« Look at the lineups | Main | Drew out sick »

Lester update

Replacing the inimitable Amalie Benjamin is hard enough, but it's impossible with technical difficulties. I think they erased my Extra Bases password from last summer because my last post took as long to go through as it used to take Carlos Quintana to get to first base.

Hang with me.

On to more news: Terry Francona offered an update on Jon Lester, who is scheduled to make the last of his rehab starts tomorrow. Lester will take the hill for Pawtucket against the Indianapolis Indians at 6:15. Francona all but ruled out Lester joining the Sox after the end of his 30-day rehab stint. It seems more likely the lefty, who is battling back from anaplastic large cell lymphoma, will be optioned to Pawtucket to continue his comeback from cancer.

"I have seen and heard some things written about Julian [Tavarez] not being in the rotation. Nobody asked me before," said Francona. "I don't think those are real correct. The number one responsibility is to Lester and his long-term health. You can kind of read into that what you want."

Francona said that Lester would be on a pitch count tomorrow, somewhere between 90 and 100 pitches depending on how he is faring. He said that next time out the Sox would remove the pitch-count restraints.

"It's really not a big deal for us, but I know it will mean a lot to him," said Francona.