FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) – As spring training nears its end, Curt Schilling’s right arm and Ron Gardenhire’s temper appear to be in midseason form.

Schilling finished a stellar spring by allowing one run in four innings, and Gardenhire was ejected for arguing in Boston’s 4-3 win over Minnesota on Thursday.

Schilling, who gave up three hits, ended the spring 2-1 with a 1.91 ERA in five starts. He appeared dominant Thursday, his lone mistake a solo home run by Jacque Jones in the fourth.

In an effort to strengthen his relationship with Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek, Schilling allowed Varitek to call the entire game.

“I wanted to see how he worked with my stuff,” said Schilling, who gave up three hits. “He gave me a lot of confidence going into the year.”

Schilling didn’t shake off Varitek once. He said Jones’ homer was a slider he hung over the plate, not a bad call by Varitek.

Joked Boston manager Terry Francona: “That would be the first time Schill hasn’t had the last word. That may be a first and last time.”

While Schilling will return to calling his own games during the regular season, he wanted Varitek to get a better feel for how his mind works during the course of a game.

“It’s about working together,” Varitek said. “It’s not about me. It’s a trusting building block but it’s not up to me. He’s the guy throwing the ball.”

Twins starter Johan Santana matched Schilling’s line – one run in four innings – but had control problems. He walked four. Gardenhire missed Santana’s last inning of work after getting tossed for arguing balls and strikes. He missed Boston’s late comeback from a 3-1 deficit, capped by a go-ahead home run by Adam Hyzdu in the ninth off Minnesota’s J.C. Romero.

Pokey Reese, starting at shortstop for the Red Sox while Nomar Garciaparra recovers from an Achilles’ injury, doubled and did not make a mistake in the field. Francona said he expects Reese to fill in quite nicely.

“When he played with Cincinnati, I thought he was the best shortstop in the National League,” Francona said. “The great thing is with our deep roster we don’t get hurt too much defensively, especially with Pokey at shortstop.”

Notes: The win gave the Red Sox their first Mayor’s Cup since 1999. The annual award is given to the team with the best head-to-head record against its Fort Myers rival. Boston won three of five meetings this spring. … Boston closer Keith Foulke continued to struggle, allowing one run in one inning. Foulke’s spring ERA is 13.49 in six appearances. … Minnesota minor league pitcher Billy Mauer, older brother of rookie catcher Joe Mauer, pitched two scoreless innings.

to his little brother.

AP-ES-04-01-04 2041EST