BOSTON -- Anytime Clay Buchholz opens his mouth lately to talk about his role in the organization, people listen. It's hard not to -- the pitcher is tearing up Triple-A, and yet he can't get into the big leagues because there are no spots in Boston. He has generally been reserved in speaking about the situation, but some have chewed on some recent comments as a sign of greater frustration.

"There's nowhere to go, and it's sort of a logjam up there. Whenever they come to a problem, they seem like they find a way to fix it without me being in the picture. It is what it is -- it's frustrating at times," Buchholz said in an interview on NECN last week.

The comment is not measurably different from what Buchholz has said many times before, publicly, but it has gotten traction on radio talk shows.

Monday, PawSox manager Ron Johnson dismissed the line as unimportant. On Tuesday, Red Sox manager Terry Francona did the same, saying it was a throwaway comment and no big deal.

"There was one line in there, out of a really mature interview," Francona said. "I actually watched that interview, and I thought there was one throwaway line in there that is getting a lot of attention, over a pretty mature kid," Francona said.

"If you go down and ask 25 guys in Pawtucket, which one of them do you think is going to say, 'I don't want to go to the big leagues'? I mean, seriously, who do you think would do that? Whoever says that, we don't want him," Francona said.

Buchholz, 24, is 4-0 with a 1.75 ERA in 11 starts for Pawtucket. But because of the glut of starting pitching in the organization, there is simply no spot for him in the majors. He exists as one of baseball's best insurance policies.

"Kid's pitching his [rear] off. That's part of what we tell these guys in spring training. 'Do your job, if you can really help us, you'll help us. It might not be on your timetable. That's just the way the game is,' " Francona said.

After blowing onto the scene in 2007 and throwing a no-hitter in his second major league start, Buchholz regressed badly in 2008. His maturity was quietly questioned by some in the organization, and many now believe that the time in Triple-A has been good for him.

He has generally proven, with his patience, that he isn't the same kid from 2008, Francona implied.

"I think Buck is maturing rapidly, and handling a situation that maybe he wouldn't have been able to in the past," Francona said.

dbarbari@projo.com