“He had good offspeed stuff, and even on the double, his fastball was down,” Francona said.

For Beckett, Friday’s start began ominously. Corey Patterson slammed his first pitch to the base of the wall in center – one of three leadoff doubles by the Jays in this game, all on first-pitch fastballs.

In the sixth, Adam Loewen broke a 4-4 tie in the sixth with monster home run. As the ball was disappearing into the palm trees behind the facade in right, Beckett’s hopes of escaping with a decent line vanished, too.

He said it was actually a good pitch, a two-seam fastball on the corner – but perhaps the wrong pitch for that situation.

Beckett came out for the seventh, threw one pitch and plunked Mike McCoy. After 91 pitches, he was done.

He said he will do “whatever (the team) wants” in Houston. Francona said he will taper off with a lower pitch count, as is standard for the last preseason start.

After he left, Reyes came in and turned the seventh into a four-run inning. Tejeda made it hard, committing one error and failing to turn a double play on another play.

There was nothing cheap about catcher J.C. Arencibia’s three-run home run, though. Reyes has been fighting for a one of the last two roster spots.

The left-hander’s opt-out clause says he can seek another team if the Red Sox don’t commit to him by Saturday.

Francona still had good words about Reyes.

“His ball has movement. The four-pitch walk he had was not something you want, but Arencibia hit a good pitch,” the manager said.

The game represented a reunion between the Red Sox and John Farrell, their pitching coach for four years before taking over as Toronto manager this season.

“Personally, he’s one of my best friends,” Francona said.

“During the season, you don’t get much chance to get together. But I know one thing – his team will be prepared.”

Published: Friday, March 18, 2011, 8:33 PM     Updated: Friday, March 18, 2011, 9:08 PM

PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. – Sitting at his locker after a homer-riddled start, Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield looked downcast but not defeated.

It was not a good day for Wakefield, who talks and acts as if he will be on the Opening Day roster, even as no such assurances have come from those who will make the decision.

“My mechanics were off. I was rushing to the plate,” the 44-year-old knuckleballer said Friday night after his three-inning outing against Tampa Bay.

He gave up six runs, seven hits and four home runs. If Wakefield is really on the roster bubble, this could not have helped.

He does not look at it that way. He said he feels better this year, knowing for sure his role will be in relief, even though he was a starter Friday.

His knuckleball has been better this March than in other spring trainings, he said.

“I knew what I was doing wrong (Friday), but I couldn’t correct it,” he said.

“I got two outs in the second, got out of the zone and left the ball up, and I couldn’t rebound.”

On Friday morning, manager Terry Francona would not say Wakefield was assured a spot on the team.

Being careful with roster speculation is Francona’s hallmark, and a prudent one at that. But when a 16-year veteran under contract does not get a thumbs-up, two weeks before the season opener, it is impossible to ignore the numbers crunch that could force the Red Sox to consider releasing Wakefield.

“We face some interesting decisions in the next couple of weeks,” Francona said in general terms.

Analyzing his start 11 hours later, Wakefield read nothing into its results beyond the fact he wished he’d have been better.

“I couldn’t believe Evan Longoria hit it out. He was way in front and kind of scooped it,” Wakefield said.

The other home runs came from Kelly Shoppach, Ben Zobrist and that old familiar face, Manny Ramirez. Wakefield had pitched a one-hit, scoreless first and was nearly out of the second before Shoppach started the home-run barrage.

Wakefield was not happy about it, but he gave no doomsday scenarios, nothing more than a resolve to get ready for his next outing, which will likely come in a minor-league game Thursday.

“I think I’ve thrown very well this spring, better than in a lot of other springs,” he said.

Besides, spring training results cannot be applied literally to the season, he said.

“I can’t tell you if I’ve had a good year after a good spring in the past,” Wakefield said.

To his credit, Wakefield did not throw his catcher under the bus. Minor leaguer Mark Wagner handled Wakefield’s knuckler, which he had never done except in throwing on the side, but the pitcher said he was fine.

The minor league venue, Wakefield’s next stop is a standard way for major leaguers to get work. But much as Wakefield sees his this as just another lead-up to a season with the Red Sox, his 17th in a remarkable career, there are no official guarantees of that.

On Friday morning, Francona was asked specifically about the status of Wakefield, a Red Soxer since 1995.

“I would never sit here and talk about (specific) players making the team. That would be awful,” Francona said.

“These guys have a stressful couple of weeks as it is. I’m not going to make it worse.”

Dispiriting as Wakefield’s performance was Friday night, his status is not in question because of Grapefruit League results. It’s about other numbers – roster numbers.

