Red Sox minor lines: The Justin Masterson threat draws near

Pawtucket W 2-1

Jackie Bradley Jr.: 0-3
Allen Craig: 0-4, 3 K
Travis Shaw: 2-4, K
Garin Cecchini: 1-3, 2B, BB, K

Justin Masterson: 6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K

So that's a great line for Masterson, but as Matt Collins mentioned earlier, stats can be deceiving in this case. I've said it so many times before that I may risk being mistaken for a broken record, but as a pitcher who has never been particularly good at locating, Masterson needs his velocity to survive. The only thing that makes his frisbee sliders productive when he can't throw it for strikes is the threat of a fastball. And an 86 MPH fastball is no threat at all.

Portland L 1-5

Carlos Asuaje: 0-4, 2 K

Salem L 2-6

Manuel Margot: 0-4
Sam Travis: 0-2, 2 BB
Wendell Rijo: 0-4

Teddy Stankiewicz: 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
Williams Jerez: 3 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K

Not exactly a bounce-back start for Teddy Stankiewicz, but certainly better than his last outing, and really there's nothing about his season-to-date that's particularly out of the ordinary. The ERA is a little high, yes, but we should probably just shrug our shoulders and look past it. If he can keep on throwing strikes without getting completely destroyed, there'll be a place for him in the majors.

Greenville W 3-2 (In 10)

Rafael Devers: 0-4, K
Nick Longhi: 2-4
Yoan Moncada: 0-4, 3 K
Michael Chavis: 2-3

Mid-season prospect rankings are not far off at this point, and it will be interesting to see where Yoan Moncada falls after such a rough beginning to his minor league career. Scouts will certainly give him the benefit of the doubt for a while, but it would not be surprising to see him drop some, and if he can't turn it around in 2015, some pressure will be on for the year to come.