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| BOSTON -- Another night, another Red Sox starter scratched just hours in advance of his start. A day after ace Josh Beckett couldn't take the ball because of a combination of a stiff neck and the flu, No. 2 starter Daisuke Matsuzaka had to give up his start on Wednesday night against the Angels because of an illness that has spread around the team like wildfire in recent days. Matsuzaka's flu was more sudden than Beckett's. The pitcher was thought to be good to go heading into the day, but word broke roughly 90 minutes before game time that lefty Jon Lester would be starting in Matsuzaka's place. "[Matsuzaka] was achy, but in the subsequent hour and a half, it got significantly worse to the point where we had to scratch him," said Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell. "Upon his arrival to the ballpark, he felt some achiness overall, body-wise. It was clear he was not going to be up to 100 percent, and we felt that it was in the best interest of everyone to make the decision during batting practice." Lester will start on three days' rest for the first time in his career. "We'll probably hold him a little bit shorter just because it is a day earlier, but tomorrow being a day game, it's about [18] hours earlier than normal," said Farrell. "Jon was eager to start even on short notice as it is today. But he's prepared physically and prepared mentally, so we're going into this game just like it's his normal day." Red Sox manager Terry Francona has probably spent more time in the training room the past few days than in his office, as there has been a lot of illness to keep track of. Wednesday marked the fourth straight day captain and catcher Jason Varitek was out of the lineup with, yes, the flu. There was good news on the Varitek front, as the catcher got outside and played catch and did some other baseball activities for the first time in a few days. There's an outside chance Varitek will recover in time to catch on Thursday afternoon, but Francona admitted that could be "a reach." "He got hit pretty hard," Francona said. Reliever Manny Delcarmen was sent home before Tuesday's game with the flu, and it wasn't known if he'd be able to pitch Wednesday. With David Pauley sent back to Triple-A Pawtucket immediately after filling in for Beckett, the Sox used the open roster spot to recall Craig Hansen from Triple-A. However, Hansen might be sent right back after Wednesday's game if the Sox need to call up a pitcher to start on Thursday. Lester was supposed to pitch that game. It would seem the only in-house option would be to bump knuckleballer Tim Wakefield up to Thursday's game, on three days' rest. But then the Sox would need another starter for Friday at Tampa Bay. Could Matsuzaka or Beckett recover that soon? Before learning of Matsuzaka's illness, Francona said that he didn't plan on pitching Beckett before his regularly scheduled turn on Sunday against the Rays. If the Red Sox call up a prospect to pitch on Thursday, right-hander Justin Masterson is a logical candidate. Now that Clay Buchholz and Lester are in the Major Leagues, Masterson is considered the top starting pitching prospect in the organization. He is 4-0 with an 0.95 ERA in his first four starts. It would certainly line up well, as Masterson last pitched for Double-A Portland on Saturday. In that one, the sinkerballer fired five shutout innings and struck out 10. Another candidate is veteran Minor League knuckleballer Charlie Zink, who is scheduled to pitch for Pawtucket on Thursday. Zink is 2-1 with a 3.12 ERA. |