FORT MYERS, Fla. – Josh Beckett made his second start of spring training, and Red Sox pitchers kept the St. Louis Cardinals hitless into the seventh inning.
But it was Boston’s young hitters who pulled out the win on Monday.
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Che-Shuan Lin’s one-out single in the ninth scored Josh Reddick after Reddick doubled in the tying run, and the Red Sox beat the Cardinals, 7-6.
Reddick was 2 for 3 with two RBI; shortstop Jose Iglesias, a Cuban defector and one of Boston’s top prospects, hit a three-run homer.
“That’s exactly what those young guys are here for,” said Manager Terry Francona. “Some of these guys are not here to make the club. They know that. They’re going to get ready for a long season wherever they’re playing.”
Iglesias, who signed with the Red Sox in September and is in his first spring training camp, said – with infielder Gil Velazquez acting as an interpreter – that he feels comfortable in his new surroundings.
Although he speaks very little English, Iglesias replied in English when asked what has been the most fun for him this spring: “My first home run.”
Beckett did not allow a hit over three scoreless innings and struck out three. In five innings this spring, Beckett has given up one run.
“I felt like I located. I got the ball down well. I got some ground balls in the first inning and really had my legs under me in the second,” Beckett said.
Francona also was pleased with Beckett’s outing.
“He was really good,” Francona said. “Fastball, change-up. He threw a couple of the best change-ups I’ve seen, a couple of good breaking balls
“He went down and threw 15 more in the bullpen just to try and stretch it out a little bit because he’s got an extra day until his next (start).”
• Albert Pujols was expected to make the cross-state trip with the Cardinals but was scratched because of discomfort in his back. He had a scheduled day off on Sunday and is not expected to play today against the Twins in Fort Myers.
YANKEES: A sports doctor at the center of drug investigations in Canada and the United States said he treated New York third baseman Alex Rodriguez after he had hip surgery last year and prescribed anti-inflammatories but not human growth hormone.
Dr. Anthony Galea also said an assistant who was stopped at the U.S.-Canadian border in Buffalo, N.Y., last year was carrying only a minuscule amount of HGH, which Galea said was for his own use. The doctor reiterated he has never given the drug to an athlete.
• The Yankees announced that tests done by a neurologist on backup catcher Francisco Cervelli, who left Saturday’s game with a concussion after being hit in the helmet by a pitched ball, were normal and he can resume regular workouts.
REDS: Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman hit 100 mph on radar guns during his spring training debut, throwing two scoreless innings against Kansas City.
The Reds signed Chapman to a six-year, $30.25 million deal in January.
METS: Closer Francisco Rodriguez returned to camp after being hampered by conjunctivitis for more than two weeks.
Rodriguez was told to stay away from the team until the eye ailment cleared, but recovery from the contagious infection took longer than expected. He continues to take eye drops and isn’t allowed to wear contacts yet.
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