Jon Lester tossed four shutout innings against the Twins. (AP)

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Red Sox starter Jon Lester, making just his second start of the spring after missing his previous outing while recovering from the flu, tossed four dominant innings against the Twins on Friday afternoon. He gave up four hits (all singles) and no runs, eliciting a pair of double-play grounders, walking none and striking out five.

One of the punchouts came against Twins first baseman Justin Morneau, who was making his first appearance in a big league contest this spring after having missed the second half of last year while recovering from a concussion. While it seemed a daunting challenge for Morneau’s first exposure to that caliber of pitching in eight months, he welcomed the opportunity to face the Red Sox ace.

“He’s as good as there is as far as left-handers go, he’s a tough at bat and you can learn something from every at bat, and I think that’s good. You’re focusing on trying to figure out the at bat,” said Morneau. “Instead of trying to figure out what you’re doing, it’s more about the pitcher-hitter game and it kind of gets your mind off the other things.”

Lester featured a full complement of pitches, most notably a terrific curveball. He proved efficient, needing just 57 pitches (41 strikes) to make it through his four frames. Lester, who had established a goal of cutting down on his walks this spring, has been pleased with his attacking approach thus far. In six Grapefruit League innings, he has yet to walk a batter.

“I’ve been pleased with how I’ve been throwing the ball as far as attacking and not giving in. I’d rather give up a base hit than walk a guy, make a guy earn it regardless of whether it’s 3-1, 3-0 or whatever,” said Lester. “I’d rather have a guy hit himself on than walk him. I’ve been happy with where we’ve been on that, and trying to continue to get better with it.”

Lester, of course, has emerged as the anchor of the Sox pitching staff after three straight dominating seasons. As things currently line up, if the Sox stay on rotation, the 27-year-old would be the team’s Opening Day starter on April 1 in Texas. What, he was asked, should he read into that?

“Absolutely nothing,” he shrugged. “Obviously I’d be very honored to take the ball that day, but if I’m not, we’ve got four other guys in that clubhouse that I have no problem with taking the ball. It’s not something I’ve even counted into or figured out. A lot of things can happen from from now until then. We’ll worry about it when that day gets here.”

–While things were all roses for Lester, not so with closer Jonathan Papelbon, who followed the starter into the game and managed to record just one out in the fifth inning. Over 29 pitches (13 strikes), he walked three batters, hit another and gave up a double and three runs.

“He struggled with  command, up in the zone. I still thought he had some life and I thought he threw some splits that had some good action,” said bench coach DeMarlo Hale, who was managing the Sox’ split squad team against the Twins in Fort Myers, while manager Terry Francona made the long journey to Kissimmee to oversee the other Sox group that was facing the Astros. “He was just up in the zone. I think it’s something he can look back on and say, I had some bite to my split. A little adjustment back in the zone with his fastball.”

Papelbon, who had not allowed a baserunner in his first three outings of the spring, declined to talk to reporters after the outing.

–Outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury continued his strong spring start. In three plate appearances (all against left-handers Brian Duensing and Dusty Hughes), he collected a pair of singles. He is now hitting .364 with a .391 OBP this spring, and after missing nearly all of last year, he has shown no evident rust in his return.

“Going into camp I felt great. I felt ready to go and I worked so hard in the offseason. I only took a couple days off once the season ended. I got back to doing what I needed to do to be ready for the first day of spring training and we’re seeing that work pay off thus far in spring training,” said Ellsbury. “I’m ahead of where I’d normally be in spring trainings past. There’s a lot of spring training left, just keep progressing until Opening Day.”

–The other Red Sox squad that faced the Astros in Kissimmee claimed a 9-3 victory. Dustin Pedroia went 2-for-3 with a double and two runs batted in, while catcher Mark Wagner had a pair of triples. After starter Kyle Weiland was tagged for three runs in 1 1/3 innings, the Sox bullpen tossed 7 2/3 innings of shutout ball. That effort was turned in by Dan Wheeler (1 1/3 innings), Lenny DiNardo (1/3 inning), Dennys Reyes (1 inning), Matt Albers (1 inning), Rich Hill (1 inning), Michael Bowden (2 innings) and Clevelan Santeliz.

