Schilling Simply Too Tough

Baseball’s winningest pitcher had his way with baseball’s winningest team.

Curt Schilling and the Arizona Diamondbacks handed Pedro Martinez his first loss, beating the Boston Red Sox, 3-2, Saturday.

“Both guys really battled,” Diamondback Manager Bob Brenly said. “I’d venture to guess that neither one of them felt that he had his best stuff. But that just shows you the caliber of pitchers they are.”

Schilling (12-1) yielded six hits and two walks over 7 1/3 innings, striking out nine to improve his major league-leading victory total.

The Red Sox lost their fourth consecutive home game and are only 15-13 at Fenway Park--no match for their 25-6 road record but still better than the 0-2 mark with a 7.50 earned-run average that Schilling had posted in his previous five games at Fenway with the Baltimore Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies.

“I’ve never pitched well here. They’ve always had a good lineup,” Schilling said. “I had good stuff. Good enough. But I don’t feel like I was ever in a groove today.”

Byung-Hyun Kim got the final four outs to earn his 16th save, striking out Lou Merloni with a runner on third to end the game.

Kim has saved both games in Arizona’s first-ever visit to Fenway Park, where Schilling took the loss when he faced Martinez in the 1999 All-Star game.

Martinez (7-1) struck out the first four batters in that game and was selected the most valuable player, but he overextended himself in the effort and went on the disabled list before returning to win his first of two American League Cy Young Awards.

Saturday’s performance wasn’t nearly as dominant, raising questions again his health. He didn’t win a game after May last year because of a frayed rotator cuff.

Martinez retired nine in a row at one point--five of them on strikeouts--but he struggled at other times and needed 115 pitches to get through six innings.

In all, he gave up three runs and seven hits, walked two and struck out 10 as Boston fell to 40-19--the best record in baseball.

Schilling gave up a first-inning homer to Carlos Baerga and four singles before running into trouble in the eighth inning.

Merloni led off with a single off third baseman Craig Counsell’s glove, then Schilling, who had gone 44 innings and 165 batters without giving up a walk, walked Johnny Damon.

After Baerga’s sacrifice bunt, Nomar Garciaparra walked and Mike Myers relieved. Shortstop Tony Womack mishandled Tony Clark’s grounder before grabbing the ball to make the throw to second. Garciaparra appeared to beat the throw in a close play, but he was ruled out by umpire Brian O’Nora. Merloni scored on the play to make it 3-2.