Felix Doubront Shows Composure and Picks Up Win Despite Manny Ramirez Buzz

Fenway Park was abuzz in the hours before the Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers were to begin a three-game series. Fans flocked to the neighborhood early while media trucks lined up early, all itching for a glimpse of Manny Ramirez, the one-time enigmatic Red Sox slugger whose return had turned the town into a circus.

At the very same time, in one quiet corner of the frenetic pregame Red Sox clubhouse sat Felix Doubront, staring deep into the locker that just hours earlier belonged to Boof Bonser. The 22-year-old, hours from his first major league start, never turned to see what was going on behind him.

And with so much hype surrounding an aging outfielder on another team, few took notice of Doubront.

That pattern would continue, for a little while at least.

Not long after Ramirez walked onto the field, hugged old friends and had his every muscle twitch documented in one form or another, Doubront slipped to the Red Sox bullpen for his warmup tosses, likely getting peered over by those stuck in the bullpen a full 400 feet from the man they all came to see.

Later, as Doubront worked his way through an eight-pitch, 1-2-3 first inning, it was lost in the reaction to Ramirez simply walking to the on-deck circle for an at-bat that would have to take place one inning later. Yet, despite all the potential distractions and the nerves that come with pitching on such a stage, Doubront appeared unfazed.

"I got a little nervous, but it’s gone when I threw the first pitch," said Doubront, who was given the win in a 10-6 final. "During the game I was good, not nervous."

"I thought he held his poise well," manager Terry Francona said.

Quietly, as the Manny mania died down and the Red Sox bats gave their young call-up some runs to work with, some who were previously occupied with other storylines began to take note.

What they saw was a guy signed out of Venezuela as a teenager in 2004, who was virtually unknown until winning 13 games at Double-A Portland two years ago, and then wowing the big club in limited action during spring training. After going 6-1 with a 2.11 ERA in 12 starts between Portland and Triple-A Pawtucket this year, Doubront felt as if he was ready to get a taste of something more.

When asked if he thought the promotion would come at some point in 2010, Doubront said simply: "Yeah."

While Doubront’s final line against the Dodgers (five-plus innings, six hits, five runs, three earned) may not jump off the page, a closer look reveals why Fenway stood as one when he left in the sixth.

Doubront retired the first six batters he faced. His own error opened the floodgates to a three-run third, with two of the runs going in the books as unearned, but he rebounded to allow just one more hit over the next two innings and struck out Andre Ethier — who entered Friday leading the NL in hitting — to strand two runners in the fifth.

There, again, was the poise, and an awareness that all that mattered was the 60 feet, six inches within which he worked.

"I was just thinking I have to get this guy out," said Doubront, who threw 83 pitches in picking up the win.

Those last two innings, culminating in the Ethier strikeout, left quite an impression on catcher Jason Varitek, who guided Doubront through the solid debut.

"He threw strikes and I think that’s the tell-tale sign," said Varitek, who had never caught Doubront, even in spring training, before Friday. "You immediately come back after they tie the game and he comes out there and he throws strikes again. Those are big, and he definitely has a very powerful arm that he can attack the zone with."

A seven-run Red Sox rally in the bottom of the fifth caused Doubront to sit for an exceptionally long time. Having not pitched for 10 days due to a shin bruise that scratched him from his last start at Pawtucket, it was a tough wait for Doubront to deal with.

He allowed three straight hits and a walk to open the sixth before leaving with a 10-5 lead and watching Scott Atchison calm the seas with three perfect innings of relief.

Despite the rocky finish, Doubront looked as if he fit.

"The significance of his first major league start didn’t throw him," Francona said. "He pounds the zone and he does what he’s supposed to do. He’s a young pitcher that's not done developing, but I don’t think this stage or this ballpark or the Dodgers, I don’t think that threw him off."

Daisuke Matsuzaka, the man whose start was taken by Doubront, may be ready to return from the disabled list for his next turn Thursday in Colorado, according to Francona. If that’s the case, Doubront’s first major league stint is one and done.

Nevertheless, an impression was made. Given all the distractions at Fenway on Friday, that’s saying something.