Colon goes Thursday in Pawtucket

OAKLAND - Personally, I need no incentive to drive down Route 95 to McCoy Stadium. But if you're looking for one tomorrow night's PawSox opener (7:05 p.m.) should provide it.

The PawSox are starting Bartolo Colon.

Here's what PawSox PR man Bill Wanless writes:

"Opening With a Bottle of Colon – Three years ago the Pawtucket Red Sox sent a legend to the mound in the form of Curt Schilling as their Opening Day starter in Indianapolis. Tonight (Thursday), the PawSox turn to another Major League great as former Cy Young Award winner Bartolo Colon gets the nod in the 2008 opener at McCoy.

Colon, 34, has a career major league record of 146-95 with a 4.10 ERA in 309 games (306 starts) for Cleveland, Montreal, the White Sox, and the Angels (11 years). In 84 minor league games (74 starts) he is 39-12 with a 2.48 ERA. His best season came in 2005 with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim when he went 21-8 (leading the majors in victories) with a 3.48 ERA in 33 GS to earn the American League Cy Young Award. Since then, however, he has been plagued by injuries. He was limited to just 10 starts for the Angels in 2006 (1-5, 5.11) with right shoulder inflammation and a partial tear of the right rotator cuff. Last season he started strong (going 5-0 in his first 6 starts) but he eventually went on the DL in July with irritation in his right elbow before returning in September (overall finishing with a 6-8, 6.34 mark in 19 games for the Angels). He was signed by Boston to a Pawtucket contract with a major league spring training invitation on February 25. He last worked on Friday night (March 28) in Los Angeles against the Dodgers as he started and threw 4 strong innings – 4 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 SO – and 60 pitches (36 for strikes) in an eventual 3-1 Red Sox loss (ND for Colon)."