JetHawks Power Past Ports Again in 6-2 Win

(LANCASTER, CA) - The Lancaster JetHawks are showing no signs of being intimidated by the team that came into the series with the best record in the California League, the Stockton Ports. The JetHawks got outstanding pitching from starter Tony Bajoczky and two relievers, and plenty of clutch offense in a 6-2 win over the Ports, their second straight win in the series.

...

Farkes and Reza each had two hits, including a home run, and two RBI in the win. Diaz, playing in his first game since the birth of his son in Venezuela earlier this week, returned with two hits and a run driven in.

Chuck Manka - RiverDogs surge back into first

GREENVILLE - Brandon Laird hit a pair of two-run homers, including a go-ahead blast in the top of the eighth inning, lifting the Charleston RiverDogs to a 6-5 win and a four-game sweep of the Greenville Drive at Fluor Field on Friday.

...

The Drive (26-23) scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth to take a 5-4 edge. Ryan Kalish walked with the bases loaded, Yamaico Navarro hit a sacrifice fly and Mike Jones tied it with an RBI single. A wild pitch by Noel Castillo allowed Kalish to race home with the lead run.

After Greenville reliever Jordan Craft (0-3) hit Justin Snyder with a pitch, Laird launched his second homer of the game and fourth of the season over the center-field fence to put the RiverDogs back on top.

Kevin Thomas - A pitcher-perfect win for Sea Dogs; Michael Bowden and Daniel Bard are masterful before a sold-out crowd at Hadlock Field.

Michael Bowden (4-3) and Daniel Bard put on quite the performance Saturday in the Portland Sea Dogs' 4-1 victory against the New Britain Rock Cats before a sold-out Hadlock Field crowd of 7,368.

Bowden, 21, continues to show maturity beyond his age. He pitched seven sterling innings, allowing an unearned run and one infield hit. He struck out five and retired the last 17 batters he faced, allowing few hard-hit balls.

"He throws such a heavy, hard fastball," catcher John Otness said. "And he has the confidence to go with it, the willpower to get it done."

Bard, 23, a first-round pick in 2006, showed off his fastball for the first time at Hadlock. He picked up his first save with one-hit relief, striking out two, including the final batter on a 99 mph fastball.

"Just gas," said Otness.

...

Madera came back from Pawtucket, which made room for first baseman/outfielder Brandon Moss to be activated from the disabled list. To make room for Madera in Portland, outfielder Jered Stanley was sent to Class A Greenville. Andrew Pinckney, who was hit by a pitch on the left hand Friday night, is day to day.

Kevin Thomas - After adjustments, Bard's on the right path

Boston sent Bard to the Hawaiian Winter League and wanted him to work out of the bullpen.

"He came in intent on making it a good experience," said Cather, the Sea Dogs' pitching coach who was also sent to Hawaii.

When Bard saw himself on TV and saw how wayward his delivery had become, he approached Cather. But you don't just start messing around with a $1.5 million investment.

Cather watched video of Bard before 2007, then consulted other Red Sox pitching coaches, including the minor-league roving instructor, Ralph Treuel.

"We started putting together an idea of how to approach it," Cather said.

Bard leveled his shoulders, became more balanced and brought his arm slot back down to a three-quarters position.

In Hawaii, Bard recorded a 1.08 ERA. Boston decided to put Bard in the bullpen and send him back to Greenville to begin the 2008 season. He dominated with a 0.64 ERA, with 43 strikeouts and only four walks in 28 innings.

Instead of worrying about throwing strikes, Bard could simply pitch, mixing his four-seam fastball that reaches 100 mph, his two-seam fastball with movement, and a developing curve and change-up.

"You're not going to be confident if you're not comfortable on the mound," Bard said. "It's a comfort thing and I'm starting to find it this year."

Willie T. Smith III - Homestand struggles continue for Greenville Drive

After dropping four games to the Charleston RiverDogs, Greenville was a 4-2 loser to the Savannah Sand Gnats in front of a season-high Fluor Field crowd of 6,225.

The Drive, who swept four games from Savannah on the road less than a week ago, never led despite a solid performance from starter Terumasa Matsuo. Greenville has yet to win a game during the homestand.

...

The Drive trailed 1-0 when Matsuo (2-10) exited after five innings. He allowed two hits and two walks, striking out seven.

...

... Greenville catcher Ty Weeden was placed on the seven-day disabled list due to a concussion. He was replaced by first baseman/designated hitter Stanley, who was with AA Portland.

