Red Sox Minor Lines: Michael Chavis can’t be stopped

Pawtucket W 5-3

Aneury Tavarez: 0-5, 2 K, 1 E

Rusney Castillo: 1-4, 1 HR, 1 R, 2 RBI

Brock Holt: 0-3, 1 BB, 2 K

Pablo Sandoval: 1-3

Steve Selsky: 1-3, 1 BB, 1 R, 2 K

Brian Johnson: 7.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K

Austin Maddox: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K

Johnson came through with a solid start on a day the team could use one, with David Price needing at least one more rehab start. It wasn’t the best of starts, but after Hector Velazquez struggled in his major-league debut and Henry Owens continues to be unable to harness his control, Johnson still seems to be the best option. Meanwhile, Maddox makes his Triple-A debut after a promotion to Pawtucket while Holt and Sandoval continue to progress on their rehab assignments.

Portland W 5-2 (F/14)

Danny Mars: 2-5, 1 3B, 2 BB, 1 R, 1 RBI, 2 K

Josh Tobias: 2-5, 1 2B, 1 BB, 1 RBI, 2 K

Rafael Devers: 1-5, 1 BB, 1 RBI, 1 K

Nick Longhi: 2-7, 2 K

Tzu-Wei Lin: 0-0, 1 R

Luis Ysla: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 0 K

Jake Cosart: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K

Nothing super interesting going on in this one, which gives me a chance to talk a little bit about Mars. The outfielder has become my favorite player on this team. Another Red Sox player on the shorter side, all he does is hit line drives. The ceiling isn’t huge here, and he’s probably not more than a fourth outfielder, but he’s good for solid contact and plus athleticism on the bases. Plus, he can play a fine center field. Mars is an interesting, under-the-radar guy.

Salem W 9-2

Michael Chavis: 3-4, 1 2B, 2 HR, 1 BB, 3 R, 3 RBI, 1 K

Josh Ockimey: 1-4, 1 R, 1 RBI

Trenton Kemp: 4-5, 1 2B, 2 R, 1 K

I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Chavis is turning into a pretty good prospect after a few disappointing years following his selection in the first round of the 2014 draft. Saturday was just another in a long list of games in which he has owned High-A pitching.

Greenville W 9-3

Jagger Rusconi: 1-5 1 2B, 1 K

Tyler Hill: 2-5, 2 R, 1 K

Lorenzo Cedrola: 2-4

Darwinzon Hernandez: 3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 K

This wasn’t the prettiest of outings for Hernandez, who has mostly impressed in his first full season. Still, he was only at 56 pitches after throwing between 80 and 90 in most of his outings this year, so it’s not clear why he was lifted so early. Hopefully it was just that he was scuffling and the team didn’t want to keep throwing him out there, and not because of an injury.