pitched into the third inning in his second spring start, but the Boston
Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 Sunday.
Guthrie threw 51 pitches and gave up a
run and three hits in 2 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out two —
Jacoby Ellsbury and David Ortiz. A year ago, the Orioles right-hander
had only one start in spring training before leaving for the World
Baseball Classic.
He had irregular work at the WBC, and
while he was honored to represent the United States, he's happy to be
back in his routine.
"This will provide the ability to
build on the pitches and get a rhythm, knowing that I'll throw again [in] five days," Guthrie said. "I couldn't be more pleased. The ball had
good movement."
Guthrie went 10-17 with a 5.04 ERA last
year. His 17 losses and 35 homers allowed led the majors.
Baltimore manager Dave Trembley was
more tempered in his assessment.
"Jeremy didn't have much feel for his
secondary pitches. That's why he got his pitch count up," Trembley said.
"But there was some improvement."
Nick Markakis hit his second home run
of the spring. It was Baltimore's 12th homer in five games.
Clay Buchholz, who allowed three runs in three
innings, is competing for a spot
in a rotation that has Josh Beckett, Tim Wakefield, Jon Lester, Daisuke
Matsuzaka and free-agent signee John Lackey. Long odds.
"It's awkward," Buchholz said. "I
have to win a spot. I know regardless of how I pitch in the spring, I
have to show them during the season I can pitch in Boston."
A year ago, Buchholz, who pitched a
no-hitter against the Orioles in Sept. 2007, split the season between
Triple-A Pawtucket and the Red Sox.
"I can't do anything about it," he
said. It's no added pressure or added stress."
Notes
Matsuzuka (back) threw 65
pitches at Boston's Fort Myers training camp on Sunday. It was his
second bullpen outing. He'll be reevaluated on Monday. The attendance
was 8,088 — the largest crowd in the 22-year history of Ed Smith
Stadium. It's the first year the Orioles are training in Sarasota. Red
Sox manager Terry Francona said he's working out a plan for INF Mike
Lowell (thumb) to be reintroduced to the lineup. He's yet to play this
spring. Red Sox C Jason Varitek has yet to play due to personal reasons.
Baltimore LHP Will Ohman returned to the club after missing two days to
attend his grandfather's funeral.