“Ken Huckaby is a professional catcher,” said Boston manager Terry Francona on Thursday night after Huckaby made his first, and perhaps only appearance of the year from the Sox. “He was tremendous,” added the skipper. Huckaby is also back in the minors.

Starter and captain Jason Varitek is out for probably a month after knee surgery Thursday. Doug Mirabelli is the backup catcher. Now comes a third catcher, Javy Lopez from the Orioles, former starter in the glory days of the Atlanta Braves.

Francona said to me on Thursday, “Mirabelli can’t catch everyday. He just hasn’t done that for so long that it’s too late to expect him to be an everyday catcher.” Francona loves Huckaby, who is defensively outstanding, but hitting .207 at Triple A this year.

Francona would have been more than happy to have continued with Huckaby and Mirabelli until the return of Varitek. The front office was not so inclined.

So Huckaby got his one game, drove in a run, got a hit and blocked innumerable balls in the dirt. Francona was not happy after Thursday’s loss to Cleveland to have to call in Huckaby and tell him he was not going with the team to Tampa.

Francona urged the front office not to do the Lopez deal, believing it was not necessary. Francona is not a Lopez fan.

Lopez has long had a reputation as not calling a very good game for his pitchers. One has long heard former teammates and coaches say he forgets what pitch he called for between the time he gives the sign and the time the pitch is thrown.

That may be one reason he lost the starting job in Baltimore this year to Ramon Hernandez, one of the game’s best defensive catchers.

The Orioles tried to move Lopez to first base to get his bat in the lineup, but that experiment ended when he could not make the move defensively.

Lopez has been a disgruntled player all season, asking to be traded or released. He has appeared in 75 games, but in a backup role, hitting .265 with 8 homers and 31 RBIs.

Lopez is a hired gun – a fill in until Varitek returns. What he must not be is loose cannon.

The Sox are once again engaged in a season-ending struggle with the Yankees for a division title or a wild-card birth, with the White Sox and Twins engaged in the latter postseason attempt.

Francona will have to manage the catching rotation to keep his starters happy, Mirabelli rested, and Lopez feeling as though he is part of the whole thing.

Lopez received a quick introduction to the Boston lineup Friday night when he was inserted in the third inning when Mirabelli was injured in a collision at home plate. He suffered a twisted ankle.

Depending on the extent of Mirabelli’s injury, Lopez could take on an expanded role in the Sox lineup.

Francona will have to define Lopez’s role and Lopez will have to quietly accept it and make believers of the pitchers who work with him.

If Lopez brings a hot bat to the Sox, and Mirabelli returns from his injury, then Lopez will have to play more than Francona anticipates at the moment, but that playing time will also have to depend on how well Lopez handles the defensive part of the game.

Depending on Lopez’s performance, when Varitek returns there will be a decision on keeping three catchers or …. (fill in the blank).

What Francona seemed to be saying to the front office was, why go through all this when I can live with Huckaby and Mirabelli until the captain is back. He lost that battle and now the manager must manage.

Old Town native Gary Thorne is an ESPN and ABC sportscaster.