JUPITER, Fla. – Mike Stanton finally brought his big bat to a spring training game.
Stanton hit two three-run homers and had seven RBI in his injury-delayed debut, and the Florida Marlins beat the Red Sox 15-7 Thursday.
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“He’s a big kid, a real strong kid,” Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz said. “He hits it a long way.”
Florida hit four home runs — they had seven all spring coming in. Buchholz allowed all four home runs.
“It was a bad day for pitching,” Boston Manager Terry Francona said. “In spring training you see it happen. In two weeks it won’t happen.”
Stanton strained his right quadriceps in a game against the University of Miami on Feb. 27. He has played in minor league games for about the last 10 days.
Stanton struck out in his first at-bat on three changeups. He fell behind 0-2 in his second at- bat before hitting a changeup that Buchholz left up.
The ball was estimated to travel close to 500 feet, hitting the about halfway up a video scoreboard that sits 40 yards beyond the wall in left-center.
Francona was asked if he saw it land.
“I quit watching,” Francona said.
Buchholz allowed 11 runs — six earned — and 11 hits in four innings. He entered with an 0.69 ERA.
“Just one of those days,” Buchholz said. “You got to let it go.”
• A portrait of former All-Star baseball pitcher Pedro Martinez is being unveiled at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery.
Martinez, a former Cy Young award winner who won the World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 2004, plans to attend the unveiling today at the museum. He conducted a baseball mini-clinic to promote exercise for children on Thursday.
ORIOLES: Buck Showalter’s months-old comments about Derek Jeter and Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein went viral Thursday.
In the case of Jeter, Showalter is quoted in the April issue of Men’s Journal as taking umbrage with the way he perceives the shortstop exaggerates at times to make borderline pitches look like balls.
“The first time we went to Yankee Stadium (Sept. 6), I screamed at Derek Jeter from the dugout,” Showalter told the magazine. “Our guys are thinking, ‘Wow, he’s screaming at Derek Jeter.’ Well, he’s always jumping back from balls just off the plate. I know how many calls that team gets — and yes, he (ticks) me off.”
Regarding the Red Sox, Showalter was quoted as saying “I’d like to see how smart Theo Epstein is with the Tampa Bay payroll,” in the Men’s Journal story, but other than saying “He’s definitely very smart,” Thursday, the manager didn’t do much to distance himself from anything in the story.
• Showalter confirmed Jeremy Guthrie will start on opening night in Tampa Bay on April 1.
YANKEES: Yankees rotation candidate Freddy Garcia allowed one run and four hits over six innings in a minor league game in Tampa, Fla.
Garcia pitched for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre against Philadelphia’s Lehigh Valley and struck out three during a 67-pitch outing. He went 12-6 with a 4.64 ERA for the Chicago White Sox last season.
GIANTS: San Francisco outfielder Cody Ross is expected to miss the next three weeks because of a strained right calf. Ross hurt himself chasing down a fly ball in a game Wednesday. Ross had an MRI exam Thursday that confirmed the injury.
BASEBALL MUSEUM: The former marketing director of the landmark Negro Leagues Baseball Museum received a standing ovation from a crowd that included former Negro and Major Leaguers when he was introduced as the new president of the now-struggling institution.
“I don’t want the clapping to stop when I ask you to write that check,” said Bob Kendrick, whose new roll will include putting the institution on firmer financial footing.
DODGERS: A.J. Ellis hit a three-run homer, capping a seven-run rally in the bottom of the ninth inning that lifted the Dodgers over the Rockies 7-5 in Glendale, Ariz.
TWINS: The Twins are donating $25,000 to relief efforts in Japan.
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