Wells Looks Good in Simulated Game
OAKLAND -- The gates of McAfee Coliseum were hours from being opened, the sun was blazing hot and David Wells was pouring sweat. And that was good news for the 43-year-old lefty who has spent three frustrating stints on the disabled list this season while making just two outings for the Red Sox.
Boomer, whose career looked to be in jeopardy at various points this season, is looking primed to make his return to the rotation within the next couple of weeks. This, after throwing five innings of simulated action against two teammates (Gabe Kapler and Alex Cora) and a 2006 draft pick (Lars Anderson) on Monday afternoon.
Wells, in maintaining his two-month silence to print reporters, was not available for comment. Manager Terry Francona liked what he saw.
"Good, good, he did good," Francona said of his pitcher, who took a line drive off his right knee on May 26. "It was a hot day, too. I thought he got a little tired, but I thought he did well. The biggest thing is to probably see how he bounces back [Tuesday]. I don't think there's any reason to think he won't bounce back. That's obviously the next step, to see how he shows up tomorrow, then we'll go from there."
It's certainly not out of the realm of possibility that Wells will make a Minor League rehab assignment at the end of this week, though Francona didn't see the need to make a premature announcement.
The important thing was that Wells wasn't favoring his right knee at all.
"He fielded his position. Guys bunted on him a couple of times, things like that," Francona said. "He moved around very well."
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Foulke comes on in relief:
In due time, the Red Sox hope that Monday was a foreshadowing of things to come: Keith Foulke coming on in relief of Wells. That's what happened during the simulated game, as Foulke, out since June 12 with right elbow woes, threw two innings.
Foulke will throw a side session before Wednesday's game and the Red Sox will re-evaluate his program when they return to Fenway Park this weekend.
"I don't know what my velocity was," said Foulke. "They're putting the bat on the ball but they weren't crushing the ball. It wasn't too bad. Until we get in the game and see what it is in game conditions, then we'll know for sure. It was definitely as good as it was before I left."
Aside from getting back into pitching shape, Foulke was also trying to refine his mechanics in order to ease the strain on his arm.
"Trying to straighten out my stride, go more towards the plate, trying to make my arm longer to keep it away from my head," said Foulke. "Keep the pressure off my elbow."
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Wily Mo over Kapler:
Facing a left-hander for the fifth time in six games, Francona again had to decide whether to start Wily Mo Pena or Kapler in right field. This time, Pena got the nod, even though Kapler is a .280 hitter lifetime against Barry Zito in 25 at-bats. Monday marked the first time Pena had ever faced the former Cy Young Award winner.
Francona frequently plays the matchups, but this time, he took a broader approach.
"You know, it's hard. I'll be honest with you," Francona said. "I went back and forth and then I kind of tried to stay out of the small picture and look at the big picture. Gabe's played a lot this week. I just thought, you know what, Wily Mo could use the at-bats. Hopefully in the meantime, it will help us win.
"We're just trying to look at the broader view. It's not always the smaller version. Sometimes it's not easy to do. We want to win every game so bad, we put a lot of thought into it and ended up playing Wily Mo. If we don't play him against some lefties, you could run into a situation where he'll play enough to make outs and I don't want that to happen."
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Rotation alignment:
Though left-hander Kason Gabbard turned in a solid debut against the Mariners, Francona is leaning toward skipping a fifth starter this time around the rotation because of Thursday's day off.
The way things stand right now, Jon Lester will open the homestand against the Angels Friday night, followed by Josh Beckett on Saturday and ace Curt Schilling in the ESPN Sunday night game.
"I told Gabby, 'Go throw [your] side today just like a normal side.' As we sift through things because of the day off, we'll let him know," Francona said.
The Red Sox don't need a fifth starter until Aug. 1, which comes the day after the trade deadline.
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TONIGHT'S MATCHUP:
Schilling (12-3, 3.50 ERA) will face right-hander Jason Windsor (0-0, 1.80) at 10:05 p.m. ET on Tuesday night in the middle game of this series.