The day after, Terry Francona is standing behind John Smoltz as strongly as ever.

The Sox manager was asked before Monday's game against Oakland about Smoltz, who struggled again Sunday. Even as some are wondering if Smoltz will ever be able to help his team, Francona left no doubt that he believes in the veteran.

``We can't get so caught up in a frenzy to almost assassinate some pitcher,'' Francona said. ``We can't lose sight of what we're trying to do.''

Francona said Smoltz is still adjusting.

``He's made mistakes with his fastball that cost him runs and us games,'' the manager said. ``If we just take the results, I think we're going to make a mistake. I think this is a guy that's going to win for us.''

The focus now is getting Smoltz to work inside more.

``He's been pitching for the most part to one side of the plate with his fastball. He needs to open it up,'' Francona said. ``His slider (Sunday) was as good as I've seen it. But he can't throw 85 sliders. . . There's a lot to like. We just haven't seen results yet.''