Red Sox' Doubront Nervous To Hit For First Time
BOSTON (CBS) - Felix Doubront will get the start for the Boston Red Sox Wednesday night in Miami, but he will be in a very unfamiliar spot when not on the mound: the batter's box.
When Doubront would normally be resting on the Sox' bench between innings, he'll have to worry about his upcoming time at the plate. On Wednesday, the left hander will get his first major league at-bat, with the team in the middle of a six-game, interleague road trip.
"Seriously, I'm nervous to hit," Doubront told WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Jon Miller Tuesday afternoon in Miami. "But I'm going to do my best. What's going to happen is going to happen. I'm not that comfortable hitting the ball, but I'm going to do my job."
Read: Red Sox-Marlins Preview
The 24-year-old said he is a confident bunter, and will do his best when standing in the batter's box. However, his main focus will remain on the mound, and he will not let the thought of his at-bats get in the way of that.
"I'm just going to try when I'm hitting; whether they say bunt or swing," he said. "I'll be more focused on pitching though, that is the main thing."
Doubront will look to bounce back from his worst performance of the season, lasting just four innings and allowing six earned runs in a loss to the Washington Nationals last Friday night at Fenway. Those kind of starts have not been common for the Sox' fifth starter this season, as he's put together a 6-3 record with a 4.34 ERA.
Read: Buchholz On A Role For Sox
Doubront chalked his bad outing up to simply having a bad day.
"I was feeling good, it was just a bad day," he said. "If you throw the ball up in the zone, you're going to get bit every time you throw it. That was the first thing I was thinking about and looking forward to my next start. Keep the ball down and just pitch."
As for Red Sox pitchers at the plate, they are a combined 1-for-12, with Josh Beckett accounting for their only hit (1-for-5).
