ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Bobby Poyner was warming up on Opening Day, but manager Alex Cora never used him, not even when the platoon advantage could’ve been given to the Red Sox against lefty-hitting Denard Span.
Instead, Carson Smith faced Span and gave up a bases-clearing triple that led to the Sox’ 6-4 loss.
But warming up in a big league game for the first time was helpful to get Poyner comfortable, he said. And last night he made his major league debut in the seventh inning of the Red Sox’ 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.