Clay Buchholz

Following the final road trip of April, the Red Sox had plenty of reasons to feel good about themselves. The team seemed to finally be clicking as they went 6-1 while showing an ability to win both close games and offensive blowouts and evening their record to 11-11. Since returning home, however, the Red Sox are back to the slumping Boston team that has occupied the bottom spot in the AL East for much of the season. The Red Sox are 1-4 on the current homestead and have lost nine of their last 10 games at Fenway Park, a place where the team has traditionally enjoyed home field advantage.

After suffering an 8-2 loss on Saturday afternoon, the Red Sox enter Sunday’s series finale against the Orioles looking to avoid being swept for the fourth time this season. Clay Buchholz will take the mound for the Red Sox in the homestead finale, while the Orioles will send out righthander Tommy Hunter in their attempt to complete a sweep at Fenway Park.

In terms of runs allowed, Buchholz has not pitched well this season. The righthander has surrendered at least five earned runs in each of his six outings so far this season, but the team has somehow found a way to win behind him, as Buchholz owns a 3-1 record.

Buchholz pitched well through the first six innings of his most recent start, an 11-6 Red Sox win over the Athletics on April 30. He held the A’s to one run on four hits while the Red Sox roughed up the Oakland pitching staff for 11 runs in the first five innings. Buchholz unraveled in the seventh inning, however, when, with two outs in the inning, he allowed a two-run single and a three-run home run before being pulled in favor of Junichi Tazawa.

On Sunday, Buchholz will look to lower his ERA against a Baltimore team who hit well against him last season. In his only outing of 2011 against the Orioles, Buchholz took a 4-1 loss after allowing four runs on a season-high 12 hits over 6 2/3 innings. Catcher Matt Wieters has been an especially difficult batter for Buchholz, as the 25-year-old is 6-for-14 with two doubles and an RBI in his career against Buchholz. In contrast, Robert Andino has struggled throughout his career against the righthander, going 0-for-7 with five strikeouts against Buchholz.

Hunter will take the mound for the Orioles with six days of rest under his belt. The righthander had an in-grown toenail removed after his last start, a 5-2 win over Oakland on April 29, and had his start this weekend pushed back one day to give him extra time to recover. Hunter is 2-1 on the season and the Orioles have won four of the five games that he started. In his last outing, he allowed two runs on seven hits through seven innings but did not earn a decision in the Baltimore victory.

Hunter has made six starts against the Red Sox and compiled a 2-1 record and a 6.52 ERA in those games. He last faced the Red Sox on Sept. 26 last season, and he limited Boston to one earned run on seven hits through five innings in an eventual 6-3 Baltimore win. The heart of Boston’s lineup, however, has enjoyed success against Hunter. David Ortiz hits Hunter at a .313 clip and has a double and two home runs against him. Adrian Gonzalez owns a team-best .429 average against Hunter while Dustin Pedroia is close behind with his .400 average in his career against the righthander.

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Aaron Cook will make his first start for the Red Sox Saturday afternoon. (AP)

As the Red Sox ushered in the month of May, the front office had a tough pitching decision to make concerning 33-year-old right-hander Aaron Cook. The Red Sox would have to add Cook to the major league roster within 48 hours of May 1 or else Cook would be allowed to request a release due to an opt-out clause in his contract. The veteran had enjoyed a strong April with Pawtucket, earning a 3-0 record with a 1.89 ERA through five starts. Meanwhile, Boston’s starting five battled inconsistency.

So on Thursday, the Red Sox promoted Cook to the major league roster, and thanks to Josh Beckett‘s sore lat muscle, Cook will make his first start Saturday afternoon against the Orioles.

Cook, who spent the first 10 seasons of his MLB career with the Rockies, has made just one career start at Fenway Park, a Red Sox win on June 12, 2007. Cook pitched well for the Rockies that day, allowing two runs on seven hits through 7 1/3 innings, but he lacked run support in the 2-1 loss.

Cook has never pitched against Baltimore, but he has faced a few of the Orioles when they were with other teams. Mark Reynolds, another NL West transplant, has the most experience against Cook, going 5-for-19 with three doubles, a home run and four RBIs in 24 plate appearances against the righty. Endy Chavez, who spent seven seasons in the NL, is 4-for-14 against Cook with a double and an RBI.

