Fifth Starters Stumbling

None of the three pitchers competing for the fifth spot in the Red Sox rotation did much to distinguish themselves Friday, when the Sox dropped split-squad games to the Twins and Orioles.

Clay Buchholz, the leading contender for the opening, gave up three runs in the third inning but settled down to toss two more shutout frames. It wasn’t enough to spare Buchholz the loss as the Sox fell, 7-2, at City of Palms Park.

In Ft. Lauderdale, Julian Tavarez and Kyle Snyder—the underdogs in the fifth starter derby—were hammered for a total of nine runs in 5 2/3 innings as the Orioles routed the Sox, 12-2.

Given Buchholz’ youth, upside and front-running status, he could afford a subpar outing far more than Tavarez or Snyder. Still, this is two straight times Buchholz has struggled in the first inning of an outing: He gave up four runs in his first inning of relief and took the loss against the Twins Sunday.

“Well, I gave up four runs that last game,” Buchholz told reporters afterward. “Now I gave up there. So it’s a work in progress, I guess.”

That Buchholz has bounced back each time is encouraging, and both he and the Sox hope the lessons he’s absorbing now—in games that don’t count—will pay dividends during the regular season.

“I think he has great stuff and I think he’s learning, even if it’s spring training, that if you make a mistake with major league hitters, they make you pay a price,” Terry Francona told reporters. “Maybe that’s a good thing. I mean, we don’t want to see anybody get hit around, but I think even at this early stage of his career he knows that when he makes pitches, he has the ability to make good hitters even look silly, not just get them out.”

Buchholz made plenty of people look silly last year, when he posted a 2.44 ERA and struck out 171 batters in 125 1/3 innings between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Pawtucket and, of course, no-hit the Orioles in his second major league start Sept. 1. But after two Grapefruit League appearances, he has a 12.60 ERA—highest among Sox pitchers who have pitched more than three innings.

“I don’t know what it is,” Buchholz told reporters. “I don’t know if it’s the first inning jitters or [me] just not out there thinking enough or thinking too much. I’ve got a couple more starts down here. I’ll have to figure that out before camp breaks.”

Tavarez, meanwhile, started against the Orioles and tossed two shutout innings before he unraveled in the third, when the Orioles tagged him for four runs on four hits in the third. Snyder relieved Tavarez and gave up a two-run homer to Aubrey Huff before he settled down and threw shutout ball in the fourth and fifth. But the Orioles surged against Snyder in the sixth, when he gave up four more runs on four hits before he was finally pulled in favor of Dan Kolb.

Tavarez’ ERA rose to 7.94 while Snyder’s mark jumped to 7.50. Overall, Buchholz, Tavarez and Snyder have combined to post a 9.18 ERA (17 earned runs allowed in 16 2/3 innings). The trio has allowed 29 baserunners and whiffed just eight.