CLEVELAND — On a night when the Red Sox staged another fantastic finish, Jed Lowrie helped get them there with a terrific beginning.

For the second night in a row, a ninth-inning homer snapped a tie and sent the Sox on to victory. Jason Varitek, pinch-hitting for Kevin Cash, drove an opposite-field homer to left, sending the Sox to a 5-3 win, their fourth victory in a row.

A run-scoring single from Kevin Youkilis then provided the Red Sox with an extra run. Youkilis has now knocked in eight runs over his last six games.

It was with some reluctance that manager Terry Francona had Varitek pinch-hit in the first place. On nights when Varitek sits in favor of his backup, Francona likes to stay away from him and give him the entire night off, the better to rest his body.

But Varitek validated the decision when he drove a sinker from reliever Jensen Lewis out for his third homer of the season and the first pinch-hit homer by a Red Sox player since Doug Mirabelli hit on Oct. 2, 2005.

“I worry about having him in a game like that,� said Francona. “I really do (struggle with it). But it didn’t look like Tek does.�

The pinch-hit homer was the third of Varitek’s career.

“I’ve had my share of (pinch-hitting) appearances,� said Varitek. “You just try to slow everything down when you’re in the game because of the adrenaline rush. You just try to (remain) under control.�

Hideki Okajima mowed down the Indians in the ninth and earned his first save of the season. The Red Sox didn’t want to go to closer Jonathan Papelbon, who pitched an inning and a third following a two-hour rain delay Saturday and hasn’t pitched since.

Until the ninth, all three of the Red Sox runs had been knocked in by Lowrie, who was making his major league debut. He delivered the first run for the Sox in the fifth on a fielder’s choice, then sent them ahead with a two-run single in the seventh.

Mike Lowell advised Lowrie to expect sliders and cut fastballs in from Perez. True to the scouting report, Perez tried to come inside on Lowrie, who rifled a grounder through the shortstop hole to score Youkilis and Ellsbury.

“I can’t even describe (the feeling after the hit),� said a beaming Lowrie. “It’s one of those moments in your life that you’re always going to remember.�

In so doing, he became the first Red Sox rookie to collect three RBI in his major league debut since Merrill Combs, who did so in 1947.

“It was a great day for him,� said Varitek of the rookie. “In your major league debut, if you (just) hit the ball hard, you’re happy.�

The Sox’ ninth-inning comeback, their second in as many nights, came after the bullpen faltered some in relief of Tim Wakefield.

Wakefield had held the Indians to two runs over the first six innings and when Lowrie’s single to left off Rafael Perez put the Sox ahead, 3-2, Wakefield stood to gain his second win of the season.

But after retiring the first two hitters in the bottom of the seventh, Javier Lopez hit Travis Hafner with a pitch and allowed a single to left to Victor Martinez. His replacement, Manny Delcarmen, fared no better, walking Jhonny Peralta to load the bases, then plunking Ryan Garko on the left elbow to force in the tying run.

Delcarmen then got Asdrubal Cabrera to ground into an inning-ending force play to escape further damage.

Through the first six innings, the Sox got little accomplished against junkballer Paul Byrd, who handcuffed them in an ALCS start last October.

Thanks to a couple of double plays, Byrd faced just one batter over the minimum through the first innings. They finally got through to him in the fifth when Ellsbury sliced a one-out double to right, took third on the second of three hits from Julio Lugo and scored when Lowrie beat the relay to first on a grounder to short that forced Lugo.

Byrd didn’t walk a single hitter over six innings, but Jorge Julio, who replaced him in the seventh, walked the first two batters he faced, setting the stage for Lowrie’s heroics.

Wakefield, meanwhile, walked the first two hitters he faced third, and a one-out single by David Dellucci loaded the bases. But Wakefield caught Hafner looking at a called third strike, stranding three baserunners.

In the fifth, however, two walks were more costly. After a single by Casey Blake and walks to Grady Sizemore and Hafner set the stage for Victor Martinez, who drove a single over the second-base bag to plate two and give the Tribe their first lead of the night.