GIDDY-UP:

Beckett’s booming (Jeff Horrigan, March 17, 2006, Boston Herald)

The look on Torii Hunter’s face when he couldn’t catch up to an exploding, two-strike fastball in the second inning of the Red Sox’ 4-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins at City of Palms Park yesterday was all Terry Francona needed to see to realize that Josh Beckett was nearly ready for the regular season.

“The best I can put it is I’m glad he’s in our uniform,” Francona said. “I thought he looked strong and he had to work a little bit, which is good. He threw a couple of good changeups and his fastball had a lot of life. You saw Torii Hunter turn around and say, ‘This has got a little extra giddy-up on it.’ ”