Jonathan Papelbon, Bobby Jenks, and Daniel Bard are on the team. Dan Wheeler seems sure, and so does Hideki Okajima, a lefty.

That would leave two bullpen spots. It’s not inconceivable that Boston could carry 13 pitchers, which would open another bullpen spot, since Jed Lowrie could serve as the backup corner infielder and middle infielder – jobs often filled by two men.

But the Sox have never carried 13 in other than brief emergency situations. Among other decisions, the Red Sox must decide whether to carry two left-handers, which is possible since many candidates have pitched well in spring.

They also have righties like Scott Atchison, who pitched pretty well last year, and Matt Albers, who is out of options.

And there is also Alfredo Aceves, a right-hander who, like Wakefield, could start or pitch relief.

It was the Wakefield-Aceves similiarity, in fact, that kicked off Thursday’s entire discussion about “interesting decisions” that loom.

Francona acknowledged that the choices are hard because so many candidates have done well.

“Nobody has separated themselves in a bad way. We have good depth,” he said.

He said the Red Sox often face difficult choices with the bullpen. But in other years, the final cuts have sometimes revolved around the better of mediocre options, as opposed to the choices of quality this year.

All of this leaves Wakefield in no-man’s land. He would rather start, and went through camp as a starter last year, only to wind up in the pen when Boston’s other five starters became healthy.

When Wakefield’s name has come up, Francona has clearly been reluctant to speak expansively. Earier this week, he deftly cut off an inquiry about Wakefield before it led to more.

“Tim knows his role on this team,” Francona said. But it is not so clear to outsiders, and perhaps even from within, what that is.

Francona’s admiration for the veteran’s work ethic, production and versatility is genuine and well-documented, which is why this must be so hard for all concerned. He has always maintained that it was Wakefield’s willingness to take a pounding in a 2004 ALCS Game 3 blowout that saved the Red Sox bullpen, making the historic comeback over the Yankees possible.

Wakefield has also served him well with a 2009 All-Star selection and a No. 3 ranking in victories among all-time Red Sox pitchers.

But the prospect of releasing Wakefield with a year left on his contract is real, and made more awkward by Wakefield’s conviction that he can still pitch.

The contract for $1.5 million this year is cab change by today’s baseball standards. The issue here is not money, but emotion, which usually gets shouldered out of the discussion at decision time.

If the Red Sox could get through 2011 with Wakefield, the contract would end and all sides could easily accept it’s over. They would give him a huge going-away celebration, a day in his honor and maybe more, and he would deserve all of it.

They might not be able to do it that way. The Red Sox don’t dispute that Wakefield can still pitch in the majors.

The issue is whether there is any room to do it on this roster – the only roster in baseball that interests Wakefield.

That is a very real issue these days. The pitcher is preparing for this season as he would any other, but his employer is faced with decisions that neither side wants to contemplate, but which one side must.

Published: Friday, March 18, 2011, 3:02 PM     Updated: Friday, March 18, 2011, 3:34 PM

It was a struggle from the start, but Boston Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz saw some good in that.

“You like to go through games where nobody gets past second base, but in the regular season, you’ll be seeing situations with second and third, less than two out. It’s good to go through those now,” Buchholz said after leaving in the fifth inning Friday against Detroit.

“I struggled with just about everything. I tried to make adjustments at the release point.

“Definitely not one of my best, but facing adversity with runners on, that’s always good (experience).”

For all his command issues, Buchholz allowed only one run in four-plus innings. He was also charged with two unearned runs in the fifth, when the Tigers scofed four unearned runs for a 5-1 lead.

They were the firsr runs allowed this spring by Buchholz, who has made four appearances with three starts for a total of 13 innings.

He threw 41 of his 76 pitches for strikes, walking two with one strikeout.

He would like to get up to about 90 pitches by the end of spring.

“Getting the release point down, and commanding your pitches, that’s number one in spring training. I have a couple of starts left to fix those things,” Buchholz said.

“I was jumping (in his delivery) a bit. Certain games, you’ll go through that.”

Buchholz was a bit wild in his bullpen warmup.

“Some of my best games came after I’d bee wild in the warmup, so you can’t take anything from that. I’s usually better by the second or third inning.”

That never really happened this time. Still, Buchholz was not that bad, only not up to the dazzling status that has become his expectation.

He will enter the season as the No. 3 starter. Last year, he was a conditional No. 5, fighting for a spot that seemed open only because Daisuke Matsuzaka was rehabbing from an injury.

He certainly does not look at his spot with disapproval, even though he has been widely considered Boston’s second best pitcher behind Jon Lester.

“Last year, I was No. 5 and I wound up facing CC Sabathia and Justin Verlander. It doesn’t really matter,” Buchholz said.

