NEW YORK — It’s a fairly quiet evening here in the Bronx, aside from the news that the Yankees scratched A.J. Burnett after he experienced back spasms. With Burnett out, Dustin Mosely takes the ball for New York, thus rendering a not trivial percentage of this fine work from intern Matt West moot. Alex Rodriguez is back in the lineup for the Yankees as the cleanup hitter, and looked strong in batting practice, so it appears that the line drive that he took off the bat of teammate Lance Berkman during batting practice on Saturday will not keep him out for any extended period.

A few Red Sox notes, on a day when the Sox will have a chance to narrow the gap between them and the Rays to 3 1/2 games following the near no-hitter twirled against Tampa Bay by Blue Jays starter Brandon Morrow — a player whom the Mariners selected in the first round of the 2006 draft over Daniel Bard (for more on that, click here) and Tim Lincecum:

–Josh Beckett takes the mound at Yankee Stadium, the venue where his season went haywire on May 18 when he slipped while throwing a pitch to Alex Rodriguez.

“Thanks for bringing that up,” said Sox pitching coach John Farrell.

The Sox are thrilled with what they’ve seen so far from Beckett in his three starts off the disabled list. He is 2-0 with a 2.18 ERA, and the Sox have won all three of his outings. The team has seen him build from outing to outing, as he has become more aggressive while realizing that his stuff affords him the opportunity to dominate.

“We wanted so bad for him to be Beckett, not to be out there in name only. That’s why we tried to be so patient. I think that proved to be a good decision,” said Francona. “He’s going out there and pitching now, that doesn’t guarantee a win, but it’s pretty exciting.

“You can see the progression,” Francona continued. “He’s getting a better feel for his breaking ball, throwing it better. I think that really should bode well for us.”

As painful as it was for the Sox to be without Beckett for two months, they believe their could be benefit in the form of having him stronger down the stretch, thanks to the fact that his arm was spared quite a bit of work.

–Dustin Pedroia and Jason Varitek both made strides in their attempts to return from foot fractures. Pedroia “had a real good day,” according to manager Terry Francona, running the bases more aggressively than he had to this point and also having a productive day in the field. Pedroia said afterward that he plans to run on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in Toronto to get a measure of his progress. His goal, as he said Friday, remains a return for the Sox by the start of the next homestand on Aug. 17.

Francona said that a rehab assignment was certainly a possibility given the amount of time Pedroia has missed (just over six weeks and counting). Right now, the only remaining hurdle for him is a return to running at full speed.

As for Varitek, he reported a “night and day” difference in how his foot feels now vs. a week ago. He took batting practice on the field for the first time since breaking his foot at the end of June, and after jogging for the first time a few days ago, he went running at what he described as 75 percent on Saturday, without any evidence of a setback. He is nearing the six-week mark of his injury, a point at which, the catcher said, “the governor comes off more.” Barring setbacks, Varitek is hopeful that, at that point, he will be able to start testing his foot to see how it responds to the demands of catching.

–Victor Martinez gets the start at first base on Sunday night, something that the Sox believe will help them keep both Martinez and Mike Lowell fresher and more productive.

Martinez’ desire to catch could potentially come at his own detriment, particularly given that he spent a month on the sidelines without a rehab. Since returning on July 26, he has played every inning of all 11 Sox games, and he has been behind the plate for all but 15 frames.

“He loves to catch. He loves to catch everyday,” Francona said appreciatively of Martinez. “He doesn’t say anything about anything.”

The Sox feel that giving him some extra time at first base can help to keep him healthy and productive. The same is true regarding Lowell, whom Francona suggested had become fairly adept at managing his hip injury.

“[The days off] give him the best chance to be productive,” said Francona.

–After recording his first big league relief appearance on Saturday, Felix Doubront is likely unavailable on Sunday. Doubront impressed the Sox with a three-up, three-down inning that included a pair of punchouts.

–Jacoby Ellsbury is working to find his feel at the plate, according to Francona, who suggested that the leadoff hitter (0-for-12 in three games since returning) has been letting pitches get deeper on him than is ideal. Francona said that he also thinks that Ellsbury is working to regain his speed, but that Ellsbury would be helped immensely once he collects his first hit, something that might permit him to regain some lost confidence.

–Mike Cameron was planning on swinging off a tee for the first time since being placed on the disabled list on Monday.

–Kevin Youkilis wanted to rejoin the Sox either Sunday or Monday in New York, but as he recovers from his season-ending surgery, the Sox told him to take time to recover. The Sox he should either rejoin them in Texas next weekend or for the start of the next homestand.

While the Sox appreciate the player’s desire to be with his team, they also note that — given that he has not been slightly queasy in the aftermath of the surgery — there is little value to having him rush to the dugout.

“He can’t do anything right now physically,” said Francona.