News
Gonzalez surprising Red Sox with his bat
Tampa Bay (72-68) at Boston (81-58), 7:10 p.m. ET
By John Barone / MLB.com
09/10/09 2:40 AM ET
BOSTON -- The Red Sox knew exactly what they signed up for with last month's acquisition of Alex Gonzalez.Or so they thought.
A defensive whiz by reputation, Gonzalez's hot bat has rivaled the impact of his slick glove since returning to Boston, where he posted the club's highest single-season fielding percentage by a shortstop with a .985 mark in 2006.
Though Gonzalez is best known for preventing runs, Red Sox manager Terry Francona certainly doesn't mind when the light-hitting -- and free-swinging -- infielder decides to chip in offensively, something he's done at a torrid pace in recent weeks.
Entering Friday's series opener against the Rays at Fenway Park, the 32-year-old Gonzalez is batting .282 with four home runs and eight RBIs in 23 games with Boston this season, including a 12-game hitting streak that was snapped on Wednesday.
"He's going through a real good stretch right now," Francona said of the 11-year veteran. "Gonzie's always been kind of streaky. Anybody that doesn't walk a lot is going to be streaky, but he's going through a real good streak right now. We'll take every bit of it."
Defensively, Gonzalez -- who has made just one error since being traded from the Reds on Aug. 14 -- remains steady as ever.
Of course, a little offensive production never hurts.
"The expectations, defensively, were that he would do exactly what he's doing, but he's really contributed offensively very well," Francona said. "The nice thing is that when he's not [hitting], we have the ability to hit for him when we're losing. But when we're winning, you'll never see that. At the same time, he's also given us a lot of offense, which is great."
Pitching matchupBOS: LHP Jon Lester (12-7, 3.44 ERA)
Lester has been utterly dominant for more than three months now. In 18 starts since May 31, the power lefty is 9-2 with a 2.25 ERA, allowing one earned run or fewer 10 times over that span. In Sunday's victory against Chicago, Lester became the 10th pitcher in franchise history to notch 200 strikeouts in a season, punching out eight White Sox over seven scoreless innings. The 25-year-old, who sports a 21-5 career record at Fenway Park, is 5-2 with a 4.50 ERA in 11 lifetime appearances against the Rays. TB: RHP James Shields (9-10, 4.02 ERA)
Shields was spotted an early cushion for the second straight start last Saturday, but the Rays bullpen couldn't hold the lead in an eventual 8-6 loss to the Tigers. The 27-year-old righty was charged with six runs on eight hits over 6 1/3 innings. He is 4-1 with a 4.76 ERA in seven road outings since June 20. Tidbits
In likely his final rehabilitation appearance before rejoining the Red Sox's rotation, right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka (mild shoulder strain) allowed just one run on three hits over 6 2/3 innings on Wednesday in a start for Class A Salem. Matsuzaka walked one and struck out seven in the 89-pitch outing, which came in the opening game of a semifinal round playoff series in Winston-Salem, N.C. ... With Wednesday's steal, his first since Aug. 12, 2008, third baseman Mike Lowell has stolen at least one base in each of the past 10 seasons. ... Closer Jonathan Papelbon has worked more than one inning seven times this year, recording saves in six of those contests. ... Jason Bay is the fifth left fielder in franchise history to notch at least 30 home runs and 100 RBIs in a season, joining Manny Ramirez, Jim Rice, Ted Williams and Carl Yastrzemski. Tickets
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• Saturday: Red Sox (Josh Beckett, 14-6, 3.87) vs. Rays (Wade Davis, 0-0, 1.29), 7:10 p.m. ET
• Sunday: Red Sox (Clay Buchholz, 5-3, 3.92) vs. Rays (Matt Garza, 7-9, 3.85), 1:35 p.m. ET
• Monday: Off-day
John Barone is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
