One way or another, struggling Sox second baseman Mark Bellhorn, who jammed his thumb last night, could be out of the lineup for some time.

01:00 AM EDT on Monday, July 18, 2005

BY SEAN McADAM
Journal Sports Writer

BOSTON -- Even before Mark Bellhorn suffered a sprained left thumb in the Red Sox' 5-3 loss to the New York Yankees, there were signs that his tenure as the team's second baseman was in danger of coming to an end.

Last summer's top draft pick, second baseman Dustin Pedroia, continues to move up the organizational ladder at a rapid pace, and the chances seemed better than even that a late-summer callup was in the offing.

Beyond Pedroia, however, there were other moves being made. A last-minute lineup change took place at Double A Portland Saturday, with Hanley Ramirez, the organization's most prized position player, switched at the last minute from shortstop to second base. Ramirez was scheduled to play second base again yesterday for the Sea Dogs.

The reason? Pedroia has been bothered by a jammed wrist and with Bellhorn struggling to hold onto his job, the last thing the Red Sox want is to bring him to the major leagues 13 months after he was selected from Arizona State and watch him struggle because of health issues.

Toward that end, the Red Sox want Ramirez, their most athletic player, to get some exposure to the position, giving them another option.

Internally, the Red Sox were prepared to give Bellhorn until the end of the month to snap out of a season-long funk at the plate. His .216 average is among the lowest of all American League regulars and his 108 strikeouts lead the league; the next closest player heading into yesterday was Seattle's Richie Sexson, who at least balanced his total with 20 home runs.

Bellhorn's struggles have been even more pronounced at home, where it seems he's been bothered by the booing that greets his every strikeout. At Fenway this year, Bellhorn is hitting just .170 with an OPS of .561.

For the first few months, the Sox have been patient with Bellhorn, who was a big contributor to last year's title team, both in the regular season and then, after a slow start, the postseason.

But the deeper into the season they get, the harder it is to ignore Bellhorn's ineptitude. This weekend in particular, Bellhorn seemed to be a drag on the team's offense.

In the series opener, he flied out with runners on first and second in the first, then fanned in the sixth with one out and runners at the corners. Saturday, though he homered off Randy Johnson in the third, he later struck out with the bases loaded in the fourth, then struck out again in the sixth with a baserunner on first and one out.

Last night, he was hitless in his first two trips before leaving the game with his injury.

After the loss, the Sox were mulling options. A determination on his status won't be made until today, but the Sox' choices are several.

They could promote Pedroia, though beyond questions about his wrist, there's the matter of placing him on the 40-man roster before they have to. The Sox are currently at the limit, and the team would have designate someone for assignment to create room.

Because he wasn't drafted out of college until last summer, the Sox don't have to protect him on the 40-man until next season. But circumstances may dictate that they do it sooner than planned.

They could double-jump Ramirez from Double A, but that has its share of risks, too. Ramirez has yet to dominate in the Eastern League, much less the International League. Bringing him to the big leagues so quickly could jeopardize his development, especially for a player who experienced some maturity issues early in his pro career.

Additionally, a scout watching Ramirez play second on Saturday night reported that the Dominican native bailed out on an incoming takeout slide at second and looked generally uneasy at the position.

That's to be expected. How smart would it be to bring him to the major leagues and ask him to play a position he's played twice.

The Sox could mull acquiring some players outside the organization. Already, there have been inquiries about utility types (Kansas City's Tony Graffanino), but the price -- before Bellhorn's injury, anyway -- was deemed too high.

Alfonso Soriano, of course, would represent a huge upgrade, and the Texas Rangers are known to be shopping him. But he would cost two of the team's top prospects, a sacrifice they aren't willing to make with the inexpensive Pedroia so close to contributing.

If Bellhorn's thumb responds under closer examination today, the Sox could well get by for a few days with newcomer Alex Cora. But if the thumb threatens to sideline him for any length of time, it will serve to advance a timetable for change that was already set in motion.