Red Sox Journal: Pearce picks up where he left off

OAKLAND — It was a week later than he would have preferred, but Steve Pearce celebrated his regular-season debut with the Red Sox on Thursday.

Pearce (left calf) reported to Oakland Coliseum on Wednesday and was activated off the Injured List the following morning. He batted third against the Athletics and left-handed starter Brett Anderson, occupying the role primarily responsible for Pearce’s nine seasons in the big leagues. [...]

OAKLAND — It was a week later than he would have preferred, but Steve Pearce celebrated his regular-season debut with the Red Sox on Thursday.

Pearce (left calf) reported to Oakland Coliseum on Wednesday and was activated off the Injured List the following morning. He batted third against the Athletics and left-handed starter Brett Anderson, occupying the role primarily responsible for Pearce’s nine seasons in the big leagues. Sam Travis was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket to clear a spot on the 25-man roster.

“If I had started (on Opening Day) I could have played, but it probably would have lingered for a long time,” Pearce said. “It’s behind me and I’m ready to go.”

Pearce slashed a healthy .304/.400/.559 against left-handed pitching last season, piling up 15 extra-base hits in 120 plate appearances. He took over at first base for Mitch Moreland, who received the day off after ripping a two-run double off left-handed reliever Ryan Buchter in Wednesday’s 6-3 win.

“Nothing against Sam, but Mitch saw (Buchter) already,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Wednesday. “He had a pretty good idea. They’ve been talking about him for the last two nights.”

Pearce was at extended spring training in Fort Myers while Boston stumbled to a 1-5 start. The comeback victory upon his return made it feel like old times in the dugout, as Pearce earned Most Valuable Player honors for the defending World Series champions thanks to his performance last October against the Dodgers.

“For me it was picking up where we left off,” Pearce said. “It’s nice to see the fight we had last night. Some things weren’t going our way, but we battled through them. That’s what our team’s all about.”

Xander Bogaerts (left ankle) returned after a day off, a late addition to the lineup while battling some stiffness. He fouled a pitch off his lower leg late in Tuesday night’s 1-0 defeat and wore an ice pack that covered the sore spot each of the last two nights. Rafael Devers received the day off Thursday and Eduardo Nunez played third base.

Closing time

Ryan Brasier earned his first career save in Wednesday's 6-3 win, and Cora revealed a bit more of what has been a secretive bullpen plan to this point.

The manager has declined to name a closer in place of the departed Craig Kimbrel, who remains a free agent. Matt Barnes came on in the seventh inning to strike out Khris Davis with a man on and stranded another base runner at third in the eighth. It was Barnes who earned the first save chance of the season in Seattle, closing out a 7-6 victory on Friday.

“We have the luxury of having Brasier and Barnes,” Cora said. (Barnes) understands that. As long as we communicate and they know coming into a series where they fit and how we’re going to use them, I don’t see a problem.”

Kimbrel was used primarily to record the final three outs in a given game. It's hard to imagine him being brought into a scenario like the one Barnes faced on Wednesday, a more modern usage for high-leverage relievers that Cora seems to embrace. Colten Brewer also gave the Red Sox five outs as a bridge from starter Nathan Eovaldi to Barnes.

“If I didn’t feel that way I wasn’t going to say how comfortable I was,” Cora said. “Then you guys would crush me later on. But stuff-wise, with what we added in the offseason and what we saw in spring training, it was good.”

Around the bases

David Price celebrated 10 years of service time in the big leagues on Thursday. Boston clubhouse manager Tom McLaughlin commissioned a pair of sheet cakes for the occasion, honoring both Price and Rick Porcello for hitting the milestone within the last week. Price made his debut with the Rays late in the 2008 season and Porcello broke in with the Tigers in 2009 … The Red Sox open their Interleague slate on Friday when they visit the Diamondbacks for a three-game series. Boston was 16-4 against National League clubs last season and is 37-9 over its last 46 Interleague games … Dustin Pedroia (left knee) was scheduled to begin his rehab assignment at Class A Greenville on Thursday.