Daniel Bard struck out two batters in a scoreless inning on Tuesday. (AP)

In spring training, there are small sample sizes and then there are small sample sizes.

Daniel Bard’s first two appearances this spring were ugly. We’re talking critical reaction to “Transformers 2″ level of ugly here. Tom Brady dancing in Brazil ugly: Five hits, four runs and three walks in two innings. No way to spin those results.

Except this, of course: It’s spring training. It’s not like Bard needs to prove himself, or he’s battling for a spot on the roster. Nope, Bard is secure. In fact, Terry Francona has referred to Bard as “the most important guy in our bullpen.” This isn’t Kyle Weiland or Tony Pena.

In other words, who cares if he stinks it up in the beginning of March?

Well, Bard does.

“It wasn’t getting to me, but it was getting on my mind,” Bard said when asked Wednesday about his recent struggles. “The problem I think with me, when I don’t have timing, my mechanics aren’t …  you spend the whole time during the outing trying to find it. And that distracts you from getting the hitters out and the results aren’t good. The second you can put all the mechanical stuff behind you and kind of go on auto-pilot and just focus on executing pitchers and getting hitters out.”

Francona said Tuesday that Bard was “fighting it” on the mound to that point in the spring. The manager mentioned that he was fine while warming up in the bullpen, but that Bard was having a hard time bringing that stuff to game action. So instead of just throwing in the bullpen — as was scheduled — Bard requested that he pitch an inning on Tuesday against the Astros.

Francona agreed, and it proved to be the right move.

Bard struck out two batters in a perfect inning of work, getting swing-and-misses on his final five pitches.

Problem solved.

“I’ll take that every time,” Bard said of his performance. “I was just having trouble [in the previous two outings], my timing was kind of off out there. I was kind of landing at a different time, my arm was at a different angle, and that makes it hard to consistently throw strikes. I think it’s just something that comes with throwing more every spring. Sometimes you get it in the first week, sometimes you get it in three weeks like it took me this spring. It felt good, finally felt like myself again.”

Ironically (you be the judge if this is actually ironic, it probably isn’t), Bard had solved the cause of his struggles before he even took the mound on Tuesday for his requested inning.

“I figured something out when I was playing catch yesterday [Tuesday] morning,” Bard said. “It’s really hard to put into words, it’s just a feel thing, something with my arm stroke in the back. Just a little timing device I have that helps everything be on time, which results in throwing more strikes. I knew what I was looking for.”

Know this about Bard: He never got the Crash Davis cliche speech in the minor leagues, or at least he didn’t pay attention to it. The guy actually listens to the question and then answers it honestly (though he’s smart enough to know not to answer the questions that could get him in trouble). So when you ask him if a good warm-up session in the bullpen has any correlation to a good outing you get a little more than “I just do my best each and every time.”

“I’ve gotten pretty good — throwing 70-plus outings last year — you get to the point when you have a bad warm-up and you know,” said Bard, who actually appeared in 73 games last year, fifth-most in the American League. “You can throw 10-15 pitches, warming up, and you’re in the game. And sometimes you didn’t throw a strike in the warm-up. You get to the point where … I had warm-ups like that, you get in the game, you take your eight warm-ups on the mound and by the time the game hits you’re fine. And you come to just trust, it’ll work out OK.

“And the opposite can be true. You had a great warm-up, plenty of time, feel loose, spotting both sides of the plate with all of your pitches, get in the game and nothing goes right. You just tell yourself — no matter what you did in warm-up it does not dictate what you’re going to do in the game. And the faster you can realize that, you’re ahead. Even if I have just one pitch working for me on a given night, I say ‘screw it, I’m going to figure out how to get guys out.’ Even if it’s a slider, I’ll show my fastball, but I won’t get beat on it. I’ll make him hit the slider.”

And while Bard has done nothing but praise Jonathan Papelbon all spring — on Wednesday he said Papelbon is “as good as it gets out there” — he has also made it clear that he wouldn’t turn down the role of closer should it be offered. But for right now (at least) he’ll have to live with the title of Most Important Guy in the Bullpen.

