Ortiz, Victorino sit; Pierzynski starts at DH

TORONTO -- Designated hitter David Ortiz and right fielder Shane Victorino were out of the starting lineup for Sunday's series finale against the Blue Jays.

Manager John Farrell wanted to get the hot-hitting A.J. Pierzynski, who started at DH, into the lineup against Toronto knuckleballer R.A. Dickey and have David Ross behind the plate for Jon Lester. Ross has caught three of Lester's five starts and it's a pairing Farrell likes.

Farrell said Pierzynski's longer swing, which allows his bat to stay in the zone for a longer period of time, is well-suited against a knuckleballer. He was batting .417 in 12 career at-bats vs. Dickey entering Sunday, something Farrell said also factored into the decision. Pierzynski drove in five runs and amassed four hits over the first two games of the series, including a grand slam -- the eighth of his career -- in Saturday's 7-6 win.

While Farrell doesn't love the idea of starting both his catchers in the same game, in case one were to get injured, he said his team is prepared to handle such a scenario if it were to occur.

"There is a risk to that," Farrell said. "But in the event that something happened, we could put A.J. behind the plate, and we have a number of guys who could pinch-hit. We could play a National League-style if we needed to for a couple of at-bats."

Victorino, meanwhile, is simply getting some rest after playing three straight games since returning from the disabled list Thursday.

With an off-day Monday, and the fact the Rogers Centre is an artificial playing surface, it made sense to sit Victorino, Farrell said.

"We want to make sure we are not running him out there too many consecutive days," the skipper said. "On the AstroTurf, guys respond a little bit differently."