Red Sox starter Daisuke Matsuzaka, making his first appearance in Triple-A Pawtucket on his rehab assignment while working his way back from Tommy John surgery last June, tossed 4 2/3 scoreless innings while allowing two hits (a single and double) and three walks while striking out four. Left-handed hitters were 0-for-9 against him. Matsuzaka required 87 pitches and threw 49 (56.3 percent) for strikes.
The outing was the third of Matsuzaka's rehab assignment. He previously appeared in High-A Salem (4 innings, 3 runs, 3 strikeouts, no walks) and Double-A Portland (4 2/3 innings, 1 run, 7 strikeouts, 2 walks). The right-hander had been slated for a rehab appearance on Friday, but that was pushed back by three days due to an issue on the left side of his neck.
Overall, in his three starts, Matsuzaka has a 2.84 ERA, 14 strikeouts and five walks in 12 2/3 innings. He has yet to pitch five complete innings, though he did reach a rehab-high in his pitch count on Monday. Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine had said that Matsuzaka was likely to need at least one additional rehab start beyond Monday night's. Conceivably, he could make as many as three additional starts within the 30-day window of his rehab clock.
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