"Erik Bedard went five innings tonight. He allowed three runs on seven hits with five strikeouts and no walks. It was 3-3 when he left and the Sox went in to lose 7-3.

All in all, it was an encouraging outing, especially considering he was with a new team and making his second start since coming off the disabled list. One of the hits was in the infield. Another was a grounder through the hole at shortstop and a third was a broken-bat flare to right.

It was interesting to see Bedard pause a few times in the first inning and look around Fenway Park before he threw a pitch. It was almost like he wanted to soak up the atmosphere of his new home.

"I was a little nervous in the first, but I kept my composure and kept throwing strikes," Bedard said. "It was a feeling like when you have the first start of the season all over again."

Bedard's fastball averaged 92 mph and he threw 18 of his 23 curveballs for strikes. For a lefty, that kind of stuff will play just fine.

"I thought he really pitched pretty well," Terry Francona said. "I really thought it was a professionally pitched game. ... I don't want to say we're excited after a loss but I was actually pretty excited."

Bedard has a bad reputation in baseball. But every player deserves a clean slate when he changes teams, if only because every environment is different.

In 2006, when Bobby Abreu was traded to the Yankees in July, he arrived from Philadelphia with a reputation for being moody, bad with the media and kind of lazy on the field."