The Red Sox' lineup will once again be without two of its best bats when Boston plays Los Angeles at Fenway Park on Wednesday night.
Kevin Youkilis, out with back spasms, and Victor Martinez, in Cleveland to tend to a personal matter, will miss Wednesday's game after missing Tuesday night's series opener.
Rocco Baldelli will start in right field, Casey Kotchman will start at first, Jason Varitek will start behind the plate and Mike Lowell will start at third.
Against Angels starter Joe Saunders, Baldelli has had success in limited chances, going 2-for-3. Youkilis has struggled against Saunders in his career, going just 4-for-18 (.222) with five strikeouts, while Martinez is 3-for 9 with an RBI.
The Sox' lineup is below:
1. Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. Jason Bay, LF
4. Mike Lowell, 3B
5. David Ortiz, DH
6. Rocco Baldelli, RF
7. Jason Varitek, C
8. Casey Kotchman, 1B
9. Alex Gonzalez, SS
The player to watch is Bay, who is 2-for-5 against Saunders with two homers and a walk.
The Red Sox beat the Angels 4-1 on Tuesday with a limited lineup and an unkown pitching in Daisuke Matsuzaka. With another limited lineup and with Paul Byrd on the mound on Wednesday, another win for the Red Sox without their best team on the field would be a major confidence boost — especially if they're matched up with the Angels in the ALDS.
