Kevin Youkilis realized he had made a mistake, something mostly foreign to him this season on a Baseball field. ``Some days,'' he said, ``it's going to be easy.'' Youkilis considered the words and offered an immediate retraction.

``Well, nothing is easy in this game,'' he said. `` `Easy' is never a word you should ever use in Baseball.''

Who could fault Youkilis for adding it to his hardball vernacular? He has begun the season bashing American League pitching at an absurd rate. He reached base in the Red Sox' first 14 games and is batting .429, second in the league. His 1.272 OPS ranks third in the AL, and his .522 on-base percentage is the best in the major leagues.

Balls have been rocketing off Youkilis's bat. When they don't, they move as if under his spell. In his first at-bat Wednesday, Youkilis flared a pitch down the right-field line. It hooked just around Pesky's Pole and into the second row of seats, no more than 315 feet from home plate.

In at-bats when Youkilis doesn't strike out or hit a home run, he is batting .448, the highest average on balls put in play in the AL.

``When you're hot, you're hot,'' Mike Lowell said. ``Wherever he's putting the ball, it's going somewhere good. I think he always puts together consistent at-bats. This is a streak that's a little ridiculous.''

``I've been lucky a few times here and there,'' Youkilis said. ``You get that luck when you're having quality at-bats. It's just one of those things where I'm just going good right now.''

Youkilis knows his current hot streak can't possibly continue all year. ``I will not hit .400,'' he said. ``I can write that off.'' But he has established himself as one of the league's best hitters by quickly validating his 2008 season, by far the best of his career. He batted .312, hit a team-high 29 home runs, and finished third in the AL MVP vote.

Youkilis credited a matured outlook for his success. While he has added power to match his patience at the plate, he has also relaxed and placed less pressure on himself.

``I'm taking a different approach, just having fun and enjoying it,'' he said. ``Sometimes in life, you've just got to enjoy this stuff and have fun. Just play. I think a lot of times, I would stress myself out in games. Now it's try to go out and enjoy it.''

``He just keeps on improving every day, you know,'' David Ortiz said. ``He's one of the young, talented players here. And he has skills, man. I don't know how he do it. He just do it.''

Last night at Davio's Northern Italian Steakhouse in Boston, Youkilis hosted a sellout event for his Hits for Kids charity that benefited Raising A Reader, a program designed to help children in low-income families learn to read.

A fast start

Justin Masterson is scheduled to make his second start of the season Sunday night against the Yankees, when he'll oppose Andy Pettitte. Masterson reached 96 miles per hour on the radar gun in his first start, closer to the velocity he unleashed as a reliever.

In the past, Masterson had not thrown as hard when starting as he did out of the bullpen. This spring, he said he didn't know why, and he believed he would be able to harness his relief velocity as a starter. Masterson said throwing harder out of the bullpen was never a conscious action, and throwing with his best velocity does not invite more fatigue during a start.

``If I ever start again, I can take that same intensity,'' he said during the spring.

Carter sent down

The Red Sox optioned outfielder/first baseman Chris Carter to Triple A Pawtucket. Carter went hitless in five at-bats after winning a competition for the final roster spot in spring training. The Sox will call up outfielder Jonathan Van Every to take Carter's place, according to a Baseball source. Van Every, who hit a grand slam in Pawtucket Wednesday, gives the Sox a better defensive option, which they need with Rocco Baldelli on the disabled list. Van Every has a reputation as an excellent defensive outfielder . . . The Sox acquired pitcher Kason Gabbard from the Rangers for cash. Gabbard, who played in the Sox organization from 2000-07, was 0-1 with a 10.50 ERA in five relief appearances for Triple A Oklahoma City.

Tony Massarotti of the Globe staff contributed to this report.