The Red Sox will have a full lineup late Friday night to take on Blake Beavan and the Seattle Mariners.
The only absence from the usual group Friday will be Jed Lowrie, whose place on the team remains uncertain after his return to action against the Twins. Lowrie was just 1-for-7 with a walk against Minnesota, but the Sox can't help but consider his past flashes of absolute brilliance, such as he displayed at the end of the 2010 season. For now, though, the Sox seem ready to stick with Marco Scutaro much of the time--especially against right-handers.
Boston Red Sox (72-44)
- Jacob Ellsbury, CF
- Dustin Pedroia, 2B
- Adrian Gonzalez, 1B
- Kevin Youkilis, 3B
- David Ortiz, DH
- Carl Crawford, LF
- Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C
- Josh Reddick, RF
- Marco Scutaro, SS
Batting ninth for the Mariners tonight will be Trayvon Robinson, the main return for Seattle in the Erik Bedard trade. A top prospect for the Dodgers, Robinson made his debut for the Mariners last week, and while it's been rough going in the early days of his Major League career, the 23-year-old has spent much of the year killing the ball in Triple-A.
Seattle Mariners (50-66)
- Ichiro Suzuki, RF
- Franklin Gutierrez, CF
- Dustin Ackley, 2B
- Mike Carp, DH
- Justin Smoak, 1B
- Adam Kennedy, 3B
- Miguel Olivo, C
- Luis Rodriguez, SS
- Trayvon Robinson, LF
Pitching Matchup: John Lackey (10-8, 6.14 ERA) vs. Blake Beavan (3-2, 2.83 ERA)
Beavan proved quite the surprise when he first faced Boston last month. Going head-to-head with Josh Beckett, Beavan more than held his own for most of the game before running into seventh-inning trouble. Still, while Beavan did keep the Sox off the scoreboard for the most part, they weren't at a lack for solid contact, picking up nine hits and a good few line drive outs along the way. Even if Beavan pitches just as well against them tonight, there's no guarantee his defense will provide the same level of support.
It wasn't always pretty, but John Lackey is coming fresh off a quality start and win against the New York Yankees. Lackey is 5-0 in his last six games--a testament to his reliability since coming off the disabled list. The Red Sox have been providing him with some decent run support in that period, but there's no faking a 31:5 K:BB ratio. The last time he faced Seattle, Lackey provided seven innings of one-run ball, allowing just eight baserunners. If he can provide the same outing tonight, the Sox will be quite pleased indeed.