"That's why you don't panic the first two weeks of the season," said manager Terry Francona. "You look up at one point, Jacoby (Ellsbury) is hitting .275, then Petey (Dustin Pedroia) is the same thing. We say it every year, but it happens. Everything gets blown out of proportion, and you just try to play good baseball because at some point in the season when you start logging enough at-bats and innings, you get into the grind and if you're good it shows."

Pedroia entered the series with only one run batted in but drove in three runs during Monday morning's win. Designated hitter David Ortiz sandwiched a Sunday hitless game between a pair of multi-hit efforts and believes that he has solved the mechanical glitch in his swing.

Ellsbury has pumped his batting average up to a respectable .268 and scored four runs in four games against the Orioles out of the leadoff spot. Jason Varitek has already cracked three home runs in the first two weeks of the season after it took an entire frustrating season to total 13 last year. He has struck out only five times in 36 at-bats this year.

In other words, the early returns on the struggling offense might have been a tad premature. A prescription of a little home cooking and an opposition with some lackluster pitching has been the exact solution that the socking Sox needed to get on track.

"It's good," said Ortiz. "We pick each other up and there are a lot of good guys in this clubhouse when it comes to staying consistent with your approach. It doesn't matter if we're struggling or swinging the bat good. We know that eventually we're going to start getting results."

RED SOX 12, ORIOLES 1: 2B Dustin Pedroia knocked in three runs and DH David Ortiz had a rare two-run triple as both hitters broke out of mini-slumps to lead an offense that pounded out 12 runs and 15 hits. RHP Justin Masterson filled in for injured RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka and pitched 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball in capturing the Sox's fifth straight win.