W-OLF
03-08-2006, 01:24 AM
Beckett and Weaver Struggle in Debuts
Published: 3/7/06, 7:46 AM EDT
(AP) - Josh Beckett and Jeff Weaver both had rocky debuts with their new teams.
Beckett, traded from Florida to Boston in a seven-player trade during the offseason, allowed five runs in three innings of the Red Sox's 8-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Monday.
Even though it's spring training, Beckett did not take the performance lightly.
"It's not like I was just out there trying to throw my pitches. If I was going to do that, I would have just thrown a 50-pitch bullpen. When I'm out there, I'm trying to get people out," the 2003 World Series MVP said in St. Petersburg, Fla.
"I wanted to get a feel for these guys (the Devil Rays), just like they wanted to get a feel for me. They felt me pretty good."
Julio Lugo and Jonny Gomes each hit a solo homer in the first for the Devil Rays. After Beckett's perfect second inning, Tampa Bay scored three times in the third on Carl Crawford's RBI double, Aubrey Huff's sacrifice fly and a wild pitch. Beckett allowed five hits, struck out two and walked one.
The 25-year-old right-hander said he felt strong, but did not do a good job of locating his pitches.
"I'm not going to feel that good and pitch that bad very often. ... I guess I can take that as a positive point," Beckett said. "I made some mistakes that shouldn't happen. You learn from it and move on. It was all about executing pitches. I didn't."
Red Sox manager Terry Francona said it simply was good to see Beckett on the mound in a Boston uniform.
"He looked strong," Francona said. "You always want to win, but we want him to get ready for the season."
Weaver, signed to a one-year, $8.325 million contract in the offseason, gave up eight runs for the Los Angeles Angels, allowing a pair of three-run homers in the first inning of an 11-3 loss to the San Francisco Giants in Scottsdale, Ariz.
"I kind of get nervous if I don't give up any runs - that's a pretty typical spring start for me," he said.
Mark Sweeney and rookie Eleizer Alfonzo connected in the first off Weaver, who allowed eight hits in 2 1-3 innings. Weaver was lifted in the third inning after Durham's leadoff single, Angel Chavez's one-out double, a run-scoring wild pitch and a walk. Yamid Haad's sacrifice fly made it 8-1.
In other spring training games:
Pirates 5, Twins 4
At Bradenton, Fla., Jeromy Burnitz homered and doubled twice, and Jose Castillo hit a three-run homer to lead Pittsburgh. Later, the Twins lost one of their greatest and most beloved players when Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett died in Phoenix a day after he had a stroke.
Yankees 11, Blue Jays 8
At Tampa, Fla., Robinson Cano hit a two-run homer during a six-run second for the Yankees, and starter Chien-Ming Wang allowed three runs and six hits in two innings. Troy Glaus went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBIs for Toronto.
Dodgers (ss) 0, Nationals (ss) 0
At Vero Beach, Fla., Los Angeles' Brad Penny pitched three hitless innings, and Japanese right-hander Takashi Saito struck out three in two innings.
Nationals starter John Patterson allowed one hit and struck out three in three innings.
Astros 11, Nationals (ss) 1
At Kissimmee, Fla., Preston Wilson was 2-for-2 with an RBI to lead Houston. Right fielder Jason Lane had a three-run home run in the fourth inning, his second of the spring, and third baseman Eric Munson hit his first in the sixth inning.
Orioles 12, Cardinals 8
At Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Kevin Millar doubled in two runs and scored during a four-run third inning, and Jeff Conine was 3-for-3 for Baltimore.
Dodgers (ss) 1, Marlins 1, 10 innings
At Jupiter, Fla., Jason Vargas pitched three scoreless innings to help his bid for a spot in Florida's rotation. Dodgers starter Aaron Sele pitched 2 2-3 scoreless innings.
Tigers 8, Braves 2
At Kissimmee, Fla., Nate Robertson gave up two hits and an unearned run in three innings for Detroit.
Reds 5, Phillies 2
At Sarasota, Fla., Cincinnati closer David Weathers, recovering from a torn tendon in the middle finger of his pitching hand during a workout in January, gave up a solo homer to Sal Fasano before retiring three straight batters.
Mets 6, Indians 3
At Port St. Lucie, Fla., Cliff Floyd hit a solo homer and Tom Glavine allowed one run in three innings for New York.
Padres 8, Royals 3
At Surprise, Ariz., David Ross hit two home runs and drove in four runs and Shawn Estes pitched three scoreless innings for San Diego.
Cubs 12, Athletics 3
At Phoenix, Dan Haren had his second straight shaky start against the Chicago Cubs, allowing four runs and four hits in three innings.
Rangers 13, Diamondbacks 11
At Tucson, Ariz., Kevin Mench had five RBIs, including a grand slam off Russ Ortiz in Texas' seven-run second inning.
Mariners 8, Brewers 7
At Peoria, Ariz., Kevin Appier pitched three hitless innings, boosting his chances to make the Mariners.
White Sox 4, Rockies 2
At Tucson, Ariz., Pablo Ozuna had a two-run single in the first inning and Ryan Sweeney hit a solo homer in the seventh, leading the World Series champion White Sox to their first spring win.