“It means a lot. It’s an honor,” said Bard. “Means a lot coming from [Francona]. But that’s, if you can’t be the closer, you want to be the swing guy, the guy they look to in those game-changing situations, with guys on base, tie game. When the game’s on the line I want to be in there. And to hear that from him? I think that means I probably will be in the game for as many of those situations as I can be. It’s an honor, it really is.”

Shortstop prospect Jose Iglesias enjoyed an impressive day against the Orioles on Saturday. (AP)

It was a dazzling day for the Red Sox middle infield. But no, it wasn’t about Dustin Pedroia and Marco Scutaro, or even Jed Lowrie.

The standout performances were delivered instead by a pair of players who are barely old enough to drink legally in their place of work. Top Red Sox prospect Jose Iglesias went 3-for-4, and is now hitting .429 this spring. Oscar Tejeda went 3-for-5, driving in three and collecting his second two-run triple in as many days. Two of the hits — including the triple — came against starter Brad Bergeson in a 4-4 tie between the Orioles and a split-squad Sox ensemble (the other split squad was shelled in an 11-2 loss to the Marlins in Fort Myers).

Both players, at 21 years old, have been turning heads in camp. Iglesias is doing so for the second straight year, as he routinely turns in remarkable plays in the field and has shown a high-contact, line drive-producing approach at the plate. Tejeda, meanwhile, has commanded attention this spring as a player whom one talent evaluator suggested reminded him physically more of Terrell Owens than a second baseman; his bat speed points to a potentially above-average offensive second baseman.

It is, of course, early in the spring, and it would be a mistake to draw sweeping conclusions about the talents of either based on a couple of exhibition games. Moreover, the two players are unlikely to alter significantly their developmental paths no matter what they do this spring. Tejeda, who spent all of last year in Hi-A Salem, is all but certain to open this year at Double-A Portland. Iglesias, meanwhile, will be given more time to develop in the minors.

Even so, the two represent a significant development in the Red Sox organization, insofar as they create the possibility that the Sox will feature unusual middle infield depth, something that gives the team plenty of options.

Dustin Pedroia, of course, is entrenched at second base, and under contract through 2014 (with the Sox holding an option on him for the 2015 season). In coming years, that means that Tejeda will either represent a solid in-house alternative should the 2008 MVP suffer another injury, offer the team a potentially significant trade chip (assuming, of course, that he is able to carry his promising 2010 performance forward) or give the team a player whose athleticism could permit a move to the outfield should the need arise.

As for Iglesias, the Sox have scribbled him in as their starting shortstop come 2012. But, depending on his performance this year, he could position himself to make an impact at some point in the 2011 season as well. The pace of his development this year, then, could influence what kind of flexibility the Sox might have to deal either Jed Lowrie or Marco Scutaro as the season progresses and needs get defined.

Spring performances mean little in their own right. That said, they can hint at the future shape of the team, and early returns suggest that the team could have a set of options with its middle infield depth that few others can claim.

OTHER NOTES Read the rest of this entry »

Jonathan Papelbon was pumped with his first spring training outing on Tuesday. (AP-file)

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Jon Lester and Jonathan Papelbon are arguably the most important anchors of the starting rotation and bullpen respectively for the 2011 Red Sox.

And both made their spring debut on Tuesday afternoon in a 5-0 win [game recap] against the Twins at Hammond Stadium.

Lester allowed one hit and one walk while striking out one in a scoreless two innings of work. He needed just 27 pitches to get through his first Grapefruit League start, throwing 18 for strikes.

As for Papelbon, he needed far fewer pitches in registering a perfect fifth inning. In throwing just six pitches, Papelbon got two groundouts and a sensational diving grab by minor league infielder Brent Dlugach that resulted in a separated left shoulder for the tough-luck prospect.

“It was good, good to get up and down twice, got the pitch count up a little bit, felt good,” Lester said. “Threw a few good pitches, threw a few bad ones and just move on to the next one.

“No matter if it’s Day 1 of spring training or the 34th start of the year. It’s strike-one. It’s the same mentality as far as if I’ve got two outs or no outs. It doesn’t matter. You’ve got to practice that right now, just like your routine, just like your whole warm-up session, the whole deal. It’s something we haven’t done for four or five months. You’ve got to get back into it, remember everything, remember how it feels. The quicker you can get your mind right, the quicker it is to get on a little bit of a roll during the season.”

