Josh Beckett Aiming for Weekend Return
By Editorial Staff
Josh Beckett is hoping to return for the Boston Red Sox at some point this weekend, when the club takes on the Tampa Bay Rays in a pivotal four game series.
The Red Sox received positive reports on Beckett following his side session yesterday. It was the first time Beckett has thrown off a mound since spraining his right ankle during a September 5th contest against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Beckett made it through only 3.2 innings before being removed from the game, complaining of discomfort in his “power leg”.
If all goes well and Beckett feels no ill-effects from yesterday’s session, the Red Sox are hoping to plug him back into their rotation this weekend.
With the Rays having cut Boston’s AL Wild Card lead to only 3 games last night, Beckett’s return can’t come fast enough. Tampa Bay swept the Red Sox this past weekend, outscoring Boston 22 to 8 over the series. Entering tonight’s game, the Red Sox have lost 5 straight and 7 of their last 8.
Boston is hoping Beckett can return to stop this late slide, as the right-hander has been the club’s best starting pitcher in 2011. Over his 27 starts this season, Beckett has maintained an ERA of 2.49 to go with his 0.98 WHIP. Beckett’s struck out 155 batters in his 173.2 innings while holding opposition to a measly .203 batting average.
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