THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHICAGO — Knuckleballer Tim Wakefield will start Saturday for Boston against the Chicago White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field.
Wakefield, 11-3 with a 4.12 earned-run average in 18 starts this season, will be making just his second start since July 8. He has been bothered by a sore back.
Boston manager Terry Francona said Friday that Wakefield threw the ball well during a bullpen session a day earlier and was feeling healthy enough to pitch the second game of a four-game series.
"If he threw and came in this morning and said `Hey, you know what, this is not good,’ then we wouldn’t do that," Francona said. "We know what we’re dealing with. He might not be able to take the ball every five days. We know that; he knows that. So we’ll just kind of see how he does."
Reliever Junichi Tazawa was originally slated to make Saturday’s start, but will instead be available out of the bullpen.
