BOSTON -- Red Sox manager John Farrell admits he did not know exactly what he was getting when Boston picked veteran right-hander Doug Fister off the baseball scrapheap.

"Not in terms of the consistent performance," Farrell said after Fister turned in another strong performance to lead the Red Sox to a rain-soaked 6-1 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday night.

"We knew we were getting a guy with a veteran presence we felt like we needed to add to the starting depth ... but to say that when we got him from the Angels (on waivers) that he would be running a streak of starts consecutively like he is, no -- he's surpassed the initial expectation. He's doing a great job."

Fister, who has gone from an extra starter to forcing his way into the team's postseason thinking, worked seven innings, allowing one run on four hits and striking out a season-high nine. Fister (5-7) is 5-2 in his past seven starts, and Wednesday marked his fourth straight outing of at least seven innings.

In all four games, he has been scored on in the first inning and not scored on again. In fact, hitters are 8-for-20 (.400) with five earned runs allowed in the four first innings, and just 6-for-83 (.072) from the second innings on -- all adding up to a 3-1 record and 1.50 ERA.

"He gets into the rhythm of the game," Farrell said. "Takes him an inning. Takes him an inning to find his release point. It's been uncanny how similar the beginning of games are and how he finishes out.

"To me it's finding that release point and then he stays out of the middle of the plate and then he gets the feel for that curveball, which is, as we've come to find out, that's a key pitch for him."

Said Fister: "The first inning was a bit of a struggle for me (Wednesday). I was having some trouble locating the sinker down and in to the lefties, and that kind of caused me some troubles. I had to make some adjustments."

Jackie Bradley Jr. hit a two-run homer and added another RBI, and Eduardo Nunez had two hits and two of Boston's four stolen bases as the Red Sox made it 12-4 over the last-place Blue Jays this season. Boston is 29 of 32 stealing bases in the 16 games vs. Toronto.

"He's pitched really special," Bradley said of Fister. "It's definitely been a lot of fun. He works really fast, and he attacks the strike zone and is getting outs when he needs to."

A night after the Red Sox drained their bullpen by using 12 pitchers in a 19-inning win, Fister walked in a run in the first but yielded only two hits after the opening inning.

"He really kept us off balance, and I thought he used his breaking ball pretty good and mixed his pitches well under these conditions," said Toronto bench coach DeMarlo Hale, managing his fifth straight game with John Gibbons tending to personal business in Texas. "He's done a very good job. Spotted his fastball, mixed his breaking ball in. Kept us off balance a little bit. So you tip your hat to him, he pitched well."

The win raised the Red Sox's lead over the rained-out New York Yankees to four games atop the American League East.

Bradley's 15th homer of the season capped a four-run fourth inning that chased Joe Biagini (3-10). The Toronto starter allowed five runs on six hits in 3 1/3 innings.

Asked to sum up his outing, which came on the heels of a career-high 10 strikeouts and seven shutout innings, Biagini, who hasn't had a win since June 21, said, "Bad. That's a short answer for you."

Boston relievers Joe Kelly and Matt Barnes worked a perfect inning apiece to finish off the win.

NOTES: Red Sox manager John Farrell, speaking on WEEI radio, said if he had been aware of electronic sign-stealing against the Yankees, he would have shut it down. ... Red Sox LHP David Price (inflamed left elbow) threw 30 pitches in the bullpen before the game, and the plan is for him to throw a simulated game Saturday. ... Boston 2B Dustin Pedroia, still nursing his left knee problem, was slotted in as the DH with the threat of wet grounds. He left for a pinch hitter in the sixth inning ... Both teams are off Thursday. The Blue Jays open a six-game homestand Friday against the Detroit Tigers. The Red Sox continue their nine-game homestand Friday against the Tampa Bay Rays. ... Blue Jays RHP Marcus Stroman, hit on the right elbow by a comebacker in his last start, hopes to start Friday.