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Yankee Lineup, Sept. 16 »
September 16, 2007
-- Kevin Youkilis, who was hit by a pitch on the inside of his right wrist, underneath the palm, still is "really sore" today, said manager Terry Francona. But while Youkilis is out of the starting lineup today, replaced at first base by Eric Hinske, Francona thinks he could be ready to return to the starting lineup tomorrow in the opener of a three-game series in Toronto.
-- The Sox are listing Wednesday's starter in Toronto as "TBA." That would be Daisuke Matsuzaka's day to start, but, said Francona, apparently looking forward to the postseason though he has steadfastly refused to answer questions along those lines, "at some point we need to maneuver our staff as we go forward."
The thinking is that the Sox would like to have Matsuzaka follow Josh Beckett in the postseason rotation, so they could have Beckett pitch on Friday in Tampa Bay (Thursday is an off day) and then Dice-K on Saturday, which would give the Japanese right-hander some extra rest, a commodity he would seem to need given his recent struggles.
The "TBA" likely will be either rookie Clay Buchholz or Julian Tavarez. The Sox have another option to "maneuver" the staff a week from tomorrow when they have another scheduled off day.
-- Tim Wakefield played catch before batting practice. He then dressed and left the clubhouse to catch an early evening flight to Toronto. He was flown ahead of the team to Toronto because he'll be starting tomorrow night's series opener and will be able to get his normal night-before-game rest. His teammates are looking at a 3 a.m. arrival in Toronto, if they're lucky, after entertaining the Yankees tonight in an 8 o'clock start.
-- Doug Mirabelli ran the bases and took batting practice today. Mirabelli (left hamstring) is hoping to convince the Red Sox that he is ready to return to action as Wakefield's personal catcher, but Francona said it isn't a lock that he will be behind the plate tomorrow night for the knuckleballer.
"He's politicking for it, but I don't know if he's ready," said Francona. "Obviously he's pretty close, but I don't know if he's there yet.
-- The Sox are going to try to give reliever Eric Gagne "consistent innings," said Francona, but not necessarily in late-game pressure situations.
-- Steven Krasner
Posted by Steven Krasner 
at 5:40 PM | Permalink
