RED SOX : News & Notes March 5,2014.

RED SOX : NEWS & NOTES
March 5,2014.





~Rich Hill Absent : Rich Hill is absent from spring training because of a “serious family issue,” according to Farrell.

~'Catchers' battling injuries : A.J.Pierzynski and David Ross, the two top catchers on the depth chart, are both battling left foot ailments and will be out of action for the next few days.
Pierzynski rolled his left ankle in Monday's game in Bradenton, Fla., re-aggravating an injury that had troubled him earlier in camp.
And Ross, originally supposed to start Tuesday's game, was scratched because of left foot soreness."It was bothering me in the offseason. It got a little better, but as I was running … it's one of those things where I can run straight, but I can't really turn really good," Ross said. "The ligament in there has been kind of aggravated. I've been running funny on my foot."Manager John Farrell said that Ross should be behind the plate again on Friday.
"They told me to hold off today, but it feels 100 percent today," said Ross. "I'll probably hit and throw tomorrow and hopefully Thursday and Friday I'll be in the game."Pierzynski isn't scheduled to play Wednesday or Thursday, so he could also be back by Friday."He's got a little bit of swelling in there today but this is a couple, three days maybe before he's back behind the plate," said Farrell. "The one thing is it's twice in camp that it's happened so we have to be a little more cautious right now."

~Peavy - Questions about starting season ? : Jake Peavy, coming off a laceration of his left index finger, made some nice progress on Tuesday when he was able to do some throwing.Someone else had to catch the ball for Peavy, as he hasn't been cleared to put his glove on yet.It is still too early to know if Peavy will return in time for the start of the regular season."Again, the next three days will probably have a lot to do with when he gets to the mound next in a game," said Farrell.If Peavy starts the season on the disabled list, Farrell said that Chris Capuano or Brandon Workman would be the two most likely candidates to fill in.Capuano makes his debut in a Boston uniform on Wednesday in Jupiter, Fla., against the Cardinals.

~Television Note : Today's game against the Cardinals will be broadcast on FSMW ( Fox Sports Midwest ) beginning at 1 p.m.

~Buchholz slow : Clay Buchholz didn't have great results during his Grapefruit League debut Tuesday, but the key for the righty is that he felt healthy, something he was not at the end of last season.Buchholz threw some fastballs at 93-mph against the Rays. In Game 4 of the World Series, he was topping out in the high 80s while being bothered by right shoulder fatigue.Buchholz thinks that he's made the physical recovery necessary to regain his status as an All-Star."It definitely feels completely different than the last month and a half, two months that I threw last year," Buchholz said. 

"That's what I wanted to feel like coming into camp, and I just have to keep working day to day and getting out there every five days."
By design, Buchholz pitched just one inning against the Rays, giving up three hits and a run. He threw 26 pitches.
"I've been pitching against them for seven years now, so they know what I've got and I know them," Buchholz said. "It's more about going out and getting a feel regardless of who you're pitching against."