Vazquez bruised but ready to go
Sunglasses prevent a scary incident from being worse
With a scar under his eye stretching from the edge of his nose to the side of his face, Christian Vazquez is feeling lucky.
“Those sunglasses saved my eye,” the Red Sox catcher said on Monday. “If I don’t have the sunglasses, it was a different story.”
Vazquez was on Field 3 behind JetBlue Park last week as some players participated in PFPs (pitchers fielding practice). He took his mask off and looked towards first base, but Hirokazu Sawamura must’ve thought Vazquez was paying attention because he fired a pitch to home plate anyways. The pitch hit Vazquez in the sunglasses over his left eye.
“I saw the ball right here in my face and it knocked me down to the floor,” Vazquez said.
The sunglasses dug into his face and sliced open his skin underneath his eye.
“All hits in the face, you’re worried,” he said. “I was worried about my eye. When I got hit I opened my eye and I was seeing, so that was a good sign. That’s the only concern I had when it happened. I’m not worried.”
After getting stitches across his face, Vazquez returned to work over the weekend. He’s already hitting in the cage and feels like he dodged a bullet. There have been horror stories throughout baseball history of players getting hit in the eye who lose eyesight or never fully recover.
The Red Sox have an infamous example in Tony Conigliaro, who was hit in the face by a pitch during the Impossible Dream season in 1967 and, while he returned to play again, was never quite the same.
“I caught a bullpen today and it’s not bothering me, so I’m 99% sure I can go on Thursday,” Vazquez.
He was in good spirits and laughing about his scar. “My wife likes it, so we’re good,” he said.
The 30-year-old catcher is entering his seventh big league season and has started to look like a legitimate offensive threat over the last two years, combining to hit .278 with 30 home runs in 655 at-bats.
The primary backstop for the championship team in ’18, Vazquez said he has a good feeling about this year’s group.
“I felt in the clubhouse that we were talking about the right things together, like in 2018,” he said. “I’m not saying we have the same team, but we’re talking the same language together, like, talking baseball and how we can attack everybody.
“We’re like a family together. We know each other. I like the things I’m hearing. It’s way different than last year and ’19, too. We’re in a good place.”
COVID-19 scare comes to an end
So much for the COVID19 outbreak at Red Sox camp.
Two days after it was revealed that reliever Matt Barnes tested positive and eight others who were in close contact were being separated from the rest of the team, the Red Sox announced that Barnes and the others could return to camp.
“Matt and the contacts are cleared,” chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom texted the Herald on Monday.
Bloom offered no further details and deferred to manager Alex Cora, who didn’t have much to share about it after the Sox blanked the Braves 4-0.
“I just heard about it,” Cora said. “I haven’t talked to (anyone in the front office), but I know he got cleared by the (MLB joint committee), so I don’t know about the details. I’m just happy that he’s going to be back with us and it seems like we’re going to be at full strength in a few days.”
The New York Post reported that Barnes’ test result was a “non-infectious positive,” though it remains unclear what that means. The Globe reported that Barnes had tested negative multiple times after the original positive.
Cora said earlier Monday morning that Barnes wasn’t feeling any symptoms, feels great and was surprised by the positive test.
“He had the interview and he explained to everybody what he’s done and where he’s been,” Cora said. “He’s been very solid about keeping the protocols and the guidelines.”
Barnes wasn’t scheduled to fly with the team back to Boston on Tuesday, but plans could change. It remains unclear if Barnes will be ready to pitch on Opening Day on Thursday.
“I think it’s too soon to make decisions,” Cora said. “I’m just happy that they’re gonna be with us, that’s the most important thing.”
Garrett Richards had been one of the eight in close contact and it’s unclear if he’ll be able to make his first start.
“He stayed at home,” Cora said. “Probably, he was throwing against the wall, I don’t know. I haven’t talked to him about any specifics but I’m about to find out.”
Houck dominates
With his A-plus stuff working, Tanner Houck looked dominant once again on Monday afternoon.
Facing a top-tier Atlanta lineup that he notched 10 strikeouts against in his final big league start last fall, Houck had no trouble handling some of the best hitters in the National League. In the first inning, Houck struck out Ronald Acuna Jr., Freddie Freeman and Marcel Ozuna.
He finished 4L shutout innings with six strikeouts as the Red Sox became the first team this spring to hold the Braves scoreless.
“Got back to my roots today, focused on throwing a good two-seam and a slider off that,” he said. “Threw some really good splits throughout the whole outing. That’s obviously the pitch I’ve been working on the most, just trying to bring it up to elite caliber. For me, a lot of progress and continuing to grow.”
Houck struggled throwing strikes earlier this spring, but was hitting 97 mph while continuing to throw a slider that looks almost Chris Sale-like, but from the righthand slide. It’s a pitch that’s long made Houck a prospect, and one that helped him carve up big leaguers in three brilliant starts last season (17 innings, 21 strikeouts, 0.53 ERA).
“I know my sinker/slider combo is my bread and butter,” Houck said. “That’s my go-to. I’ve done that for years and had a lot of success that way and continue to stay that way. I’ve been talking with (pitching coach Dave Bush), been talking to everyone just going out there to continue to adapt and evolve. It’s been nice having a lot of amazing people around me to lead me in that direction.”
Despite Houck’s powerful stuff, the Red Sox appear committed to using Martin Perez (MLB-worst 5.30 ERA over the last three seasons) and Nick Pivetta (career 5.40 ERA) in their rotation to start the year.
Houck has already been optioned to Triple-A Worcester to begin his season at the alternate site.
Even with Eduardo Rodriguez missing his Opening Day start due to a case of dead arm, it remains uncertain if Houck will be needed at the big league level early on.
“Obviously he’s an option,” Cora said. “We know what’s going on and as far as like Eduardo, where we’re gonna go with him and all that stuff, so there’s a chance he can be part of this.”