The Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves were unable to play nine innings Friday.
The Red Sox suffered a 4-2 loss in a rain-shortened Grapefruit League game at Champion Stadium. The Braves pounded 12 hits before the game was called with two outs in the top of the seventh inning.
Old friends Pedro Ciriaco and Kelly Johnson produced the runs for Atlanta. Ciriaco, who played 104 games for the Red Sox in 2012 and 2013, drilled a three-run double in the second inning. Johnson, who played 10 games for Boston last season, hit a solo homer in the sixth inning.
Let’s dive into some Red Sox-centric developments from Friday.
— Christian Vazquez was scheduled to undergo an MRI on Friday morning after catching in a minor league game in Fort Myers, Fla. The 24-year-old backstop has been dealing with elbow soreness, forcing the Red Sox to proceed with caution.
“More lingering,” Farrell told reporters. “There hasn’t been a setback. As a matter of fact, his throwing has increased. But because we’re in the 11th or 12th day and not back into game situations yet, just want to answer every possible question.”
Vazquez initially suffered the injury while throwing to second base during the Red Sox’s game against the New York Yankees on March 13. It’s unclear at this point whether he’ll be ready for Opening Day on April 6.
“Once we get all the information, we’ll have a better read on everything,” Farrell said. “We’re limiting him right now. He’s been catching. This is the third time he’s caught under the current conditions, just to keep his legs in shape and keep him as game-ready as possible despite the graduated throwing program we’ve got him on.”
It’ll be interesting to see how the Red Sox approach their catching situation if Vazquez misses the start of the regular season. Ryan Hanigan obviously would see an uptick in playing time, while Boston could call up either top prospect Blake Swihart or veteran journeyman Humberto Quintero to serve as the backup.
Swihart represents the more popular choice given his potential, but the Red Sox could decide to keep him at Triple-A Pawtucket to avoid potentially stunting his development. The extent of Vazquez’s elbow issue probably will answer the question of who receives the nod.
— Mookie Betts put on another show.
Betts went 2-for-3 with a single, a two-run homer, a walk and a stolen base. Another day at the park, really.
— Clay Buchholz’s five innings were a grind.
Buchholz allowed four earned runs on 12 hits. He struck out six and walked one.
“There’s a couple different ways you can look at it,” Farrell said. “One, he made some big pitches as he had men on base quite a bit today. I thought his stuff and the definition to his pitches were better than the line score.
“Now, granted there were 12 hits on the board that he gave up. I thought he had a number of opportunities where he was ahead in the count where he could’ve done a better job of finishing hitters off, particularly expanding the strike zone down on top of the plate for some chase.”
Buchholz is 2-2 with a 3.60 ERA in four starts spanning 15 innings this spring.
— Joe Kelly, seeing his first game action since leaving his March 16 start with biceps soreness, tossed three innings in a minor league contest. He struck out five, walked two and threw 53 pitches (31 strikes).
Thumbnail photo via Steve Mitchell/USA TODAY Sports Images