Buchholz was visited by pitching coach Curt Young at one point to see if he had a blister. He did not.

The Tigers lineup did not include former Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez, who played against Boston when the teams met at Lakeland Tuesday.

Down the road from City of Palms Park Friday, reliever Bobby Jenks also got in some work at the Red Sox minor league complex. Jenks pitched two scoreless innings against Tampa Bay’s Double A prospects, allowing two hits with two strikeouts and no walks..

Unscored upon this spring, Jenks threw 20 of his 26 pitches for strikes.

KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) – Dustin Pedroia tripled and doubled Friday and a Boston Red Sox split squad beat the Houston Astros 9-3.

Coming back from a season cut in half by a fractured left foot, Pedroia drove in two runs against Brett Myers with a double in the first inning. Pedroia’s seventh-inning triple was one of four triples for the Red Sox, including two by catcher Mark Wagner.

Myers pitched three innings in his third spring start, giving up five runs on six hits. A sore shoulder moved Astros left fielder Carlos Lee to a DH role. He drove in Houston’s first run with a double.

Justin Morneau went 0 for 2 in his spring training debut for Minnesota, but the Twins beat a Boston Red Sox split squad 3-2 on Friday.

Morneau played in a “B” game earlier this week, but this was the 2006 AL MVP’s first Grapefruit League action since he sustained a season-ending concussion last July 7.

The first baseman struck out swinging and reached base on an error by Red Sox left fielder Carl Crawford, with both at-bats coming against ace left-hander Jon Lester.

Delmon Young also played in his first spring game for the Twins. He went 1 for 2.

Lester struck out five in four scoreless innings, scattering four hits.

Published: Friday, February 25, 2011, 11:05 PM     Updated: Friday, February 25, 2011, 11:14 PM

Since a few people asked, here is the Boston Red Sox 2011 springing training broadcast schedule:

Saturday, Feb. 26 — vs. Boston College at 1:05 p.m., WRKO radio
Saturday, Feb. 26 — vs. Northeastern at 6 p.m., WEEI radio
Sunday, Feb. 27 — at Twins at 7:05 p.m., WEEI
Monday, Feb. 28 — vs. Twins at 7:05 p.m, no broadcasts
Tuesday, March 1 — at Twins at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Wednesday, March 2 — vs. Braves at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Thursday, March 3 — vs. Phillies at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Friday, March 4 — at Yankees at 7:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV, WRKO
Saturday, March 5 — vs. Marlins (SS) at 1:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV, WEEI
Saturday, March 5 — at Orioles (SS) at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Sunday, March 6 — at Mets at 1:10 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV
Monday, March 7 — vs. Orioles at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Tuesday, March 8 — at Cardinals at 1:05 p.m. (SS), no broadcasts
Tuesday, March 8 — vs. Astros at 1:05 p.m. (SS), no broadcasts
Wednesday, March 9 — vs. Orioles at 7:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV, WRKO
Thursday, March 10 — at Rays at 1:05 p.m., MLB.TV
Friday, March 11 — at Astros at 1:05 p.m. (SS), no broadcasts
Friday, March 11 — at Twins at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Saturday, March 12 — vs. Marlins at 1:05 p.m. (SS), NESN, MLB.TV, WEEI
Sunday, March 13 — at Pirates at 1:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV
Monday, March 14 — vs. Yankees at 7:05 p.m., NESN, ESPN 2, MLB.TV, WRKO
Tuesday, March 15 — at Tigers at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Wednesday, March 16 — at Braves at 1:05 p.m., ESPN, MLB.TV
Thursday, March 17 — vs. Mets at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Friday, March 18 — vs. Tigers at 1:05 p.m. (SS), no broadcasts
Friday, March 18 — at Rays at 7:05 p.m. (SS), MLB.TV, WRKO
Saturday, March 19 — at Pirates at 1:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV
Sunday, March 20 — vs. Cardinals at 1:05 p.m., NESN. MLB.TV, WEEI
Monday, March 21 — at Phillies at 1:05 p.m., ESPN, MLB.TV
Tuesday, March 22 — at Rays at 7:05 p.m., WEEI
Thursday, March 24 — at Marlins at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Friday, March 25 — vs. Blue Jays at 7:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV, WRKO
Saturday, March 26 — vs. Twins at 7:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV, WEEI
Sunday, March 27 — at Orioles at 1:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV, WEEI
Monday, March 28 — at Blue Jays at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Tuesday, March 29 — vs. Rays at 1:05 p.m., no broadcasts
Wednesday, March 30 — at Astros at 8:05 p.m., NESN, MLB.TV, WEEI