The Red Sox placed Lester on the 15-day DL and sent him back to Boston for further evaluation on his strained back. Lester, one of four rookies on the Red Sox pitching staff, was originally slated to start Monday's series opener at Oakland. The move is retroactive to Thursday.
(Updated 8/29/2006)

Analysis: Lester is 7-2 with a 4.76 ERA in 15 starts.