Pitching for the first time in 13 days after tearing the nail on the middle finger of his pitching hand, Buchholz helped Pawtucket beat Rochester, 11-1, last night at McCoy. Buchholz went 4 1/3 innings, allowing three hits and one run. He walked two and struck out three.

"I felt good. I felt rested," Buchholz said of an effort in which he threw 63 pitches, 38 for strikes. "I was up in the zone a little bit, but I think that's a case of being a little anxious to throw. I felt like I got low in the zone for the most part after that. … I think today was a good day for me."
...

Buchholz threw regularly in the mid 90s. He relied heavily on his fastball early on, but then mixed in a number of breaking balls toward the end. He also was helped by the fact that Rochester had two runners thrown out on the bases, one trying to steal, another trying to advance on a bobbled ball.

"They told me they want me to throw 60 to 65 percent fastballs. So that's what I tried to do," he said. "I felt like there were a lot of off-speed counts where I could have thrown off-speed pitches and maybe got some swings and misses, but I stuck to the fastball. Overall, I felt like it worked out good."

"After the fourth, he had about 10 pitches left and I told him that," said manager Ron Johnson. "He said, 'Let me use them.' He wanted to get back out there. That's a good sign.

Buchholz was the focus early on. He worked for the first time in 13 days and was solid, if not spectacular.
Moss also is on rehabilitation assignment after an emergency appendectomy, and he continues to look very much the part of a major leaguer. The lefty ripped a line-drive home run into the Rochester bullpen in the fifth. He also singled and walked.
...

Carter went two-for-four with three runs scored and two RBI. He has 10 hits in his last 15 at-bats.

Monday, May 26, 2008



Kevin Thomas - Dogs just fail to deliver on such a promising day; New Britain spoils the fun for a sellout hometown crowd at Hadlock Field.

Portland (29-19) fell behind 6-0 before making some noise in the seventh inning on RBI singles by Iggy Suarez and Jeff Corsaletti, then scoring in the eighth on Aaron Bates' fourth home run.

...

Meanwhile, the Rock Cats built their lead off bad-luck starter Kris Johnson (3-2) and reliever Carlos Vasquez.

In the third, New Britain scored on two infield hits and Luke Hughes' RBI single to center. Johnson left in the sixth, with two runners on and one out.

Vasquez, a minor league free agent from the Chicago White Sox organization, then gave up an RBI bloop double by David Winfree.

In the seventh, the Rock Cats got to Vasquez for four runs on four hits and a walk.

Kevin Thomas - Buchholz will have to wait

Buchholz is where the Red Sox planned to put him at the start of the season - in the minors, working on his command. Buchholz can show lights-out stuff, but can also struggle, which is why he has the highest ERA (5.53) among the Sox starters.

Buchholz will likely help Boston at the end of the season (manager Terry Francona all but ruled out a bullpen role). Colon is injury-prone, as is Tim Wakefield these days. And who knows if Curt Schilling can come back.

If Buchholz gets his command, you have to figure Boston will use him.

...

In Portland, Kris Johnson pitched okay (5 1/3, 6 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 3 K), but the relief was bad, as was the offense in a 6-3 loss.

In Lancaster, third-baseman Jorge Jimenez (2-for-5; .349) and outfielder Josh Reddick (3-for-5, HR; .326, 6 homers) continue to hit.

Outfielder Jered Stanley is enjoying Greenville so far. After five games as a fill-in with Portland (.143), Stanely is 5-fo-8 (.625) in two games with Greenville, with three home runs.

David Hood - Home remains unkind to Greenville Drive

The Greenville Drive's doldrums at home continued again on Sunday night, but if a silver lining could be found, it is in the form of new arrival Jered Stanley.

The left-fielder's two homers and four RBI weren't enough as the Savannah Sand Gnats defeated the Drive 9-5 in front of 5,915 fans at Fluor Field.

Stanley arrived on Saturday from Double-A Portland, where he was getting limited at-bats, and has now hit three homers in his two games for the Drive.

...

Greenville starter Chris Province gave up a single run in the top of the fifth, and Savannah then sent 11 batters to the plate in the sixth. The Sand Gnats had only three hits in the inning, but took advantage of four consecutive walks, including three with the bases loaded, to plate six runs for a 9-2 lead.

Terry Nau - PawSox bash Baby Bombers

PAWTUCKET - Jeff Bailey's leadoff homer in the bottom of the first inning proved an accurate portent of things to come when Pawtucket and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre squared off at McCoy Stadium on a windy Monday afternoon.

