WASHINGTON — Time "absolutely stood still" for John Smoltz as game time approached.

He sped through his warmup faster than planned. His phone was overflowing with 71 text messages. Try as he might to downplay his Boston Red Sox debut — a 9-3 loss to Washington last night — there was no way he could avoid the magnitude of the moment.

"This was bigger than one start," he said.

It was hardly surprising, therefore, to see the 42-year-old right-hander have an anxious beginning and a solid finish in his first major league game in more than a year. Pitching in an American League jersey for the first time, Smoltz allowed four runs in the first inning and fanned the last three batters he faced in the fifth.

Despite the final score, the reviews were positive all around in the latest comeback for the pitcher with 210 wins and 154 saves.

"Most of the time when the linescore is the way it is, I'm going to be very disappointed, but I really can't at this point," Smoltz said. "I lost a little rhythm there in the first inning ... but very encouraged with how good I can be and the way I felt."

Smoltz (0-1), who spent his previous 20 seasons with Atlanta, settled down after the first, giving up a run in the third but retiring the side in order in the second, fourth and fifth. His final line: five innings, seven hits, five runs, one walk, one hit batter and five strikeouts in 92 pitches.

Smoltz's two decades in Atlanta came to an end last June, when he had surgery for a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. The Braves didn't re-sign him when he became a free agent, so he joined the Red Sox with a one-year deal.

Tigers 6, Cubs 5: Magglio Ordonez ended a career-long, 40-game drought without a home run by connecting for a two-run shot, leading host Detroit to its seventh straight victory.

Astros 5, Royals 4: Lance Berkman homered twice and drove in four runs to become the third player in franchise history to reach 1,000 RBIs as host Houston beat Kansas City.

Twins 6, Brewers 4: Denard Span tripled, walked three times and scored three runs in his first game back from the disabled list, helping visiting Minnesota beat Milwaukee.

White Sox 6, Dodgers 5: Scott Podsednik lined a two-out RBI single in front of diving center fielder Matt Kemp in the bottom of the 13th inning to lift Chicago over Los Angeles.

Mariners 9, Padres 3: Ichiro Suzuki hit the 29th leadoff homer of his career into the right-field seats and finished a triple short of the cycle, helping host Seattle defeat San Diego.

Yankees 11, Braves 7: Alex Rodriguez tied Reggie Jackson with his 563rd home run and Mariano Rivera earned his 499th career save in visiting New York's victory over Atlanta.

Rays 10, Phillies 4: Willy Aybar homered and drove in three runs as a replacement for an injured Evan Longoria, leading host Tampa Bay over Philadelphia, which has lost 10 of 12.

Pirates 3, Indians 2: Jack Wilson walked, stole second and scored on Andrew McCutchen's bloop single in the bottom of the ninth as Pittsburgh rallied to beat Cleveland.

Reds 7, Blue Jays 5: Batting cleanup for the first time this season, Joey Votto led off the top of the sixth with a homer to break a 5-all tie, helping Cincinnati avoid a three-game sweep.

Marlins 11, Orioles 3: Hanley Ramirez hit his third grand slam of the season, and Cody Ross and Dan Uggla each homered in support of Sean West (3-2) as host Florida cruised to victory.

Rangers 9, Diamondbacks 8: Chris Davis hit a two-run homer and David Murphy followed with a solo shot in top of the 12th inning as Texas held off Arizona, which rallied for two runs in its half of the inning.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

METS 3, CARDINALS 2: Nick Evans hit a two-run double as Johan Santana (9-5) and host New York beat St. Louis and Chris Carpenter (5-2) in a matchup of Cy Young Award winners.

NOTE

Ramirez skips finale: Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Manny Ramirez didn't talk to reporters as he came out for warmups for his final game with the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes last night. Later, with the start of the game delayed by rain, Ramirez wore street clothes and was driven away from the ball park.