Tuesday night, Tim Wakefield will get another shot . . . this time cortisone-free.

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Still, there are reasons why this second act might have a happy ending for Wakefield.

For one, after an endless stream of difficulties against Wakefield, the Tampa Bay lineup switched things up against the Red Sox starter in their last showdown, exactly a month before this Game 4 get-together.

All of a sudden players like Akinori Iwamura and Carlos Pena were waiting Wakefield out, leading to Tampa Bay averaging four pitches per at-bat, a sharp increase from most of their previous meetings.

"Coming into the season he had so much success against them, eventually they were going to make some adjustments," said Wakefield's catcher, Kevin Cash. "We need to make our adjustments now. I think Wake knows they came out a little more patient and put themselves in better counts to hit, as opposed to (Monday night) when they came out swinging. They know what they're doing. The best way to make them stop being patient is to get strike one."

Wakefield has shown the ability to adapt, as well, as has been evidenced by his successes this season. His ERA at Fenway Park this year is a more than respectable 3.10, but it is a bit deeper where you will find the true separation from a year ago.

He has made better offerings when it comes to that all-important first pitch. This season opponents are managing a .272 batting average when putting the initial pitch in play, compared to a .407 clip in 2007. Part of that, according to information supplied by Stats Inc., is that Wakefield is throwing his knuckleball at a higher rate on that first pitch.

Then there is the rest.

Four times he has pitched on six or more days rest this season, with slightly mixed results. His ERA for such occasions stands at 4.32, with his walks shrinking to six over 25 innings.

"When he has a fresher arm there's definitely a difference," Cash explained. "His arm will feel good, even though it doesn't translate into velocity. It's a feel thing. If I'm catching and my arm is hurting, mentally it affects you. And I think that's what he has battled through. It wasn't that he was throwing bad knuckleballs, it was just they weren't finishing in the zone. They just kind of stayed flat.

"It doesn't matter if you're throwing 95 (mph) or you're throwing 65. If your arm is aching it's going to affect you. When his arm is good he has that finish. When you're arm is tired you don't have that finish."

When it comes to trying to predict one of baseball's most unpredictable pitchers, it's all based on one big hypothesis. That's all there is ... that and a pitcher who is ready to embrace a pain-free second chance.

"I really don't have a concern," he said. "I've been working hard with (pitching coach John Farrell) between the last time I threw, which was the last game of the season here. I threw a couple of sides, played a lot of flat groundwork during the ALDS and have thrown two sides since then. So, I feel I'm ready to go."

Rob Bradford is the site editor for WEEI.com.