Junichi Tazawa Carries Red Sox in Relief, Earning Him Amica Pitcher of Week Honors

by NESN Staff on Sat, Sep 15, 2012 at 1:46PM

The Red Sox haven't had tons of bright spots as they regroup and look toward the future, but one area the team can be proud of is its relief staff.

Junichi Tazawa in particular has been strong for the Sox over the recent stretch, posting several scoreless innings to help Boston collect some much-needed wins. Tazawa was especially good this week, appearing three times altogether against the Yankees and Blue Jays and giving up just one hit while striking out seven over 3 1/3 innings total.

Tazawa has had the most work — and the best results — of his career this season after bouncing between the big league roster and Triple-A for four years. He's allowed just six earned runs (1.47 ERA) and struck out 39 batters over 36 2/3 innings pitched in 29 games throughout the season.

Tazawa has been nearly flawless in September, a good boost to a Red Sox team that needs bullpen help to grab some wins. That's enough to make him the Amica Pitcher of the Week.