(Best E Casino) - As many expected, the Boston Red Sox continue to show the way in the American League's East Division at the quarter-point of this season. But that lead isn't quite as cushy as when the defending world champions started their current 10-game road trip a little over a week ago, primarily due to a string of hiccups from the club's normally-reliable pitching staff.

While Boston's offense continues to pile up runs by the bushel, that hitting prowess has been negated by a number of recent ugly outings on the mound. The Red Sox have amassed a healthy 36 runs over the course of their last six games, but they've lost four of those tests because the opposition has scored the same amount of times during that stretch.

Those mound struggles were most evident during Boston's series with the surging Minnesota Twins, who handed the Sox three losses in four games and scored seven runs or more in all three of the victories.

The problems haven't come from the top of the rotation, where both Josh Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka have performed like the well-paid, frontline starters they're supposed to be. The same can't be said about the other three members, each of whom stumbled badly during their turn in the Minnesota series.

Tim Wakefield had his shortest start since the 2003 season on Sunday, when the longtime knuckleballer was hammered for seven runs (6 earned) and seven hits in just 2 2/3 innings in Boston's 9-8 loss to the Twins. Clay Buchholz suffered a similar fate the following night, as the rookie surrendered seven runs on eight hits in a lousy 4 1/3-inning stint when the Sox dropped a 7-3 decision in the series finale.

Fellow youngster Jon Lester also wasn't particularly sharp when he faced the Twins on Friday. The promising left-hander was touched up for five runs (3 earned) and eight hits before being removed with one out in the sixth inning.

Even All-Star closer Jonathan Papelbon has endured his share of hardships during the trek. The excitable flame-thrower yielded a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the ninth inning as Detroit rallied for a 10-9 victory over the Sox on Wednesday, then blew his second straight save opportunity when the Twins scored twice in their final at-bat to pull out a 7-6 win two nights later.

Although the Red Sox' poor pitching on the road trip has provided a source of frustration for manager Terry Francona, it doesn't seem to be an area of long- term concern. Both Lester and Wakefield were coming off excellent showings in their previous starts, and Papelbon rebounded with a dominating ninth inning to save Saturday's 5-2 win over the Twins.

A possible exception may be Buchholz, who also struggled badly in a matchup with the Tigers on May 7 and has produced a mediocre 5.53 earned run average through his eight starts. The 23-year-old was renowned for his command during his meteoric climb through the minors, but Buchholz walked five batters on Monday and has issued 20 free passes in his 42 2/3 innings of work.

The highly-regarded right-hander could find himself back in a minor-league uniform if he doesn't improve soon, especially since the Red Sox have a former Cy Young Award winner as a fallback option. Bartolo Colon returned to the rotation at Triple-A Pawtucket on Saturday after missing a month with a strained oblique muscle, and can become a free agent if Boston opts not to promote him to the majors by June 1.

ROSTER/INJURY UPDATE

Turns out the sore right hamstring that kept left fielder Manny Ramirez out of the lineup for Sunday's tilt with the Twins wasn't a major issue. The perennial All-Star was back in action on Monday and belted his 498th career home run in his first at-bat of the game. Ramirez added a single in the fifth inning and also drew a walk later in the contest.

First baseman Sean Casey, out since April 25 with a strained right hip, was activated from the 15-day disabled list prior to Monday's finale and went 1- for-4 in his return. To make room for Casey on the active roster, the Red Sox designated veteran pitcher Julian Tavarez for assignment.

The decision to cut Tavarez came as a mild surprise, even though the seasoned swingman had a 6.39 ERA in nine relief appearances. He played a valuable role on last year's championship squad, making 23 regular-season starts as injuries depleted the Boston rotation, and has nearly 750 games of experience to his credit. The Red Sox also had a reliever with options remaining in hard- throwing right-hander Craig Hansen.

In other team injury news, starting shortstop Julio Lugo sat out the final three games of the Minnesota series after suffering a slight concussion in Friday's 7-6 loss to the Twins. The speedy infielder is considered day-to-day and could miss both games of the team's upcoming set in Baltimore.

Lugo's injury coincided with reserve infielder Alex Cora's activation off the DL. The valuable veteran, who had been sidelined since early April with a sprained right elbow, started the final two games against Minnesota and collected five hits in eight at-bats.

YOUKILIS EARNS AL WEEKLY AWARD

Kevin Youkilis was selected as the American League's Player of the Week on Monday after the popular first baseman batted .375 (12-for-32) with five home runs and 10 RBI in seven games. He also scored eight runs and racked up 30 total bases over that span, giving Youkilis a .938 slugging percentage for the week.

The 2007 Gold Glove recipient kept up his torrid pace at the plate with a 2- for-5 effort on Monday night, which extended Youkilis' hitting streak to nine games. He has also scored a run in each of those outings and collected at least one RBI in eight of his last nine games.

WHO'S HOT

Youkilis has been swinging the hottest Boston bat, but third baseman Mike Lowell and outfielder Coco Crisp have also been very productive on this current road trip. Lowell is batting .389 (14-for-36) with three home runs, nine RBI and nine runs scored over the eight games of the trek. Crisp has seven hits over his last 17 at-bats and homered in both Saturday and Sunday's tussles with the Twins.

Matsuzaka moved to 6-0 on the young season after limiting Minnesota to two runs over seven innings in Friday's 5-2 win. The Japanese sensation is 2-0 with a 1.42 ERA over his three most recent starts and presently ranks fifth among AL hurlers with a 2.45 ERA for the year.

WHO'S NOT

While Ramirez showed signs of a breakout on Monday, he's hitting just .209 (9- for-43) over 11 games in May. The feared slugger did not homer for 14 straight games until connecting on a solo blast in Boston's 5-0 win at Detroit on May 6.

ON DECK

The Red Sox wrap up their lengthy trip with back-to-back meetings with fellow AL East member Baltimore on Tuesday and Wednesday. Beckett (4-2, 3.70) gets the call in the opener against Jeremy Guthrie (1-3, 4.32), with Lester (2-2, 4.06) slated to oppose Daniel Cabrera (3-1, 3.54) in the finale.

Boston then gets an off day on Thursday before returning to Fenway Park for an interleague series with the Milwaukee Brewers. Matsuzaka (6-0, 2.45) puts his unblemished record on the line in Friday's matchup with ex-Sox righty Jeff Suppan (2-2, 4.63).