The Orioles will counter Cook with another former Rockies pitcher, Jason Hammel. The 29-year-old right-hander has started the season well, going 3-1 with a 1.97 ERA in five starts. Hammel’s only loss came in his most recent start when the Orioles faltered against the Yankees, 2-1, on April 30. Hammel pitched well in the outing, allowing just two runs on five hits while striking out five through six innings. Hammel has not allowed more than two earned runs against any opponent this season.

In his three career starts against the Red Sox, Hammel has struggled, going 0-2 while lasting a combined 13 1/3 innings. Dustin Pedroia has proven quite a challenge for Hammel, as Pedroia has gone 3-for-4 with a double, a home run, and an RBI against the right-hander.

Both sides will hope to get quality outings from their starters after using a combined 11 relievers in Friday night’s 13-inning affair. The teams will have just 13 hours between games before the 1:10 start time on Saturday afternoon.

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Jon Lester

In the past few years, games between the Red Sox and the Orioles have not been weighed down with history. That tension has been saved for Red Sox-Yankees games, and of late, Red Sox-Rays games. In the standings, the Orioles usually have been in a battle for last place in the division while the Red Sox were traditionally fighting for first.

But this year, that situation is reversed. The 11-13 Red Sox sit in last place in the division, six games behind the Rays and 4 1/2 games behind the second-place Orioles. And of course, there is plenty of recent history between the Red Sox and the Orioles. The last time the teams met, the Red Sox’ season came to a devastating end by virtue of a blown save in Baltimore from Jonathan Papelbon and a simultaneous comeback by the Rays, who topped the visiting Yankees to knock the Red Sox out of the playoffs.

On Friday, the Red Sox will take the field against the Orioles for the first time since that night in late September. Much has changed in Boston. Terry Francona is gone, as is Papelbon, but some things have not changed.

Jon Lester, who made the start that night, will take the mound for the Red Sox again on Friday. Lester enters the outing on the heels of his first win of the season, a 1-0 decision over the White Sox on April 28. The left-hander twirled a seven-inning shutout, allowing five hits and walking one while striking out seven White Sox. Lester did not get a decision in the Red Sox’ season-ending loss to the O’s last year, and he has never recorded a loss to Baltimore in 18 career starts. He owns the longest win streak of any pitcher against the Orioles to start a career.

Despite Lester’s perfect record, some of the Orioles batters have had success against the southpaw. Matt Wieters has hit Lester at a .320 clip throughout his career, recording a double and two RBIs. Nolan Reimold is 4-for-12 in his career against Lester with a double, three singles and three walks.

The Orioles will counter Lester Friday with rookie Wei-Yin Chen, a Taiwan native who has been impressive in the first four starts of his major league career. Chen is 2-0 this season with a 2.22 ERA, and he has yet to allow more than two earned runs in an outing. His last start, a 10-1 win over Oakland, was his longest outing of the season, as he tossed seven innings of six-hit, one-run baseball.

None of the Red Sox have ever recorded an at-bat against Chen at the major league level, but the team certainly will be eager to do well after dropping two of three games to the Athletics. Adrian Gonzalez shouldered much of the blame for the team’s loss in the final game of the A’s series, especially after he struck out with the bases loaded and the Red Sox down, 4-1, in the bottom of the seventh inning. Gonzalez is mired in an 0-for-14 rut stretching over his last four games.
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Daniel Bard

The Red Sox had many question marks entering the 2012 season, and one of the biggest was whether Daniel Bard could transition from the bullpen into the rotation. Now one month into his career as a starter, the early returns for Bard are promising. The right-hander finished April with a 2-2 record an a rotation-low 3.72 ERA while striking out 19 in 19 1/3 innings of work.

Bard will look to improve on those numbers when he takes the mound Wednesday for his fourth start of the season. The 26-year-old will contend with A’s No. 2 starter Brandon McCarthy in the rubber game of the series.

McCarthy is just 1-3 this season despite allowing two or fewer runs in five of his six starts. His only win came in his most recent start, a 5-2 victory over the Orioles on April 27. McCarthy scattered two earned runs on a season-low five hits through seven innings in the outing. The win pushed Oakland above .500 for the first (and only) time this season, but the A’s soon relinquished that achievement by dropping their next three games.

