FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) -Derek Lowe pitched a little too well for his own good.

Scheduled to throw about 80 pitches, the Boston Red Sox right-hander needed only 70 for six shutout innings in Tuesday’s 7-4 win over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

“He was very efficient,” Red Sox manager Terry Francona said. “It’s not so bad when guys can’t get extended. That’s because he pitched good.”

Lowe gave up three hits and walked none, striking out four before leaving with a 6-0 lead. In 18 1-3 innings over four starts this spring, he has allowed two earned runs for a 0.98 ERA and just three walks.

“You would love to go farther, but other guys needed work,” he said. “Next game, no matter what, I’m going to have to stay out through the good and the bad.”

In his previous outing, Lowe was pulled after throwing 70 pitches and allowing two runs in 3 1-3 of a scheduled five-inning stint.

“Last game was not what I would have liked it to be,” he said. “I tried to bring (more) intensity to this game.”

Lowe has two more exhibition starts left, and his pitch limit for his next one will be 85 to 90. In his previous start, he will cut back to 50 or so in order to save himself for the regular season.

Ellis Burks hit a three-run homer – his first home run of the spring – and added an RBI single for Boston. Keith Foulke pitched two scoreless innings and Mike Timlin allowed a grand slam to Eduardo Perez with two outs in the ninth.

Outfielder Gabe Kapler, who is hoping to be the emergency third baseman, made his third appearance at third this spring. With Lowe, a sinkerballer who draws a lot of ground balls, on the mound, Kapler had three plays and made them all.

The best was when he took a bouncer by Fernando Tatis on a short hop in the fifth inning and threw him out at first.

“With Derek on the mound, we know they’re going to hit balls on the ground,” Kapler said. “We wanted to get some action out there.”

Francona complimented Kapler on his efforts.

“He looked really comfortable, to me, out there,” the manager said. “Those plays, he doesn’t look like he’s lucky.”

Notes: The game was delayed for several minutes in the third inning when Rey Sanchez’s bat slipped out of his hands and it hit a 13-year-old girl in the face. Red Sox owner John Henry went to check on the fan as emergency medical technicians helped her. She was taken off in a wheelchair but appeared to be OK. … Francona said Bill Mueller, the regular third baseman and defending AL batting champion, will play on Wednesday night against the Yankees. He has been out for three games with a strained triceps. … Byung-Hyun Kim threw Monday for nine minutes from 80 feet. He isn’t expected to pitch before mid-April because of inflammation behind his pitching shoulder. … RHP Ramiro Mendoza, sidelined all spring with an abdominal strain, is also scheduled to make the trip to Tampa for the Yankees game. … INF Terry Shumpert has a mild hamstring strain and is day-to-day.

AP-ES-03-23-04 1754EST