Thursday, May 23, 2013
Now why did they trade that guy ...
Even after Justin Masterson shut down Boston's lineup, there is no regretting the trade that brought Victor Martinez from the Indians.
But the Indians probably feel better seeing the Masterson they believed they were getting in the deal - actually maybe he's a little better than they expected, after two-hitting the Red Sox (9 IP, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K; 110 pitches, 75 strikes; 18 ground ball outs).
Clay Buchholz (7 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 1 K) let the walks hurt him, but he was still good enough to win - except on Wednesday.
Boof Bonser and Joe Nelson were horrible out of the pen. It was Bonser's first action since 2008 so he gets a pass. Nelson has struggled since his call-up. And after Wednesday (1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 1 K), his ERA is 9.72. Not sure how long Boston will be patient with him.
Pawtucket starter Kris Johnson had looked like he was turning things around but has taken a couple of steps back, including Wednesday (5 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 4 K). His ERA is 4.75 ... Daniel Nava (.294) had two hits.
Portland reliever Mitch Herold had allowed five runs in his first appearance with the Sea Dogs after his call-up from Salem. Since then, he's been OK and had a second straight scoreless outing Wednesday (3 IP, 1 H, 4 K) to pick up the win.
Ryan Khoury (.371), recently returned from Pawtucket, remained hot with two hits, including his first home run ... Chih-Hsien Chiang (.211) is off to a slow start, but is 7-for-12 in his last three games. He went 3-for-4 with a triple on Wednesday ... the two free agent infielders, Ray Chang (.324) and Nate Spears (.266) both had four hits.
Salem outfielder Mitch Dening (.287) had two hits and is batting .349 in his last 10 games.
TweetKevin Thomas covers baseball and basketball for the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram. He wisely moved to Maine in 1994 after working for the St. Petersburg Times. He is married to Nancy and they have nine children.
Follow his thoughts on the Boston Red Sox and Portland Sea Dogs on Clearing the Bases
Follow his thoughts on the Boston Celtics and Maine Red Claws on Holding Court
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