May 10, 2012 at 7:18 PM
Melancon gets aggressive in Pawtucket
Mark Melancon came to Boston with big expectations this spring. After posting a 2.78 ERA and 20 saves with the Astros in 2011, the Red Sox traded both Jed Lowrie and Kyle Weiland to Houston to bring the reliever to Boston, with the plan that Melancon would serve as the club’s primary set-up man. But the season didn’t start off as planned. In 4 games with the Red Sox, Melancon faced 18 batters, recording just 6 outs, and allowing 10 hits, 5 home runs, and 11 earned runs in the process. He was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket on April 18.
That’s the bad news. The good news is that Melancon has been outstanding since arriving with the PawSox, seemingly regaining some of the confidence that appeared to be missing during his time with the Red Sox.