Jon Lester Bounces Back with Strong Outing Against Rays
Jon Lester pitched much better in his 2nd start of the spring. Even though the Red Sox ended up losing to the Tampa Rays 8-6, Lester shined during his 2 2/3 innings pitched. He gave up just 1 unearned run on 2 hits and 1 walk. Lester also struck out 4 batters on the day. Lester also looked sharp and was in good command of all of his pitches, so it was a positive outing all-around.
Jonathan Papelbon worked another scoreless inning of relief giving up just a lone single. Hideki Okajima, Ramon Ramirez and Daniel Bard also worked scoreless innings. Ramirez and Bard each struck out 2 Rays as well.
The Red Sox bats showed up on fire as well. Jacoby Ellsbury hit lead-off and went 2 for 3 with 2 home runs and 3 RBI’s. Dustin Pedroia notched 2 more hits and is now batting .455 this spring. Kevin Youkilis stroked 2 doubles with 1 RBI and 1 run scored.
Good news continues to pour in for the Red Sox this spring. Lots of good pitching, solid hitting and numerous wins. Can’t wait for April to get here – Fenway Park, Yankees – it doesn’t get any better than that!
