My wife and I were closing on a condo and moving this past weekend, so unfortunately Red Sox Notes got bumped. With many players rehabbing and returning to the big club, the list of injuries is shrinking slowly and will continue to grow shorter (hopefully) over the next few weeks. Monday marked the return of a big name in the Red Sox lineup as Victor Martinez rejoined the club to stop the revolving door at catcher for the Sox these past several weeks. As the trade deadline approaches (Saturday at 4pm), so will the Red Sox news. Stay locked into BoSoxInjection.com for the latest news and rumors around the league.
Transactions
Clay Buchholz, Jed Lowrie
Both Buchholz and Lowrie were activated from the DL (15-day for Buchholz and 60-day for Lowrie) on July 21st and both played that night in Oakland. Buchholz looked rusty, but the Sox were certainly happy to have their All-Star pitcher back in the rotation. Jed Lowrie looked sharp after spending a few months in extended Spring Training trying to recover from mononucleosis. Both guys will be key for the Sox down the stretch.
Dustin Richardson, Fernando Cabrera, Ryan Shealy, Daniel Nava, Dusty Brown, Michael Bowden, Gustavo Molina
What do all of these players have in common? They were all either optioned or outrighted to the Pawtucket Red Sox over the past week or so. They each were moved to make room for a player returning from injury and it was just easier to lump them all together instead of 7 individual paragraphs about each one. The longest tenured member of the group was Daniel Nava, who played in 29 games for the Sox, hitting .286 with 1 glorious grand slam that came on the 1st pitch he saw in the big leagues. Nava was moved to make room for the return of Jeremy Hermida.
Victor Martinez
Monday night, Victor Martinez was activated from the 15-day DL and started behind the plate for the Sox. V-Mart added an instant spark, hitting the 1st pitch he saw for a line-drive rbi single to left-center. His teammates were pumped to see him back on the field and his presence sparked the Sox to a 6-3 victory. The Sox will be slightly cautious with V-Mart, checking the progress of his broken thumb regularly. He will likely start at catcher on Tuesday, then take the day game on Wednesday off to rest.
Injuries
Mike Lowell
The Pawtucket Red Sox roster has become a revolving door for big league players to rehab these past few weeks and the most recent member of that club is veteran Mike Lowell. It appears he is 1 or 2 days away from re-joining the Red Sox, but his rehab assignment is the perfect opportunity for the Sox to show off his health in anticipation of Saturday’s 4pm trade deadline. The Sox may not have many options to unload Lowell’s salary, but I guarantee you they are going to try and try hard.
Dustin Pedroia
There is good news on the horizon for Dustin Pedroia and his broken foot. On Monday, Pedroia ran for the 1st time since sustaining the injury and although he was not particularly happy with his progress (is he ever?), trainers were encouraged by his mobility. He is expected to be out for another week or two, but may be able to return in early August. Pedroia has hit .292 on the year with 12 home runs, so his bat (and defense) are greatly needed in the Sox lineup.
Jacoby Ellsbury
The Ellsbury Saga is progressing slowly towards a return late in 2010. Ellsbury began a rehab assignment in the Gulf Coast league on Monday and will likely advance up through the system at a slower than normal pace, given his concern with the Sox training regimen previously. I am still not convinced he will return this soon in 2010, but the team is projecting a return sometime in early-middle August. Only time will tell…
News
Trade Deadline Approaches: Are the Sox buyers or sellers?
It appears that Theo Epstein is planning on staying put as the MLB 2010 trade deadline approaches, but will likely exhaust all options to bring in a middle-late game reliever. The price for this type of player is high, but if he can bring in a younger talent that can be locked up for a few years, it may be a worthwhile investment, regardless of whether the Sox are in the playoff hunt or not come the end of September.
Add us as a preferred source on Google