Josh Tomlin Out, Zach McAllister In For Tonight's Game

Josh Tomlin was scheduled to pitch against Felix Doubront in Saturday night's contest at Fenway, but due to a sore wrist, he is having his start skipped. In his place, the Indians called up right-hander Zach McAllister.

Tomlin has been Cleveland's most productive starter this year, thanks to his impeccable control and a league-average strikeout rate. McAllister, acquired by the Indians in 2010 as part of the Austin Kearns trade with the Yankees, has not seen the same kind of success in the majors, but repeat visits at Triple-A have produced quality numbers nonetheless.

In his time with Columbus, McAllister has struck out 7.4 batters per nine, against 2.1 free passes per nine. His peripherals in his five major-league starts look similar, but the difference in ERA (3.53 in Triple-A, 5.32 with Cleveland) is larger.

Speaking of large, McAllister is 6-foot-6 and 240 lbs. of right-hander. You would think there would be some downward plane to his pitches because of this, but in the majors and high minors, he hasn't had very much luck with using that to induce grounders. With the way the Red Sox have been hitting, and in Fenway Park, that could be dangerous for McAllister tonight.