Lester, sounding like a focused starter already, said he treats these spring training starts just like the regular season in terms of effort. “You have to,” he said Tuesday. “If you don’t that’s how you get hurt.”

Asked what his goal is in 2011 after missing 20 wins in his final start of 2010, Lester responded with two words, “World Series.”

As for Papelbon, he said there’s a little more of a fine line to getting his routine work in.

“Obviously, for us routine is everything,” Papelbon said. “I think every year you learn things that are going to help you succeed and things that aren’t going to help you succeed and differentiate between the two and move on from there.”

For Papelbon, his mechanics are what he’s focused on this season. And he feels he’s ahead of schedule.

“No question,” said Papelbon when asked if he felt locked in Tuesday. “I felt as locked in as I probably am going to get all spring and hopefully I’ll be able to continue that throughout the rest of the spring and into the season.”

[Click here to hear Jonathan Papelbon explain why he was satisfied with his six-pitch outing from Tuesday.]

“I was pleased. It’s something I’ve taken from the end of the season, last couple of months of the season last year and was throwing the ball really well and I’ve tried to take it into this spring and it’s looks like I’ve been able to do that.

With one out and Alexi Casilla at the plate, the Twins shortstop attempted to lay down a bunt on the third base line. The ball hung in the air long enough for Dlugach to read it and race down the line and make a dive for it. He landed awkwardly and remained still for several minutes before getting up slowly and making his way off the field.

Alfredo Aceves relieved Lester and impressed with two scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk in putting up two “potatoes.”

“I always keep in mind to throw what I call ‘potatoes,’” Aceves said. So, what exactly are “potatoes?”

“It means zeros on the scoreboard,” Aceves explained. “I keep in mind that. Zero, zero, zero, no matter what, if I’m behind in the count or bases loaded, I have zeros on my mind.”

As for starting or relieving, both of which he did with the Yankees, Aceves said he’s not particular.

“For me, it doesn’t matter if you start or are a reliever, or whatever, you’ve got to get outs, get people out.”

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Red Sox manager Terry Francona downplayed Tuesday’s report by SI.com’s Jon Heyman that the team “intends to” pick up his two-year contract option at the end of this season.

“I don’t know where it came from. Let it go,” Francona said when first asked Wednesday about the report. “I actually know where it came from but there’s nothing to that.”

Francona then called in to the Dale & Holley show to pay tribute to departing co-host Dale Arnold, and the subject of his contract came up again.

“It ended up being a story that really wasn’t a story,” he said. “I have an option that the ballclub has the right to pick up at the end of the year. I’m real comfortable with that. So, it really become a story that did not need to be one.”

Francona signed a three-year contract extension with the Red Sox on Feb. 24, 2008, the spring after leading the Red Sox to their second World Series title in four seasons. The extension was worth a reported $12 million, with his salary beginning at $3.5 million in 2009 and increasing by $250,000 increments through this season. The club also included options in 2012 ($4.25 million) and 2013 ($4.5 million).

In other news, Francona announced that slugger Adrian Gonzalez took a “re-gen” day to rest his right should and see how it responds after two days of hitting off a tee. Gonzalez is expected to resume hitting off a tee on Thursday at the Red Sox complex. Francona also said Jonathan Papelbon returned to full activities after a taking a sick day on Tuesday due to flu-like symptoms.

The “Big 4″ of Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, John Lackey and Clay Buchholz all threw live batting practice on Wednesday, with Lackey facing the group of Kevin Youkilis, Carl Crawford and David Ortiz.

Beckett will start Sunday night’s game at Hammond Stadium in the official Grapefruit League opener against the Twins, with Buchholz coming in as a reliever. Daisuke Matsuzaka will start on Monday afternoon, also against the Twins at City of Palms Park.

Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon said he has not ruled out returning to Boston when he becomes a free agent at the end of the season. (AP)

Closer Jonathan Papelbon dropped by for a visit with the Dennis & Callahan show on Wednesday from Red Sox spring training in Fort Myers, Fla. To hear the interview go to the Dennis & Callahan audio on demand page.

