Beckett: Definition of an ace

He uses his words as economically as he uses his devastating pitches when he’s on.

And while he wasn’t lights out on Tuesday night in earning his 10th win of the season in a 5-2 Red Sox win over Oakland, Josh Beckett was still at his very best afterward in summing up his performance.

“I felt good,” Beckett said. “I made some mistakes. I got away with a few mistakes. We played pretty good defense. Nick Green made some pretty nice plays.”

“I think anybody wants to go out there and have a quality start and I think that’s the objective our our staff and he’s at the head of our staff and you’d expect that out of your ace,” his catcher Jason Varitek added.

His manager, Terry Francona, doesn’t hand out praise lightly. But Francona feels Beckett has earned it and then some.

“I think he’s one of the best,” Francona said. “He’s fearless. Our guys look up to him. I think he enjoys that responsibility. I think he’s really grown into it and he’ll be out here tomorrow on day one working as hard, or harder, than anybody. That’s kind of a given.”

Beckett joined teammate and fellow All-Star Tim Wakefield with 10 wins, making the Red Sox the first team in baseball with two 10-game winners.

“I didn’t even realize that,” Varitek said. “It’s great. Wake’s picked up so many times at being the guy early on, when we were getting the rest of the starting staff on track, he’s picked us up. Wake’s done a great job and Josh has settled in and (Jon Lester) doesn’t quite have 10 wins but he’s been a great part of our starting staff and (Brad) Penny has given us quality starts and I think through time, John (Smoltz) will do the same.”

Beckett matched Wakefield with a 10-3 mark, and a 3.62 ERA.

“I made a few pitches when I needed to,” Beckett said. “I don’t know what else. I threw some curveballs for strikes where they had to respect it. I didn’t think my curveball was exceptionally sharp, then I threw it when I needed to.”

There you have it. Beckett explained his outing of 6 2/3 innings, giving up six hits and two runs, walking one and striking out four on 107 pitches, 73 strikes.

Since starting the season 2-2 in five April starts, Beckett has won eight of his next nine decisions to earn a berth in St. Louis on July 14.

“It’s great,” Beckett said. “Obviously, we strive for that in the first part of the year. It’s nice to be voted in by peers. Obviously, there’s only a couple of ways a pitcher can make it and that’s one of them and I really take pride in that.

“Obviously, I blew it in April but I feel like I’ve had a couple of good months, really getting back on track,” he added.

He was not a happy All-Star when he was taken out with two outs in the seventh after two A’s reached on ground balls that didn’t leave the infield, bringing the tying run to the plate in Adam Kennedy.

“It’s frustrating whenever you give up two hits like that,” Beckett said. “You can’t go back to the drawing board. You feel like you executed a good pitch.”

Hideki Okajima came on to retire Kennedy before Justin Masterson pitched the eighth and Jonathan Papelbon the ninth for his 21st save.

“Everybody is competitive in their own right,” Jason Bay said. “You don’t play at this level and not be competitive. And then there’s guys a little more competitive than others. Then there’s guys like Josh. It must be tough for a pitcher. You have to wait every five days to get your chance.

“You feel like you have some gas left in the tank and then someone tells you you’re done,” Bay added. “But I think that’s what makes him (special). He has the stuff and the mentality. And I think too many times over the course of baseball you have guys have the stuff and not the mentality or vice-versa. He’s got the perfect mix of both of them.”

Bay couldn’t get over how two 10-3 pitchers could be more different.

“They couldn’t be two more different guys,” Bay said. “Wake has been our most consistent guy the whole time and Beckett, other than the first few starts he struggled, he’s been one of those ace-type shutdown guys. There aren’t too many in the league and he’s one of them. When he’s on, he’s been on. I’ve said since spring training, and I’m going to keep saying it until the end of the season, we live and die with our starting pitching. For the most part, they’ve been great.”

“What’s even crazier about it is when you take a look at how some of the starters began,” Masterson added. “There were a few struggles as we went at it in the first few weeks and to see how they’ve really turned it around. The bullpen has tried to do a great job to help those guys secure all those wins. It’s been pretty cool to see how strong, not only the starters are, but the bullpen. And we’ve continually been able to come out and do great.”

Masterson sees in Beckett what everyone else wearing a Red Sox uniform does - a guy who is the hands-down ace of the staff.

“Of anybody, he comes out there and wants to be that guy,” he said. “Everyone wants to be that guy but when he goes, he knows it’s his day and he wants to give as many innings as he can. I know he was a little not happy like, ‘I should’ve gone eight innings.’ You like that intensity out of a guy and I think it carries over. A starter sets a good tone for the bullpen when they’re able to try and close it out for him.”