White Hat Sports Headlines

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Masterson Gets First Career MLB Start



Justin Masterson, starting pitcher for the Red Sox farm team the Portland Sea Dogs, will get his first start today with the Red Sox. This comes after Josh Beckett and Dice-K were both scratched from their starts, and gives the fans their first look at one of the top pitching prospects in the organization.

Masterson will look to follow a long line of succesfull major league players coming from the Sea Dog's organization. The list includes players like Jonathan Papelbon, Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester, Clay Buccholz, Hanley Ramirez, Josh Beckett and Kevin Youkilis.

"He's one of the nicest kids you'll ever meet," manager Terry Francona said in an interview with boston.com. "I think his future is very bright. Hopefully we'll get a chance to glimpse some of that."

So far this season Masterson has allowed only two runs and 14 hits over 19 innings, and although he has never pitched above double A it seems clear now is the right time to give him his shot. From watching him personally I can tell you he has great control, and a sinker that reminds people a lot of Derek Lowe.

When asked about the start by the Portland Press Herald Masterson stated "I'm just real excited. It's hard to put into words, but I just want to put together a quality performance."

~Aaron Jackson

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

The kid looked good...very, very good! It'll be interesting to se how they handle him. Hopefully they'll give him the time he needs to completely develop. I'd hate to see them rush him like they did with the Lester.