Wrist fine, Pena in
After a two-night absence from the lineup due to a sore left wrist, Wily Mo Pena impressed Red Sox manager Terry Francona enough in the batting cage this afternoon that he’s slated to play center field tonight and bat seventh against Yankees lefty Randy Johnson.
“We’ll keep an eye on him in batting practice,” Francona said in his pregame meeting with the media this afternoon. “But he swung the bat too confidently in the cage.”
Pena will wear protective pads on the wrist he aggravated in Sunday’s game at Philadelphia. He was a late scratch from Monday’s lineup against New York.
With the lefty going in Johnson, Trot Nixon will get a rest, to start the evening at least, in favor of righty Dustan Mohr, who was 1 for 1 with a walk against Johnson two weeks ago at Yankee Stadium. It is his only hit in 11 career at-bats against the Big Unit.
Despite Johnson’s recent troubles – he’s 1-2 with a 7.17 ERA this month – Francona said the Red Sox know all to well what he can do. That said, he wouldn’t mind to see him continue his struggles for at least one more night either.
“Let him get out of here and fix it,” he said. “We don’t want to be the remedy. We don’t take anyone for granted, let alone Randy Johnson.”
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