Only a few will realize big dreams
Any other year, the Red Sox might need so much help from the farm in September that they could dispatch a small bus to Pawtucket for extra players. This year, a motorcycle sidecar might do.
With the Sox poised to activate a number of proven major leaguers -- Trot Nixon, Pokey Reese, Kevin Youkilis, David McCarty, and Ellis Burks among them -- they appear unlikely to summon more than a couple of players from Pawtucket when they are allowed to expand their 25-man roster Wednesday. The only ones all but certain to join the big club after Pawtucket's season ends Saturday are righthanders Pedro Astacio and Byung Hyun Kim. Lefthander Lenny DiNardo, who last made a rehab outing with Double A Portland, also could return.
That's bad news for a number of Pawtucket players who have made strong cases for promotions. Among them is first baseman Brian Daubach, who hit 20 or more homers in four straight seasons from 1999 to 2002 for the Sox but may have played his last game at Fenway Park.
Daubach, who hit .227 in 30 games for the Sox before he was sent out June 9 to make room for Nomar Garciaparra, entered yesterday hitting .274 with 21 homers, 74 RBIs, and a .404 on-base percentage in 84 games for Pawtucket. But the Sox have a surplus of first basemen.
Nor do the Sox appear to need much immediate outfield help. No Pawtucket outfielder has put up better numbers than Adam Hyzdu, who played part of four seasons with the Pirates from 2000-03. Hyzdu has spent the entire season at Pawtucket, batting .304 with 29 homers, 75 RBIs, and a league-leading .416 on-base percentage in 124 games. He ranked second in the league with a .578 slugging percentage. Hyzdu could have competition from the speedy George Lombard, who has played in the majors for the Braves, Tigers, and Devil Rays. Lombard, who has stolen 14 bases in 15 tries over 46 games with the PawSox, was batting .291 with 3 homers and 22 RBIs and a .381 on-base percentage since returning from offseason shoulder surgery. Pawtucket also has Jeremy Owens, the best defensive outfielder in the system. But Owens remains challenged at the plate, batting .232 with a .308 on-base percentage and 129 strikeouts in 327 at-bats.
Whether or not third baseman Earl Snyder gets another shot this year may depend on how well Youkilis recovers from his bruised right ankle bone. Youkilis has appeared to heal well while Snyder has continued to pursue Pawtucket's record for homers in a season. Snyder had yet to homer since returning to Pawtucket last weekend after a cameo with the Sox, but he remained the league leader with 33. That's three shy of the PawSox record set by Jack Baker in 1976 and matched by Izzy Alcantara in 2001.
The Sox began the season hoping their top catching prospect, Kelly Shoppach, would be primed for a September call-up. But Shoppach has struggled at the plate, despite excelling in nearly every other aspect of the game. With 20 home runs, he has shown good pop, but he has hit only .224 with a .315 on-base percentage while fanning 129 times in 370 at-bats.
The Sox typically summon an extra catcher in September, but the only other candidate is Andy Dominique. Dominique, who appeared in seven games with the Sox in May and June, also has declined offensively since batting .385 in April. He hit .229 in July and was batting .207 in August. Of all the Pawtucket pitchers who already have had at least one shot this year with the parent club -- Jamie Brown, Frank Castillo, Mark Malaska, Anastacio Martinez, Joe Nelson, and Phil Seibel -- Castillo has made the strongest case for a call-up. He has averaged more than seven innings over his last seven starts and has gone 3-1 with a 3.47 ERA in August. The Sox also like what they have seen from righthander Brandon Puffer, whom they acquired from the Padres for a player to be named. Puffer has gone 3-2 with a 3.14 ERA and a team-leading nine saves.
Shining for silver
Pawtucket righthander John Stephens and Portland outfielder Brett Roneberg returned with silver medals after leading Australia into the championship game against Cuba at the Athens Olympics. Cuba won the gold, 6-2. The Sox have two other Aussies in the system, lefthander Adam Blackley, who was 2-3 with a 3.35 ERA for Single A Augusta, and righthander James Albury, who was 5-0 with a 1.15 ERA for the rookie team in the Gulf Coast League . . . Lefty prospect Abe Alvarez was 1-2 in August for Portland despite logging a 2.14 ERA and holding batters to a .167 average . . . Righthander Marc Deschenes of Dracut, who played for UMass-Lowell, has shined for Portland since the Sea Dogs acquired him last month from Nashua of the independent Atlantic League. Deschenes was 1-1 with a 1.82 ERA and seven saves . . . With Owens and Shoppach leading the way, Pawtucket batters had fanned 1,157 times, shattering the team record of 1,098 in 2001 and leading the International League. Three other PawSox have fanned 100 or more times: Snyder (124), Hyzdu (100), and Justin Sherrod (100). Phil Plantier set the team record in 1990 (148) . . . Outfielder Brandon Moss, who was named Most Valuable Player of the South Atlantic League for Single A Augusta, hit .475 with a .522 on-base percentage in his first 17 games with Single A Sarasota . . . Shortstop Dustin Pedroia, the team's top pick in the June draft, also has made a smooth transition from Augusta to Sarasota, batting .307 with a .382 OBP in his first 24 games. In 36 games for both teams, Pedroia had yet to commit an error . . . At short-season Single A Lowell, righthander Anibal Sanchez was leading the league in strikeouts (94).
