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BOSTON -- Josh Beckett is Mr. Zero when October rolls around.

The MVP of the 2003 World Series pitched his second consecutive postseason shutout and, backed by a home run from David Ortiz, led the Boston Red Sox over the Los Angeles Angels 4-0 Wednesday night in their American League playoff opener.

Beckett retired 19 consecutive batters after a leadoff single, allowed just four hits and ran his postseason scoreless streak to 18 innings. The last time he pitched on such a stage, he blanked the New York Yankees to clinch the '03 Series for Florida.

The previous pitcher with consecutive postseason shutouts was current teammate Curt Schilling, who accomplished the feat with the Phillies in 1993 and Arizona in 2001. Christy Mathewson is the only pitcher with four postseason shutouts. Beckett tied Whitey Ford and Mordecai Brown with three.

"I was ahead of a lot of guys," Beckett said. "They've got a lot of guys, those guys that foul a lot of pitches off and I just didn't want to get wrapped up in trying to strike a lot of guys out, because those are the at-bats that end up killing your pitch count and you're out after 51/3 because you've got 120 pitches."

Ortiz, who eliminated the Angels with a 10th-inning, series-ending homer in the first round of the 2004 playoffs, homered off John Lackey. Kevin Youkilis set the tone with a homer in the first inning against the Angels ace.

The victory was Boston's seventh straight in the postseason over the California-Anaheim-Los Angeles Angels, having come back from a 3-1 deficit to win in the 1986 AL playoffs and then sweeping them in the 2004 best-of-five first round.

The only 20-game winner in the majors this year, Beckett struck out eight and walked none. He has three shutouts in six postseason starts and two in 166 regular-season starts.

"That guy was very impressive. He's been like that all year," Ortiz said.

Beckett is 3-2 with a 1.74 ERA in the postseason. He became the first Boston pitcher to toss a postseason shutout since Luis Tiant beat Cincinnati 6-0 with a five-hitter in the opener of the 1975 World Series.

"He's hard on himself, and he feels like he should be perfect out there," Youkilis said about Beckett. "I think that's one of the things that helps him."

Lackey allowed four runs, nine hits and two walks, striking out four in six innings.

Game 2 will be Friday, with rookie Daisuke Matsuzaka facing the Angels' Kelvim Escobar.

In his first postseason appearance since coming back on three days' rest to shut out the Yankees, Beckett gave up a leadoff single to Chone Figgins and then retired the next 19 batters. The 6-foot-5 right-hander allowed a single to Vladimir Guerrero with one out in the seventh and the crowd applauded politely, as if a no-hitter had been broken up.

"He was throwing the ball better than he has at any point in the season. He was in control of himself," Red Sox manager Terry Francona said.

Los Angeles Boston Ab R H Bi Ab R H Bi

Figgins rf 4 0 1 0 Pedroia 2b 4 0 0 0

OCbera ss 4 0 0 0 Yukilis 1b 4 2 2 1

VGrero dh 4 0 2 0 DOrtiz dh 3 1 2 2

GAndsn lf 4 0 0 0 MRmrz lf 3 1 1 0

Izturis 3b 3 0 0 0 Ellsbry lf 0 0 0 0

Ktchm 1b 3 0 0 0 Lowell 3b 3 0 1 1

Kndrck 2b 3 0 1 0 JDrew rf 3 0 1 0

Napoli c 2 0 0 0 Varitek c 3 0 1 0

Aybar rf 1 0 0 0 Crisp cf 3 0 0 0

Willits cf 2 0 0 0 JLugo ss 3 0 1 0

Morles ph 1 0 0 0

Mathis c 0 0 0 0

Totals 31 0 4 0 Totals 29 4 9 4

Los Angeles 000 000 000 -- 0

Boston 103 000 00x -- 4

DP--Los Angeles 3. LOB--Los Angeles 4, Boston 3. 2B--Youkilis (1). HR--Youkilis (1), DOrtiz (1). CS--JLugo (1).

Los Angeles Ip H R Er Bb So

Lackey L,0-1 6 9 4 4 2 4

ESantana 2 0 0 0 0 2

Boston Ip H R Er Bb So

Beckett W,1-0 9 4 0 0 0 8

WP--Lackey, Beckett.

Umpires--Home, Gary Darling First, Dan Iassogna Second, Brian Runge Third, Ted Barrett Left, Tim Tschida Right, C.B. Bucknor.

T--2:27. A--37,597 (36,525).