Credit BellSouth
Published: 3/7/06, 7:46 AM EDT
(AP) - Josh Beckett and Jeff Weaver both had rocky debuts with their new teams.
Beckett, traded from Florida to Boston in a seven-player trade during the offseason, allowed five runs in three innings of the Red Sox's 8-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Monday.
Even though it's spring training, Beckett did not take the performance lightly.
"It's not like I was just out there trying to throw my pitches. If I was going to do that, I would have just thrown a 50-pitch bullpen. When I'm out there, I'm trying to get people out," the 2003 World Series MVP said in St. Petersburg, Fla.
"I wanted to get a feel for these guys (the Devil Rays), just like they wanted to get a feel for me. They felt me pretty good."
Julio Lugo and Jonny Gomes each hit a solo homer in the first for the Devil Rays. After Beckett's perfect second inning, Tampa Bay scored three times in the third on Carl Crawford's RBI double, Aubrey Huff's sacrifice fly and a wild pitch. Beckett allowed five hits, struck out two and walked one.
The 25-year-old right-hander said he felt strong, but did not do a good job of locating his pitches.
"I'm not going to feel that good and pitch that bad very often. ... I guess I can take that as a positive point," Beckett said. "I made some mistakes that shouldn't happen. You learn from it and move on. It was all about executing pitches. I didn't."
Red Sox manager Terry Francona said it simply was good to see Beckett on the mound in a Boston uniform.
"He looked strong," Francona said. "You always want to win, but we want him to get ready for the season."
Weaver, signed to a one-year, $8.325 million contract in the offseason, gave up eight runs for the Los Angeles Angels, allowing a pair of three-run homers in the first inning of an 11-3 loss to the San Francisco Giants in Scottsdale, Ariz.
"I kind of get nervous if I don't give up any runs - that's a pretty typical spring start for me," he said.
Mark Sweeney and rookie Eleizer Alfonzo connected in the first off Weaver, who allowed eight hits in 2 1-3 innings. Weaver was lifted in the third inning after Durham's leadoff single, Angel Chavez's one-out double, a run-scoring wild pitch and a walk. Yamid Haad's sacrifice fly made it 8-1.
In other spring training games:
Pirates 5, Twins 4
At Bradenton, Fla., Jeromy Burnitz homered and doubled twice, and Jose Castillo hit a three-run homer to lead Pittsburgh. Later, the Twins lost one of their greatest and most beloved players when Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett died in Phoenix a day after he had a stroke.
Yankees 11, Blue Jays 8
At Tampa, Fla., Robinson Cano hit a two-run homer during a six-run second for the Yankees, and starter Chien-Ming Wang allowed three runs and six hits in two innings. Troy Glaus went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBIs for Toronto.
Dodgers (ss) 0, Nationals (ss) 0
At Vero Beach, Fla., Los Angeles' Brad Penny pitched three hitless innings, and Japanese right-hander Takashi Saito struck out three in two innings.
Nationals starter John Patterson allowed one hit and struck out three in three innings.
Astros 11, Nationals (ss) 1
At Kissimmee, Fla., Preston Wilson was 2-for-2 with an RBI to lead Houston. Right fielder Jason Lane had a three-run home run in the fourth inning, his second of the spring, and third baseman Eric Munson hit his first in the sixth inning.
Orioles 12, Cardinals 8
At Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Kevin Millar doubled in two runs and scored during a four-run third inning, and Jeff Conine was 3-for-3 for Baltimore.
Dodgers (ss) 1, Marlins 1, 10 innings
At Jupiter, Fla., Jason Vargas pitched three scoreless innings to help his bid for a spot in Florida's rotation. Dodgers starter Aaron Sele pitched 2 2-3 scoreless innings.
Tigers 8, Braves 2
At Kissimmee, Fla., Nate Robertson gave up two hits and an unearned run in three innings for Detroit.
Reds 5, Phillies 2
At Sarasota, Fla., Cincinnati closer David Weathers, recovering from a torn tendon in the middle finger of his pitching hand during a workout in January, gave up a solo homer to Sal Fasano before retiring three straight batters.
Mets 6, Indians 3
At Port St. Lucie, Fla., Cliff Floyd hit a solo homer and Tom Glavine allowed one run in three innings for New York.
Padres 8, Royals 3
At Surprise, Ariz., David Ross hit two home runs and drove in four runs and Shawn Estes pitched three scoreless innings for San Diego.
Cubs 12, Athletics 3
At Phoenix, Dan Haren had his second straight shaky start against the Chicago Cubs, allowing four runs and four hits in three innings.
Rangers 13, Diamondbacks 11
At Tucson, Ariz., Kevin Mench had five RBIs, including a grand slam off Russ Ortiz in Texas' seven-run second inning.
Mariners 8, Brewers 7
At Peoria, Ariz., Kevin Appier pitched three hitless innings, boosting his chances to make the Mariners.
White Sox 4, Rockies 2
At Tucson, Ariz., Pablo Ozuna had a two-run single in the first inning and Ryan Sweeney hit a solo homer in the seventh, leading the World Series champion White Sox to their first spring win.
Credit BellSouth