After Danny Tartabull went 0 for 4 Friday, dropping his batting average to .091, Sox manager Terry Bevington said he plans to rest him Saturday or Sunday and then return him to the lineup.
Basically, Bevington said, he’ll stick to a set lineup. But he stressed the need for contributions from non-starters when they get their chances. “You can’t change the lineup every week. The club spent the off-season getting the players it wanted. But you can’t win with just 25 players either. You need 32.”
Bevington used Jose Munoz’s key 10th-inning pinch single and Lyle Mouton’s game-winning home run on Thursday as examples of how non-starters can help.
Munoz, 28 and a 10-year veteran of the minor leagues, joined the Sox after Norberto Martin was injured. His single Thursday came on his first major-league at-bat.
Other items: Frank Thomas singled Friday to stretch his hitting streak to nine games. . . . Dave Martinez’s fifth-inning single was his 900th big-league hit.
