Francona indicates the subject is closed
The Red Sox are saying they'll stick with closer Keith Foulke and hope he finds himself.
One reason, according to general manager Theo Epstein, is that the price for a reliever is prohibitive at the moment.
''As usual, demand outweighs supply for quality pitchers this time of year," said Epstein, who doesn't appear interested in giving up top prospects for a reliever.
Manager Terry Francona said there is no ''quarterback controversy" about whether Mike Timlin, who earned the save yesterday, could possibly share the role with Foulke. He ruled out physical issues associated with Foulke's problems in save situations, in which he has an 11.00 ERA.
''I don't think we could check him out any more than we do," Francona said. ''We keep such a close watch over these guys. We've watched everything closely. Have you ever watched him throw in the outfield? He's got better arm strength now than he did last year."
Francona also dismissed the possibility that Foulke's reduced velocity (85-86 miles per hour Tuesday) was associated with the knee problem he opted not to repair surgically in the offseason.
''He's got knees that are a little creaky. We all do," said Francona. ''They're no worse now than they were last year. They're not different. That's not an issue. That stuff is there but it's not an issue. Those same knees are him throwing in the outfield. He's got the arm strength. There are things from here to here [signifying from the top of his shoulder to his release point]."
Asked whether he'd give another reliever a chance to close, such as Timlin, Francona said, ''When you do something like that you're taking someone out of his role and you might make it worse. What we want to do is get Foulke right and shoot for that rather than changing guys' roles."
Mound of questions
Francona is asked almost daily about who will go to the bullpen when Curt Schilling returns.
''I can't tell you that. I don't even know who it's going to be," he said. ''It depends on what the situation is. It depends on who it is. But when the time comes, [we'll] tell [the player] the truth. That's how we do things here. If you tell them the truth, they might not like it, but they'll deal with it. If you don't tell players the truth, they'll resent it for a long time."
Francona on Wade Miller's recent woes, especially early in games: ''I think it's a little bit misleading. We can't forget what he's coming back from [shoulder tendinitis forced him to miss the second half of 2004]. I don't think it's hesitancy, but as he gets into the competition of the game, he's better. I'm sure guys who have gone through what he's gone through, once it kicks in and competes, he's pretty good. He's gone through a lot and I guess we just can't forget that. He got behind on the count a lot [Tuesday] and that made it tough."
Talks continuing
Epstein reports there is progress being made in negotiations with No. 1 draft pick Jacoby Ellsbury, the speedy center fielder from Oregon State. However, Epstein said the team's second first-rounder, Craig Hansen, the closer from St. John's, ''is a more difficult sign, but we're working hard at it." There have been suggestions that Epstein might be negotiating a major league deal with Hansen. Given some of the bullpen woes, it might not be a stretch to think Hansen could be signed and join the major league team this season . . . Johnny Damon extended his hitting streak to 16 games, tying him with Kansas City's Emil Brown for the current high in the majors. Damon is batting .338 during that stretch with four doubles, two triples, two home runs, 10 RBIs, and 15 runs. His longest Sox streak is 18 games, from April 22-May 13 of 2002 . . . The Sox have scored five or more runs in 16 of their last 18 games, and collected 10 or more hits in 14 of the 18 . . . Tim Wakefield thought he had Casey Blake picked off twice with Victor Martínez up in the third inning. Replays showed that Wakefield was right both times. He was able to strike out Martínez and got out of the inning unscathed . . . John Olerud's fourth-inning RBI was the 1,200th of his career.
