Julian Tavares takes his 5-7 record and 4.97 ERA to the mound tonight for the Boston Red Sox. Tavares got the starting job in late March when Jonathan Papelbon was moved back to the closer. Did anyone think Tavares would hang on this long as a starter?

He has not exactly shined, but he has kept the Red Sox in games. However, in his last 3 starts, Tavares is 0-3. He did not make it out of the fifth inning in two of those games, and not out of the sixth in the other.

Meanwhile, Jon Lester makes another start for Pawtucket tonight. Lester (3-4, 3.62) has had some rough starts, although he went seven innings the last time out (4 hits, 3 walks, 2 earned runs, 5 strikeouts).

So what is taking the Red Sox so long in promoting Lester? The easy answer is that they don't have to, with such a big lead in the American League East. Why rush Lester?

The belief here is that Boston wants Lester as strong as he can be. Recovering from cancer and cancer treatments is not exactly like coming back from a muscle strain.

Lester, by the way, will be opposing Syracuse starter Mike MacDonald, the Camden native who is 2-6 with a 4.77 ERA.

One more minor league note: Remember the name of Ryan Kalish, 19, a ninth-round draft pick out of high school last year. Kalish hit two home runs for the Lowell Spinners Thursday. In 20 games, he's batting .329 with 3 homers, 12 RBI and 14 stolen bases.

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