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June 10, 2007
BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer
PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Jonathan Papelbon, who has had difficulty handling the scarcity of save opportunities over the last month or so along with the kid-glove treatment he has been receiving from manager Terry Francona and the staff, notched his 14th save of the season Saturday night in Boston's 4-3, 10-inning win over Arizona.
It was not a smooth save.
Papelbon hit Chris Young with one out on a 1-and-2 fastball that just sailed up and in. He also permitted a two-out infield single to deep short by Conor Jackson.
But with Young taking off from second and having third base easily swiped on a 2-and-0 pitch to Mark Reynolds, Papelbon ended the game by retiring Reynolds on that pitch on broken-bat popup to second.
It was Papelbon's first appearance since last Sunday, when he was tagged for a game-losing homer by the Yankees' Alex Rodriguez. He has had only four save opportunities since May 6, and has appeared in only 10 games since then.
Part of that inactivity is because the Sox haven't played close games that warranted him coming in to close them out, part of that is because the Sox don't want to burn out Papelbon the way they feel they did last year, when he had to miss the final month because of shoulder troubles.
So they have used ''touch-and-feel'' sessions in the bullpen, throwing enough to keep his arm strong and his mechanics sound, but not enough to wear him out, they hope.
But that hasn't made it easy on Papelbon, whose frustration meter clearly is reaching its limit.
''I didn't pitch for five days. It's tough to go out and be Grade A, 100 percent sharp,'' said Papelbon, who is 14 for 15 in save chances this year.
''I just have to ride it out, grind it out like tonight. The problem with 'touch and feel' is that you're only throwing about 75-80 percent. You can't duplicate game (action). You can only get to a certain point,'' he said.
Papelbon is not upset with the coaching staff. He understands what they're trying to do.
''It's a tough thing to manage a closer,'' said Papelbon. ''You have to have them ready for the perfect situation. But every situation isn't going to be perfect. It's a tough gig.''
Lowell's thumb hurting
Mike Lowell's left thumb is sprained, the result of a defensive play he tried to make last Sunday night at Fenway Park in a game against the New York Yankees.
Lowell gloved a ball going to his left with a dive, but his hand rolled over as the glove stuck in the dirt. The result is a sore thumb.
''It's just a nagging thing,'' said Lowell Saturday night after his pinch-hit sacrifice fly had given the Sox a 4-3, 10-inning win.
''We try to tape it. The best way is to tape it back, but if we do that I can't hit. I'll just have to ride it out,'' he said.
Maybe it's a coincidence, but since suffering the injury, Lowell has gone 1-for-16 on the trip, dropping his average from .333 to 313.
Familiar story
For the second time on the trip, Julian Tavarez pitched well enough to keep the Red Sox in a game, but left with Boston trailing.
Each time, though, Boston took him off the hook and took the game into extra innings. The Red Sox lost Tavarez's start in Oakland in the 11th on the first game of the trip, but they won last night, 4-3, in 10 innings.
The Diamondbacks scratched out a run in the second against him and then Stephen Drew clubbed a two-run homer over the head of his older brother, J.D., on an 0-and-2 pitch in the fourth, giving Arizona a 3-0 lead.
In the Drew at-bat, Tavarez threw a down-and-away changeup on 0 and 1 that had Drew fooled and lunging at with a wild, ineffective swing. Tavarez and catcher Jason Varitek tried to then come inside with a fastball, but Drew pounced on it for his third homer of the season.
''I left it a little bit too much over the plate. It was a mistake. Sometimes you get someone out with those pitches, sometimes you don't,'' said Tavarez. ''After that I had to stop the bleeding.''
He did just that, retiring 9 of the 10 batters he faced after Drew's homer.
Tavarez also showed he could handle the bat. He walked up and slapped a drag-type bunt on a 1-and-2 pitch past pitcher Micah Owings in the air and dropping it in front of second baseman Orlando Hudson for a base hit in the second. He also walked in his only other plate appearance.
Dynamite bullpen work
The Sox' bullpen was airtight.
Brendan Donnelly worked a spotless seventh, overmatching all three batters he faced, including a whiff of Eric Byrnes. Hideki Okajima worked around a leadoff error by Julio Lugo in the eighth and blanked the Diamondbacks for two innings, keeping it a tie game and ultimately being awarded the win when Papelbon stifled Arizona in the 10th.
Here and there
J.D. Drew continued to show a resurgence at the plate. He went 3-for-5, two of his hits going to center field, a clear sign he is staying more balanced and not rolling over on pitches the way he had been the last few weeks. His luck is also changing -- he dunked a broken-bat single to right, as well . . . Manny Ramirez's left wrist, which was hit by a pitch Friday night, was more sore than was expected. He sat out Saturday night's game, but he was available to pinch-hit late if he had been called upon. Francona is hoping he'll be able to play in the series finale . . . The crowd of 49,826, including a very large and vocal Red Sox fan base, set a record at Chase Field. The old record was 49,707 for game 6 of the 2001 World Series against the Yankees. The previous regular-season record of 49,548 was established on Opening Day this year, April 9, against Cincinnati.
Posted by Steven Krasner 
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