The Boston slugger belts his third HR of the year in the 12th inning.
BOSTON (AP) – Curt Schilling witnessed what the Boston Red Sox saw so many times last year, a long homer by David Ortiz.

Schilling pitched eight innings in his Fenway Park debut for Boston and Ortiz hit a two-run homer in the 12th Sunday that gave the Red Sox a 6-4 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

“I had seen from afar, last year, his second half, and today I got to experience it a little bit,” Schilling said. “It was phenomenal.”

Ortiz hit his third homer of the season Sunday after hitting just two through the end of last May. He hit 29 the rest of the way and finished third in slugging percentage in the AL.

Mark Bellhorn hit a tying single in the ninth and Bill Mueller led off the 12th with a walk. Had Ortiz not driven in Mueller, Manny Ramirez was on deck.

“I told David before he went to home plate, “Finish this, man. We don’t get paid overtime,’ ” said Ramirez, who has a $160 million, eight-year contract. “And he did it.”

Ortiz nearly won the game in the bottom of the ninth with Bellhorn at second, but center fielder Vernon Wells made a leaping catch against the wall for the third out.

“This is a team, offensively, that you don’t want to give us too many chances,” Schilling said.

So with the temperature in the low 40s, Ortiz made sure the fans who remained from Boston’s 67th straight home sellout didn’t have to stay any longer.

“It was getting cold out there, man,” he said.

Schilling, obtained from Arizona in a Nov. 28 trade, allowed four runs and six hits in eight innings, struck out 10 and walked none. He beat Baltimore 4-1 Tuesday in his first start of the season.

Eric Hinske’s first homer of the year gave Toronto a 4-2 lead in the sixth following a single by Josh Phelps on an 0-2 pitch. Schilling slammed his glove several times after returning to his dugout following the inning.

“I’ve got two outs and nobody on and an 0-2 count and a lot of freedom to do some different things and I made a bad pitch and they end up getting two runs off that hanging splitter,” Schilling said.

Kevin Millar hit an RBI single off in the eighth off Justin Speier, who got out of a bases-loaded jam when Jason Varitek and Gabe Kapler struck out.

Cesar Crespo doubled off Kerry Ligtenberg leading off the ninth and scored on a one-out single by Bellhorn, who stole second.

Toronto left the bases loaded in the 10th and runners at first and third in the 11th. Boston stranded a runner at third in the bottom of the 10th.

AL batting champion Mueller was in an 0-for-19 skid when he walked against Aquilino Lopez (0-1), and Ortiz followed with his homer to left-center.

“It was his third inning, and he’s not used to going three innings,” Toronto manager Carlos Tosca said of Lopez. “You’re behind the eight ball when you’re playing this ballclub in this park and they get the last at bat. They just have too many weapons.”

Mark Malaska (1-0) pitched two innings for the win, retiring the side in order in the 12th just two days after he made his Red Sox debut a few hours after being called up from Triple-A Pawtucket.

Boston’s comeback ruined an outstanding outing by Schilling’s former Arizona teammate, Miguel Batista. Signed as a free agent Dec. 12, Batista allowed two runs and two hits in seven innings, struck out four and walked four.

Batista gave up a run-scoring double to Ramirez in the first and a one-out single to Kapler in the seventh.

“I saw some things in spring training that showed me he is really going to help us,” Toronto catcher Kevin Cash said.

Batista walked three batters in the first when Boston took a 2-0 lead on Ramirez’s double and Millar’s sacrifice fly. Toronto tied the game in the fourth on an RBI double by Phelps and a run-scoring groundout by Hinske.

Notes: Boston played without three injured starters – SS Nomar Garciaparra and OF Trot Nixon, who are on the disabled list, and OF Johnny Damon, who hurt a knee Friday. Damon may play Tuesday. … Sunday was the 43rd anniversary of Carl Yastrzemski’s major league debut. He went 1-for-5 in Boston’s 5-2 victory over Kansas City at Fenway Park. … Frank Catalanotto is batting .340 in 203 at-bats against Boston after going 2-for-4.