"It's funny how the game is," PawSox manager Ron Johnson said after his team blasted six home runs - two by Bailey - during an 11-5 victory over the Yankees that deadlocked these two teams at the top of the International League North pennant race with identical 32-20 records. "The wind was blowing out and that puts hitters in a good frame of mind."

..

While Kottaras has seen his average fall to .224, Bailey is hitting a career-high .327 with 14 homers and 40 RBI at this juncture in the season. The 29-year-old veteran has never hit higher than .299 in his 11-year career after being selected in the second round of the 1997 Player Draft by the Florida Marlins.

"Am I a better hitter?" Bailey said after the game, repeating a reporter's question. "I don't think so. I guess the difference this year is when I get my pitch, I am not missing it. Today I came up in the first inning and got into a fastball situation. I got my pitch and drove it."

Bailey, normally a middle-of-the-order hitter, moved into the leadoff spot a month ago and has responded well to the change.

...

Zink, now 6-2 on the season, pitched eight innings, surviving a shaky first inning that began when leadoff hitter Brett Gardner struck out and reached first when Kottaras couldn't handle a nasty knuckler. Justin Christian then got hit by a pitch and Jason Lane walked. But Zink fanned cleanup hitter Cody Ransom, gave up a run on a sacrifice fly to center, and then got the third out.

PAWTUCKET -- Justin Masterson was originally scheduled to make his Triple-A debut on Saturday in Durham. But now the Red Sox pitching prospect will start for Pawtucket on Thursday at McCoy Stadium, perhaps as preparation for another appearance in Boston next week.

Joe McDonald - Yankees 9, PawSox 8: Kyle Snyder bombed after return from DL

Pawtucket starter Kyle Snyder was scheduled to throw 60-65 pitches in his first game back from the DL with a groin injury. The right-hander lasted only 1 2/3 innings. He allowed five runs on three hits with three walks and one strikeout. He also hit two batters and threw 54 pitches (26 strikes). …

...

Since Pawtucket shortstop Jed Lowrie has been on the shelf with the wrist injury, Gil Velazquez has replaced him at shortstop and has done a phenomenal job defensively. The 28-year-old infielder signed with the Red Sox organization as a minor-league free agent last December. He had his six-game hitting streak snapped last night, but his glove work has been solid.

...

Lowrie missed his 10th consecutive game last night with a left-wrist injury. Johnson said they don't want to rush Lowrie back, but there's a chance he could play this weekend in Durham. … Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz will make his second rehab start for the PawSox on Friday in Durham. … Fellow Red Sox pitching prospect Justin Masterson will make his Triple-A debut in Durham on Saturday for the PawSox. …

Joe McDonald - Severe weather is a lightning rod for many players with PawSox

In the wake of former PawSox pitcher Geremi Gonzalez's death - he was struck and killed by lightning on a beach in Venezuela last Sunday - several of the Pawtucket players, including some of Gonzalez's former teammates, talked about their experiences while on the field during bad weather.

Sure, most people will say they are afraid of lightning strikes. Most people take cover during a storm. But when dangerous weather arrives during a baseball game, players are standing on a two-acre field with metal spikes on their feet and metal buttons on the top of their caps.

The Gonzalez tragedy was still being talked about in the PawSox' clubhouse yesterday afternoon, a day after the players had heard the tragic news.

Pawtucket starting pitcher Charlie Zink, a teammate of Gonzalez's in 2005, was stunned when he was told what had happened.

"That's terrible," said Zink. "That's one of the most random things I've ever heard. That's insane."

McAdam: Red Sox buck trend of long term deals for young players

The trend is clear: Teams are seeking cost certainty by securing their best young players to multi-year deals.

But the trend hasn't reached the Red Sox.

Despite a host of players with three years or less of service time - including Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz and Jonathan Papelbon - the Sox have yet to lock up any of their young stars.

General manager Theo Epstein yesterday declined to comment on the issue, citing a desire to keep the team's contractual philosophy confidential. But discussions with others in the industry - including executives with other teams and agents - helped explain why the Sox have yet to issue deals to their young stars.

Thursday, May 29, 2008


Joe McDonald - Masterson likes the tried and true

The 2008 season is only two months old and already Masterson has experienced a lot.

"It's like I was dreaming there for a little bit and now I'm back to reality," he said. "It's been pretty exciting."

