Bronson Arroyo has his own identity, as his braided cornrows and King Tut beard should attest. Oh, by the way: He's named after actor Charles Bronson.

"Curt used to get on me about being so loose in the clubhouse on the day I pitch," Arroyo said Thursday as he prepared for his first career postseason start. "Everybody has got their own personalities. You have to figure out what works for you."

Arroyo seems to have figured that out this year, going from extra starter in spring training to the No. 3 man in the rotation for the AL division series against Anaheim. Boston leads the best-of-five series 2-0, and Boston will have its first chance to clinch it at Fenway Park tonight against Kelvim Escobar.

Boston's only playoff sweep was when the Red Sox beat Oakland for the AL pennant in 1975; the Red Sox went on to lose the World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. The Red Sox haven't had a 2-0 lead in the playoffs since the 1986 Series, which they lost to the Mets.

Anaheim can take just a little consolation from their 2002 playoff run, when they lost the first game of each series but managed to win it all.

"I don't care what happened in 2002," catcher Bengie Molina said. "I wanted to win Game 1. And Game 2, too."

To do it, Arroyo doesn't have to be as good as either of the Red Sox aces who preceded him to the mound in the division series. The 27-year-old right-hander just has to be as good as he was in his last nine starts - all Boston wins - when he went 5-0 with a 3.78 ERA.

"Bronson has earned his stripes," manager Terry Francona said.

A castoff from the Pittsburgh organization, Arroyo was claimed by the Red Sox before the 2003 season.

Arroyo got the nod over Tim Wakefield, another Pirates reject who is scheduled to start Game 4 on Saturday, if necessary.

So how does he like being the third starter in what's perceived to be a two-man rotation? "I'm just glad that I've proven myself to be consistent enough to be given the ball in Game 3," he said.

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