McCarthy has struggled in his career against the Red Sox, earning a 1-3 record in four starts against Boston. His 6.29 ERA against Boston is his second-worst against any major league opponent. McCarthy has not pitched against the Red Sox since 2008, when he lost a Sept. 7 start at home after allowing six runs and seven hits through 5 1/3 innings.

David Ortiz enters the month of May on the heels of the best April of his career, as he finished the month ranked second in the major leagues and first in the American League with a .405 average. Ortiz has enjoyed success against McCarthy in the past, as he owns a .300 average against the right-hander with a home run and two RBIs in 12 plate appearances. Backup catcher Kelly Shoppach has also hit well against McCarthy, going 3-for-6 with a double and two home runs in his career against the 28-year-old.

While McCarthy has struggled against the Red Sox, Bard has been lights out against the A’s. Bard has never started against Oakland, but in 14 relief appearances he owns a 0.64 ERA, allowing just one earned run while striking out 13 in 14 innings of work. Bard faced Oakland five times last season, recording three holds and a save without allowing a single run. Oakland shortstop Cliff Pennington is the only member of the A’s lineup with a hit against Bard, as he has two singles in six at-bats.

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Jon Lester

After starting the week with a 4-10 record, the Red Sox enter Saturday afternoon’s game against the White Sox with a chance to reach the .500 mark thanks to a five-game win streak. The matinee game has the potential to be a pitching duel, as Boston will send out ace Jon Lester on Saturday to face White Sox ace Jake Peavy.

Lester is searching for his first win of the season, as he is 0-2 through his four starts and has lost five consecutive decisions dating back to Sept. 11 of last season. The left-hander did not earn a decision in his most recent start, a 6-5 Red Sox win over the Twins, but he gave Boston a chance to win by limiting the Twins to five runs on six hits through seven innings of work.

Lester has a winning record in his career at U.S. Cellular Field. He posted a 4.50 ERA through five starts and owns a 3-2 record in Chicago. Lester’s last outing against the White Sox was a good one, as he tossed eight innings of two-run baseball in a 10-2 Red Sox win on July 30, 2011.

Paul Konerko and A.J. Pierzynski have both hit well against Lester in their careers. Konerko, who is 4-for-8 through the first two games of this series and hit a home run off Daniel Bard Friday, has a .389 career average against Lester with three home runs and six RBIs. Pierzynski hits Lester at a .364 clip and has a double and three RBIs in his career against him.

While Lester enters the game looking to reverse his early-season struggles, Peavy will make the start hoping to improve on his perfect 3-0 record. Peavy’s three-game win streak to start the season is tied for the longest season-opening win streak of his career, as he also won his first three decisions in 2008 while pitching for the Padres.

In his most recent start, Peavy tossed a complete-game shutout in a 4-0 win over the Athletics. Peavy allowed just three hits through his nine innings of work and lowered his ERA to 1.88, the second-best mark among American League pitchers.

Peavy has made just two career starts against the Red Sox and earned a 1-1 record with a 4.50 ERA in those games. The one win came in his most recent start against the Red Sox, a 7-3 Chicago victory back on May 30, 2011. Peavy allowed three runs on six hits in that outing while striking out just two batters through seven innings.

None of the Red Sox have more than nine career at-bats against Peavy. Recent acquisition Marlon Byrd has the most experience against Peavy, as he faced him nine times. Most of those at-bats came while both Peavy and Byrd were in the National League, and Byrd is 2-for-8 against Peavy with a double and two strikeouts. David Ortiz hits Peavy best of any Red Sox player, as he is 3-for-6 against Peavy with one RBI.

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Daniel Bard

Daniel Bard entered the 2012 season eager to become a starting pitcher, and he got his wish through his first two starts of the year. But then the Red Sox bullpen imploded in an 15-9 loss to the Yankees last Saturday, and with the Boston relief staff ranking last in MLB as well as a rainout scratching Bard’s scheduled start Sunday, the Red Sox used Bard out of the bullpen earlier this week.

Bard is scheduled to return to the rotation on Friday when he starts in Chicago against the White Sox.

Bard is 0-2 in starts this season but holds a 1-2 record thanks to a win in his only relief appearance of the season, two-thirds of an inning in the eighth inning Monday against the Twins. Bard entered the game with the score knotted at 5 and the go-ahead run on third, and he forced a lineout to third, intentionally walked Justin Morneau, and induced a pop fly to help the Red Sox escape the inning damage-free.