Masterson began the season at Double-A Portland, then was called up to make a spot start for the Red Sox. He was solid in his major-league debut before being sent back to Portland, where he struggled a bit. It didn't matter because he was back in Boston to make his second start, which was another good outing.

This time, Masterson was assigned to Pawtucket and was set to make his Triple-A debut when he was told he would miss a start to give him some rest. Not exactly what he was expecting, but he wasn't surprised, either.

Pawtucket starter Devern Hansack (2-6) struggled with his command early and allowed all four of his runs in the first two innings. He was solid the rest of the way, surrendering only two more hits through the sixth inning. He walked two and struck out eight. … Dusty Brown hit his second home run in as many games. The Pawtucket catcher hit a grand slam in Tuesday's game.

Friday, May 30, 2008

Shalise Manza Young - Masterson makes a sweet debut with PawSox

Johnson felt Masterson's performance looked even better coming against the Yankees, who lead the International League North.

"He got six innings against probably the best team in the league. To me, that magnifies the outing," Johnson said. "I liked the way he pitched around the error."

In the fourth inning, with two outs but with men on first and second, Scranton DH Greg Porter's grounder went between the legs of second baseman Joe Thurston, allowing a run and cutting the score to 3-2 for Pawtucket. But Masterson went right back to work, getting Justin Christian to ground out to third to end the inning.

Jumping from Double-A to the majors as Masterson did isn't always as big a leap as it seems, Johnson said. When he was managing in Portland, he saw David Pauley and Abe Alvarez through such situations, and said there is generally more good than bad that comes out of it for the player.

Even though his stints with Boston have been short, Masterson has been able to learn a great deal from the Red Sox.

"Like tonight; I hit my spots well. I didn't think my ball was sinking as well, not as much as I can," he said. "A lot of it is just trusting what you have and letting what you have work for you. You have to stick with what you know is your game."

Shalise Manza Young - PawSox 5, Yankees 2: Bailey's two homers help Masterson to victory

Justin Masterson, Hunter Jones and Chris Smith provided the pitching, and Jeff Bailey added the power as the PawSox posted a victory over the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees and closed out an eight-game homestand with a split. In his first triple-A start, Masterson threw 90 pitches in six full innings, allowing four hits and two runs (one earned). When Jones got the ball in the seventh, Pawtucket was holding a 3-2 lead. But Jones - who went 2 1/3 innings - and Smith - who got the final two outs of the night - held the Yankees scoreless. Bailey had his third two-homer game of the homestand, and now has 13 home runs in the month of May and a .319 batting average for the season. …

...

Bailey is 50-for-144 (.347) with 15 home runs and 39 RBI over his last 36 games. He had six homers during the PawSox' eight-game homestand that ended last night.

Clay Buchholz struggled with his control in his second rehab start with the PawSox. Of the 76 pitches he threw in four innings of work, 41 were strikes, and he walked four batters and issued a wild pitch. The Bulls touched Buchholz for three earned runs, including a two-run Dan Johnson homer that just made it inside the right-field foul pole. Buchholz did have five strikeouts, including striking out the side in his final inning of work. … The PawSox twice tied the game, at 3-3 and 5-5, but the bullpen was unable to hold the Bulls in check. Edgar Martinez (1-1) allowed five runs in two innings of work and took his first loss of the season. Dan and Elliot Johnson had 3 RBI apiece for Durham. … Chris Carter and Brandon Moss hit back-to-back home runs to lead off the 4th inning. For the evening, Carter was 2-for-3 with two RBI.

Joe McDonald - Matsuzaka on DL; Bailey is called up

When Bailey walked into the visitor's clubhouse at Camden Yards yesterday afternoon, almost every Red Sox player and coach went out of their way to say hi. Bailey is one of the most respected players in the Sox' organization, and the players in Boston are excited he's been called up for the weekend.

The right-handed hitter is locked in at the plate for the PawSox. At the time of his recall, he was hitting .318 with 16 homers and 44 RBI in 50 games for Pawtucket.

"He's doing great," said Francona. "He knows this could be short term. When we send guys down we always tell them that if they do good there's a chance they'll get called up. He's a great kid and has always made a good impression on the staff during spring training. He does his work, goes about his business and doesn't complain."

Bailey, a catcher by trade when he first began his pro career, has played mainly first base and the outfield for the PawSox. It will be that versatility that will come in handy for the Red Sox this weekend, especially with J.D. Drew out of the lineup with a bout of vertigo.