BOSTON --- Brian Johnson and Brandon Workman have both had better nights at Fenway Park.
Both pitchers allowed four runs during Friday’s intrasquad game under the lights. Only one of them seems guaranteed a chance to take the same field next Friday for Opening Day and beyond.
Workman has already been named the Boston closer. Johnson is aware his role – No. 4 starter, bulk pitcher or minor leaguer – could still be open for debate following this 8-2 result [...]
BOSTON --- Brian Johnson and Brandon Workman have both had better nights at Fenway Park.
Both pitchers allowed four runs during Friday’s intrasquad game under the lights. Only one of them seems guaranteed a chance to take the same field next Friday for Opening Day and beyond.
Workman has already been named the Boston closer. Johnson is aware his role – No. 4 starter, bulk pitcher or minor leaguer – could still be open for debate following this 8-2 result over 5½ innings.
"I’ve got to earn that fourth spot or following the opener," Johnson said. "I’ve got to earn a spot on this team. I’m obviously not on the 40-man (roster), so I’ve got to prove to them that I serve a purpose on this team."
Johnson faced six batters in the bottom of the first inning, and only one of them failed to reach safely. Mitch Moreland grounded into a 6-3 double play, limiting what could have been more severe damage. J.D. Martinez dumped an RBI single into center and Kevin Plawecki smoked a two-run homer to deep left, giving the home team a quick 4-0 lead.
"We’ve been swinging really well that first inning," Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke said. "You make mistakes and we don’t miss too many."
The inning was stopped there due to Johnson’s rising pitch count, something that’s happened a handful of times during these intrasquad games at Summer Camp. Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom summed up the organization’s mixed feelings on moments like those during his extended remarks early Friday.
"Emotionally it’s kind of a bummer, because everything is zero-sum," Bloom said. "Your hitters are swinging the bat but your pitchers are giving something up or vice versa. That’s been interesting emotionally to be a part of."
Johnson rebounded by setting down the next seven men he faced and wriggled out of a jam in the fourth. Tzu-Wei Lin lined to center and Jonathan Arauz struck out swinging to finish Johnson’s outing. He also admitted to some difficulties facing teammates this close to the opener, which comes against the Orioles.
"(The catchers) see us shaking off pitches we normally would throw, and I think they understand why," Johnson said. "I don’t think we’ve told the hitters, ‘Hey, we’re scared to go in.’
"At a certain point in that first inning, when I started getting hit, that mentality takes over. I started pitching in. You have to show in – especially me.
"You have to pitch to both sides of the plate or you’re going to get abused."
It remained a four-run game into the fifth when the home team doubled its advantage. Workman made it five straight intrasquad outings where he allowed at least one run, as Martinez singled to left and Yairo Munoz scored on an error. Michael Chavis cracked a two-out, three-run homer into the visiting bullpen to make it 8-0.
"He’s obviously frustrated," Roenicke said. "I’m okay with his stuff. I think he’s going to find it. My concern is more to make sure he knows he’s going to find it.
"He’s competitive. He doesn’t like this. He wants to get through every inning clean, and he’s scuffling to do it."
The visitors prevented the shutout in the sixth when Christian Vazquez lined an RBI single to right and Jonathan Lucroy drew a bases-loaded walk. He was the last batter faced by Phillips Valdez, as the inning was stopped with just one out. Rafael Devers singled twice, drew a walk and scored the final run for the visitors.
Boston made announcements over the course of the day that affected four different pitchers. Veteran right-hander Zack Godley signed with the Red Sox and is likely to throw up to two innings in Saturday’s intrasquad game. Bullpen right-hander Caleb Simpson has been sent to Pawtucket, making it 14 players at the club’s alternate site for their first workout on Saturday.
Eduardo Rodriguez and Darwinzon Hernandez have also traveled to Boston. The two left-handers remain on the injured list while battling COVID-19, but leaving their respective homes suggests significant progress. Rodriguez and Hernandez would both need to test through the intake process to become eligible for Summer Camp.
bkoch@providencejournal.com
(401) 277-7054
On Twitter: @BillKoch25