Bard pitched well in his most recent start, a 1-0 loss to the Rays on Marathon Monday, scattering four hits and one run over 6 2/3 innings. Bard tossed a career-high 111 pitches, however, and he stayed in one batter too late, as he walked the final batter he faced to walk in the winning run.

The White Sox are a somewhat unfamiliar team for Bard, who has appeared in eight games against them, the third-fewest appearances for Bard against an American League opponent. Bard has a 1-0 record with a 2.08 ERA against Chicago. Bard’s most recent appearance against the White Sox was on July 31 of last season at U.S. Cellular Field. He entered the game in the seventh inning and held the White Sox to one hit over 1 1/3 innings while striking out one to help the Red Sox to a 5-3 win.

The White Sox will counter Bard with left-hander John Danks, who is 2-2 in four starts this season. The record is a tremendous improvement over last season, when Danks went 0-8 through his first 11 starts before earning his first win in June. Danks has yet to win in back-to-back starts this season, and he will be looking to do so when he takes the mound Friday.

In his last outing, a 7-4 win over the Mariners, Danks allowed four runs on seven hits in six innings of work while striking out six and walking four. The six strikeouts matched his season high.

The 27-year-old has made seven career starts against the Red Sox and has a 3-4 record with a 4.14 ERA against Boston. Only one of those three wins came at home. That one win was in his most recent start against Boston, an 8-2 decision on Sept. 30, 2010. Danks lasted six innings in that game, allowing two runs on five hits while walking three and striking out six. None of the Red Sox who had hits in that game still play for Boston.

Most of the current Red Sox have struggled in their careers against Danks. Nick Punto has the most experience of any Boston batter against Danks, as he faced the lefty often when Punto played for the Twins. Punto is 4-for-24 against Danks with an RBI, two walks and a strikeout. Mike Aviles is the only Red Sox batter with an average over .300 against Danks. He is 3-for-9 against Danks with a double, an RBI and a strikeout.

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Clay Buchholz

Baseball is an international sport, but of the many nationalities represented in Major League Baseball, only 28 players born in Australia have ever played in MLB. The Red Sox will confront one of those 28 Australians on Wednesday night when they face a young pitcher from Perth, 23-year-old right-hander Liam Hendriks.

Hendriks will be making just the seventh start of his young career, and he is still searching for his first win. As a September call-up for the Twins in 2011, Hendriks started four games and ran up an 0-2 record by allowing 16 earned runs on 29 hits in 23 1/3 innings. This season, Hendriks made the Opening Day roster on the virtue of a strong spring training in which he went 3-1 with a 2.84 ERA.

Hendriks missed his first scheduled start of the season when he was hospitalized with food poisoning, but he has pitched well in each of his two outings since, despite not factoring into a decision. In his first outing, a 4-3 loss to the Rangers, Hendriks allowed just one run through six innings of work, but Twins relievers allowed three runs in the eighth inning to ruin Hendriks’ 2012 debut. The righty last pitched on April 20, when the Twins topped the Rays, 5-4, but Hendriks exited after 5 2/3 innings with the Twins down, 4-2. The rookie struggled with his command in the outing, throwing 56 of his 101 pitches for strikes and walking two while striking out one.

Hendriks has never faced the Red Sox and has no major league experience against any of the Red Sox batters. Wednesday’s game will be the second of his career against an AL East opponent.

The Red Sox also will send a relatively young pitcher to the mound Wednesday, as 27-year-old Clay Buchholz will make his fourth start of the season. Buchholz has struggled in his return from a season-ending back injury in 2011, tallying a 1-1 record with a 9.00 ERA. In his last outing, the right-hander suffered his first loss in 12 starts as the Yankees topped the Red Sox, 6-2, on Fenway Park’s 100th anniversary. Buchholz allowed five earned runs in the outing, matching a season low, while giving up nine hits and five home runs in six innings of work.

Buchholz has allowed a combined 17 earned runs in his three starts this season, more than half of the total he allowed in his 14 starts last season. He has also allowed six home runs, a total that is way above pace for his average of 8.6 home runs per year.

Luckily for Buchholz, he will face a Twins lineup that has the second-fewest home runs in the American League. The Twins hit well overall, however, ranking fifth in the AL in team batting average.

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