Martinez catching Beckett; lineups are in
Victor Martinez is behind the plate for the Red Sox tonight, meaning this is just the second time since he came to Boston from Cleveland at the trading deadline that he will catch righthander Josh Beckett.
“We’re just trying to cover everything,” manager Terry Francona said. “I’m taking anything for granted, but if we get to a certain point in the year, I just think we kind of owe it to us to be able to – I hate to get to some point in the playoffs and go, ‘I wish I had thought of this.’ We’ve obviously thought about it a little bit. I just want to cover all our bases.”
Jason Varitek had continued to catch Beckett even after the trade, and the meticulous Beckett’s comfort level in throwing to the veteran backstop had often been cited as the reason that Red Sox captain, who is batting .156 with one home run since the All-Star break, was in the lineup for his starts.
The Sox have long lauded Varitek’s catching ability, never more than in terms of his ability to handle Beckett. In their nearly four years together, Beckett has grown extremely comfortable with Varitek and is able to throw his pitches with more conviction with Varitek behind the plate. Their chemistry took time to develop in 2006, Beckett’s first season with the Sox.
“I think Josh is stubborn,” Francona said. “When he first got here, I remember even saying, ‘There’s going to be a day when we say that fondly.’ We do now. He was a stubborn kid.”
In Beckett’s lone previous performance with Martinez behind the plate, he allowed seven earned runs in 5.1 innings August 18 in a 10-9 win over the Blue Jays.
With Martinez getting the nod tonight, it’s a chance for the Sox to determine whether he can establish some chemistry with Beckett before the postseason begins.
In Sunday’s Globe, Adam Kilgore touched on the possibility of Martinez catching Beckett tonight, writing:
Martinez offers a vast offensive improvement over Varitek, but Beckett has been far more effective with Varitek behind the plate than any other catcher. In three starts without Varitek, Beckett is 0-2 with an 11.25 ERA and a 2.13 WHIP. In 27 starts throwing to Varitek, Beckett is 15-4 with a 3.16 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP.
“It’s a legitimate question,’’ Francona said. “I know the numbers with [Varitek] are phenomenal and I believe in that. I’m very aware that when Victor catches, our lineup is more potent . . . I certainly don’t think it’s a bad question, but I don’t know what the answer is.’’
Here’s is the visitors’ lineup, courtesy of Kilgore in Kansas City:
Red Sox
1. Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
2. Dustin Pedroia, 2B
3. Victor Martinez, C
4. Kevin Youkilis, 1B
5. Jason Bay, LF
6. David Ortiz, DH
7. Mike Lowell, 3B
8. J.D. Drew, RF
9. Alex Gonzalez, SS
— Josh Beckett, RHP
Royals
1. David DeJesus, LF
2. Mitch Maier, CF
3. Billy Butler, 1B
4. Brayan Pena. DH
5. Alberto Callaspo, 2B
6. Mark Teahen, RF
7. John Buck, C
8. Alex Gordon, 3B
9. Yuniesky Bettancourt, SS
— Luke Hochevar, RHP
Hochever,
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