By Dan Hickling, Globe Correspondent

PORTLAND, Maine -- Clay Buchholz pitched seven innings for the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs tonight against the New Britain Rock Cats. Save for one rough inning, he looked like the Buchholz of old (at this level) anyway. He allowed four runs (three earned) on five hits, struck out eight Rock Cats and didn't walk any.

Buchholz threw 93 pitches, 69 for strikes, and capped his night with a nifty coverage play at first base. He left the game with a lead, but did not get the win after the Rock Cats rallied for two runs in the eighth and pulled out a 6-5 victory.

Buchholz was quite pleased with the way he threw, and the way he felt.

"I felt really good," Buchholz said. "There were a lot of mechanical things that I've been thinking about, that I didn't try to think about (tonight). I went back to what I did last year when I was here. They seemed to work real well for me. So I tried to revert back to that a little bit."

He said his next start will probably come on Saturday. He also said he's prepared himself to stay in Portland for the rest of the season.

By Dan Hickling, Globe Correspondent

PORTLAND, Maine -- Checking in from Hadlock Field, where, tonight, Clay Buchholz will begin process of rediscovering his command and confidence.

Buchholz will be facing the New Britain Rock Cats (Minnesota), which as a team is batting .264 (in the middle of the Eastern League pack) and whose leading hitter is CF Steve Tolleson (.311). Also in the line up is 3B Toby Gardenhire (.270), son of Minnesota skipper Ron Gardenhire.

There is no particular pitch count to limit Buchholz, whose promotion from Portland a year ago led to the elevation of Justin Masterson.

One other thing...by coincidence, happy or otherwise, tonight had long been pegged as "Clay Buchholz Bobble-head Night."

"We were trying to figure out the odds of this happening," said Portland GM Charlie Eshbach.

More to come...

The Globe's Dan Shaughnessy believes this week's Red Sox-Yankees series (Tuesday and Wednesday at 7 p.m., Thursday at 1 p.m.) will be the Sox' last trip to Yankee Stadium, meaning he's predicting the Bombers will miss the playoffs for the first time in 14 seasons. Click below to watch his series preview ...

The Sox' injury list keeps increasing. First baseman Sean Casey, who hasn't played since Tuesday in Baltimore, has been battling a stiff neck. He said the neck became problematic when he woke up Thursday, the team's day off, after having gone to Pittsburgh for the day. Casey said the neck has been improving, and he was hopeful he would be available for tomorrow's game in New York. He added he's been getting quite a few phone calls and e-mails about why the team has been leaving a guy who is hitting .345 on the bench.

J.D. Drew (back) was not in yesterday's starting lineup again, his sixth straight game on the bench. Francona didn't rule out putting Drew on the disabled list, saying the outfielder was walking "crooked" when he left the park Saturday afternoon. But, he said, with the day off today, the team is hoping Drew will be able to play tomorrow

David Aardsma, who officially went on the DL yesterday, and Julio Lugo are both scheduled for MRIs today in Boston. Both will stay in Boston for the rest of the road trip, and will work out with rehabilitation coordinator Scott Waugh.

David Pauley arrived before the game, taking Aardsma's spot on the roster. He is likely to be used in long relief, especially with Tim Wakefield making his return from the DL tomorrow.

Mike Lowell (oblique) is scheduled to speak with medical director Dr. Thomas Gill today to get approval to head to New York.

Excerpted from today's Red Sox notebook.

TORONTO - Jed Lowrie hit a linedrive shot in the top of the 11th on a 1-1 pitch from Brandon League and delivered it over the right-field fence to break a 5-5 tie. It was Lowrie's second homer, and first left-handed.

It's 6-5 Sox. Manny Delcarmen will be called upon for the save.