Baseball

Red Sox hoping Merced’s Fister can replicate 2011 magic

Merced native Doug Fister, shown pitching for the Houston Astros in 2016, will be part of the first class inducted into the Golden Valley High Hall of Fame.
Merced native Doug Fister, shown pitching for the Houston Astros in 2016, will be part of the first class inducted into the Golden Valley High Hall of Fame. AP

Boston Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, perhaps trying to recapture a little of the magic pitcher Doug Fister provided the Detroit Tigers in 2011, claimed the former Golden Valley High School and Fresno State product off waivers Friday.

Dombrowski was the general manager in Detroit and acquired the 6-foot-8, 210-pound right-hander in a trade from Seattle for the 2011 stretch run. Fister went 8-1 with a 1.79 ERA in 10 starts and helped the Tigers reach the American League Championship Series, where they fell to the Texas Rangers.

Fister, who was granted his release from the Anaheim Angels on Wednesday, joins a Red Sox team that is tied with the New York Yankees for the lead in the American League’s East Division. He’ll be part of a rotation that includes David Price, Chris Sale and Rick Porcello, his former teammate in Detroit.

Fister, who is 77-76 with a 3.60 ERA in eight big-league seasons that has also included stops in Washington and Houston, had his best season in 2014 when he was 16-6 with a 2.41 ERA for the Nationals.

Fister went 10-10 in 2012 and helped the Tigers reach the World Series, where they were swept by the San Francisco Giants.

This season, Fister made three starts with the Angels’ Triple-A club, the Salt Lake Bees, and was 1-0 with a 4.02 ERA.

This story was originally published June 23, 2017 at 1:39 PM with the headline "Red Sox hoping Merced’s Fister can replicate 2011 magic."

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