Manny Says He's A Loaner. Ramirez says if the Red Sox don't sign Pedro Martinez, the Yankees will. "I bet you if it comes to that time, they're going to go and get him. ... In Pedro's situation, it's not about the money. I think he wants to stay here bad." To that end, Manny has offered to defer part of his salary to keep Martinez in Boston. "How long is (Pedro) planning to stay, three years? I'll loan them a contract. Whatever they want. How much do they need? It's for Pedro." Last night, Karen Guregian asked him if he was serious. "I want Pedro to stay. Pedro's the heart of the team. He's been here so long. I think it's going to be a sad moment to see him leave. That's why I said what I did. It's really no problem for me. Hey, how much money do I need?"

More on Pedro's Pronouncement: Ron Chimelis calls it "a desperate, selfish, almost pathetic attempt to reclaim the very spotlight he says he dislikes." ... Lenny Megliola: "When Pedro speaks about anything, he knows exactly how it's going to play, especially in Boston. ... There's a bit of Russian Roulette going on here. If Pedro has a Cy-kinda-year, management takes the bullet. It either has to pay him or wave goodbye, which won't make fans happy. If Pedro goes 12-8, 3.68 and has a stint on the DL, he takes the bullet."

Trot Nixon tweaked his left quadriceps and will take a few days off. ... Bronson Arroyo will be used in all types of situations. Tito: "He has the ability to go long. But he can also pitch the ninth inning. By no means will he pitch in games that are out of hand. He's going to pitch in games that we have a chance to win." ... Nomar Garciaparra had Sunday off and was reevaluated today. ... John Tomase lists 10 replacements if Pedro and Lowe are not around in 2005, but it's not a very promising bunch.

Bob Hohler reminds us that Boston is not hitting: "Coming off a loss in which they went 2 for 13 with runners in scoring position, [they] dropped a third straight game for the first time this year as they went hitless in their only four chances with runners in scoring position, dropping their league-worst average in those situations to .222, and effectively stranded all but one other runner who reached base."

Curt Schilling, Derek Lowe and Pedro Martinez flew on to Cleveland before Sunday's game. The matchups:

Monday: Schilling/Jake Westbrook
Tuesday: Lowe/Jason Davis
Wednesday: Kim/Jeff D'Amico
Thursday: Pedro/C.C. Sabathia

All games start at 7:05 pm.