Daisuke Matsuzaka threw a 49-pitch simulated game Saturday at Fenway Park and will come off the 15-day disabled list and start Thursday in Colorado, according to manager Terry Francona.
By gaining a clean bill of health for Matsuzaka, the club was able to option 22-year-old lefty Felix Doubront back to Triple-A Pawtucket, just one day after Doubront won his major league debut against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
"We wanted to wait for Daisuke to throw and then get looked at," Francona said. "He felt really good."
In order to bridge the five-day gap until Matsuzaka is activated, the Sox have selected to the major league roster right-handed reliever Robert Manuel, who has gone 4-1 with a 0.98 ERA in 26 games at Pawtucket in 2010.
Manuel will be available out of the bullpen for Saturday's game with the Dodgers. The 26-year-old Texan was selected off waivers by the Sox in November. He pitched in three games for Cincinnati in 2009, tossing 4 1/3 scoreless innings.
"He is locating his fastball to both sides of the plate, keeping it down and he's been tremendous," Francona said of Manuel. "He's not overpowering. It's a kid where when you have that last meeting of spring training and say, 'Kid, go down and do good and if there's a need we'll call you up.' Well, there's a need and he gets called up.
"It's happened a lot but everybody that's come has helped us. Now it'll be his turn."
The roster shuffle should settle things for a few days, but there could be a change if and when the test results for J.D. Drew's injured right hamstring come back with bad news.
If Drew needs a prolonged period of rest, an outfielder will be needed in a hurry.
"Things can certainly change," Francona said.
Matsuzaka was placed on the DL with a right forearm strain just minutes before he was set to make a start Saturday against Philadelphia.
The club has said that disabling the right-hander was necessary to ensure that there would be enough healthy pitchers for that game and the next few, but that his injury was never a serious concern.
