G69: Red Sox 10, Dodgers 6

Dodgers - 003 002 001 -  6  9  1
Red Sox - 300 070 00x - 10 13  2

Doubront's line may appear pedestrian -- 5-6-5-2-2, 83 -- but two of those runs were unearned and in three of his first four innings, he set down the Dodgers in order. He got first strike(s) on most hitters and was economical, throwing only 49 pitches through four.

I did not catch all of his innings, but was impressed by what I did see. He seemed to get rusty waiting around while the Sox sent 12 men to the plate in the fifth and so did not retire any of the four guys he faced in the sixth.

The first eight Red Sox batters reached safely in the fifth and seven of them scored. Adrian Beltre launched a bomb to left. In the first inning, David Ortiz and J.D. Drew went deep. Scott Atchison did a fantastic job in relief, retiring all nine batters he faced, striking out five.

The Marlins beat the Rays 7-4 (Garza allowed all seven runs and threw 71 pitches in 1.1 IP) and the Mets beat the Yankees 4-0 (MFY loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the 9th, but CI K'd on three pitches and Swisher first-pitch fouled out), so the Red Sox are 1 GB in the East. All three teams have won 41 games.

Carlos Monasterios / Felix Doubront (major league debut)

Scutaro, SS
Pedroia, 2B
Ortiz, DH
Youkilis, 1B
Drew, RF
Beltre, 3B
Varitek, C
Cameron, CF
Nava, LF

Felix Antonio Doubront was promoted to Pawtucket in late May. The 22-year-old lefty has made four starts: 16.2-15-2-5-16. 1.08 ERA.

He started the season with the Portland Sea Dogs (AA): 8 starts, 2.51 ERA. 39 hits and 17 walks in 43 innings (1.302 WHIP), with 38 strikeouts. ... In 2009, he had a 3.35 ERA in 26 starts for the Sea Dogs.

Terry Francona:

He's still developing his secondary pitches. But he's got some finish on that fastball and he's not afraid to throw it. ... John Farrell loves him. Absolutely loves him. When he says that, that gets my attention.

Farrell:

When you see a 6-3 left-hander who can throw the ball in the low 90s, that's a lot of good things to start with. Combine that with how he fared in the starts he got in spring training [3 games, 7 innings, 3 hits, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts, 0 runs], and that was encouraging for all of us. ... He was able to get outs with his fastball in a major league spring training environment. He seemed to relish the opportunity and didn't back away from the challenge. He didn't fear contact.

Sox Prospects:

Featuring an 87-91 MPH fastball with some late movement, Doubront likes to use the pitch to get ahead of batters. While not overpowering with his fastball, Doubront hides the ball very well in his delivery ... it allows him to take advantage of his improving 79-81 MPH change-up that fades out of the strike zone, with some late screwball action to it. ... Doubront's delivery is very mechanically sound, and he has shown excellent improvement on cleaning up his release point and consistently getting on top of the ball to throw downhill. ...

He could stand to tighten up his control by staying a little bit more consistent within his delivery to hit his spots. ... An effective third pitch in his repertoire will go a long way towards solidifying him as a future starting pitcher at the big league level. Development with his curveball will enable him to really keep hitters off-balance given the deception he can generate. Doubront is able to get swings and misses with his stuff, but also gives up a lot of contact ... Doubront has historically struggled against left-handed batters, but showed improvement in this area in 2009.

Dustin Richardson, a PawSox teammate, says Doubront has "great poise. He's pitching at an advanced level for his age. He's got a good fastball with a lot of late life. He throws three pitches for strikes and mixes things up real well. And on top of all that, he’s left-handed."

The Dodgers (38-28) are tied with the Padres for first place in the NL West. Right fielder Andre Either (.339/.401/.619, 12 dongs) is their top hitter OPS+-wise, with Manny Ramirez (.295/.384/.514) a solid second (143). James Loney has 22 doubles and is tied with Either for the team lead in RBI, with 43.

Monasterios made his debut on Opening Day this year and has pitched 42.1 innings: five starts (3.97 ERA, 1.324 WHIP) and 11 relief appearances. His last four games have been starts, and he has been building up his pitch count (73, 81, 86).

Terry Francona:

I love Joe [Torre]. I hope we beat his brains out.

Also at 7 PM:

Mets/Yankees
Rays/Marlins