Despite making his first start and appearance in right field since July 2, 2010, Adrian Gonzalez — a first baseman — wasn't daunted by the challenge. And in the fourth inning, he proved as much by making a sliding grab in foul territory.
"It's one of those things that's going on as you're taking a peek at the ball," Gonzalez said. "You have one chance to peek at the ball and get back to the ball because you don't want to lose sight of the ball while you're trying to figure out the fence.
"I knew where I was when I took my last peek toward the wall, and I knew that once I stepped on dirt, I had to go for the slide. When I stepped on dirt, that's when I went for the slide to stop my momentum."
On that play, Gonzalez hauled down the putout like a polished outfielder. But he downplayed the difficulty of the sequence, explaining that he played "30 to 40 games" in the outfield in previous seasons of winter ball.
"It's been a while," Gonzalez said. "But I always tell people fly balls are only bad hops."
Like Gonzalez, David Ortiz — who is usually restricted to designated hitting duties — shined at first base. As a result of shedding roughly 20 pounds in the offseason, Ortiz moved around the infield like a gazelle.
"Made all the plays," Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine said of Ortiz. "Looked like an easy play on the grounder, but he knew what he had to do there. He can play first."
Jon Lester was charged with the lone fielding error after misfiring on a throw to Ortiz at first base.
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