Red Sox Notes: Reyes Arrives, Francona Talks Bullpen
FORT MYERS, Fla. (CBS) - Lefty Dennys Reyes finally made it to the Red Sox spring training complex in Fort Myers, Florida on Saturday, the same day the Red Sox will be in split squad action in traditional match-ups against Boston College and Northeastern University.
Reyes, who signed a minor league deal with the Sox earlier this month, had trouble reporting to camp from Mexico due to a visa issue, but apparently he's ready to go.
"He's had about two or three long days, trying to travel, the obstacles of getting here, so we'll just kind of gauge where he is," said Red Sox manager Terry Francona.
Francona spoke to WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Jonny Miller about Reyes and the bullpen.
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Reyes was 3-1 with a 3.55 ERA in 59 games with the Cardinals last season, but strangely struggled against lefthanded batters, who hit .307 against him. Over Reyes's career, lefties hit at a .239 clip against him.
"Last year it was backwards for whatever reason, and as guys throw, that tends to show itself. Why? Well, he's always been real tough on lefties. One year in Minnesota...he just undressed lefties. It was like hits were nonexistent, so again, that's what the hope is," said Francona.
Reyes joins several other lefties, including mainstay Hideki Okajima and newcomer Andrew Miller, who are trying to fill the final two spots in the bullpen. Francona said having two lefties in a bullpen can be beneficial.
"If you have two good lefties, it's really helpful," said. "With a second lefty, you don't beat up the first lefty."
While he's open to the idea, Francona isn't necessarily sold on it.
"Well we'd certainly consider two, but what we'd like to do is just take the best bullpen," said Francona.