The main topic of the conversation was Papelbon’s impending free agency at the end of this season and his future in Boston or elsewhere. “I don’t have a Magic 8-Ball to give you that answer,” he said of speculation about his future. “I’m not really concerned with it. I really want to go out this year and take the team that we have and go and do the things that we’re expected to do and go as far as we think we can go. And then whatever happens happens. I think if I sit there and worry about it, it’s going to affect how this team goes out and how I go out this year and play. So, I don’t worry about it.”

Asked if he would be OK pitching elsewhere, Papelbon said: “I’d have to be OK with it. If that’s what happens, that’s something that would be inevitable and I’d have to be OK with it, and I’d have to find a place that I am OK with it. But like I said, who’s to know that that’s going to happen? I feel like here in Boston I’ve established great relationships and great teammates, and who knows if that’s the route it may go? Can it go that route? Yeah, of course. But can it not go that route is a definite as well.”

Papelbon said he would not turn his back on the Red Sox when it comes to picking a team after the season. “Of course. There’s no question about that,” he insisted. “I think they’ll probably have the biggest shot at keeping me.”

As for going through the season with the pressure of a free agent year, Papelbon said he expects it will help him. “I think it puts a little added pressure on me, and I think I’m one of the guys that when there’s that added pressure on, I think that’s when I thrive and I’m at my best,” he said. “That’s just me. That’s how I work.”

Papelbon had some struggles last season, due in large part to problems controlling his fastball. “For most of the first three months of the season, I did struggle with it, yeah. I did struggle with my fastball command,” he said. “And I think I got to that classic try to overdo, try to do too much situation. I kind of tried to search for answers more than I probably should have. But the last two months of the season for me were huge as the ball started coming out of my hands a lot better. I started throwing the ball a lot better. My offspeed was where I wanted it to be. And so I kind of just took that approach that I had in the last two months of the season and tired to carry it into the offseason and try to carry it into the spring.”

Papelbon agreed that with Daniel Bard and Bobby Jenks supporting him, this is the best group of relievers the Sox have had since he’s been with the team. “I would say yes,” he said. “On paper, there’s no question about it. But the best group of guys I had so far were in ’07, just because we went out there and executed and won. Now, do we have to go out there and execute? Yeah, no question about it. And so, I think if we can go out there and execute and do what our goal is to do, which I to win a championship, then I think you will be talking about a bullpen that might go down as one of the best in history.”

Added Papelbon: “I think you look at [Bard] and you say he has the stuff to be a closer. There’s no question about it. You look at Bobby, he’s obviously got closer stuff. And myself. And I think that you look at our team this year and the way that it’s put up and put together, that we have three possible closers. Even Hideki [Okajima] at times has been good enough to close.

“I think that we don’t really necessarily worry about what each other are going to do in the future. We look at our situation now, in the present, and say, ‘Hey, look, this is what our situation is. They put us here for a reason. Can we go out and win a World Series? And let’s try and do it.’ And then whatever happens after that will all fall into place and we’ll figure it out. I think that’s the approach of our entire bullpen.”

Red Sox reliever Daniel Bard was drafted by the Yankees in 2003. (AP)

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Daniel Bard is now arguably the most important member of the Red Sox bullpen. He emerged as one of the most dominant relievers in the game last year, forging a 1.93 ERA and striking out more than a batter an inning over 73 appearances. Manager Terry Francona used him in almost any pivotal situation that arose prior to the ninth inning, and the 25-year-old had no problem with attacking lefties or righties, whether for three outs or more. He is a young and inexpensive weapon with few peers.

All of that makes it intriguing to wonder how close he came to becoming a Yankee.

Bard was already a highly regarded pitcher in high school thanks to his easy mid-90s velocity. No projection was needed to wonder if he had a big league fastball, and he also featured a curve and change. He was named the North Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior, and so would have been viewed as an early-round draft pick had he wanted to turn pro.

But Bard, at that time, wasn’t that interested in life in the minor leagues. He had a scholarship offer to the University of North Carolina, where he would be able to enter the starting rotation immediately. And so, when he was eligible for the draft in 2003, teams were in no rush to waste a draft pick on him.

More than 600 players were selected before Bard’s name was finally called. The Yankees selected the young right-hander in the 20th round. Conversations with New York were brief. Bard did not rule out turning pro, but it would take a big dollar figure for him to sign with the Yankees. Read the rest of this entry »