What do "They" think then?

Brayton had an "exceptional year" last season, says his minor league pitching coach Bill Slack. With the ability to keep the ball down that experience brings, Slack says, Brayton "has a shot" at the majors. Bill Slack is a typical coach.

He's been with the Sox for 25 years, and like most pitching coaches, lectured for fifteen minutes on the virtues of "keeping the ball down." That's everything: Slack keeps charts of hard-hit balls, whether they're caught or not, and when he shows them to pitchers it is proven that for every one low ball, five above-belt pitches get just that--belted. The pitchers tend to respond by saying, "I know." "If I had ten pitchers standing in front of me now, I'd tell all of them the same thing--keep the ball low."

In Slack's estimation, Brayton is a much better pitcher than he gives himself credit for. For example, his fastball is not weak, but "average. (About 86 1/2 mph.) He has a "deceptive motion, kind of herky-jerky," and though he "didn't have a curve ball" when he came out of Harvard, he's got one now that's "quick and tight." This is in addition to good off-speed pitches and a fine slider. All in all, "Rox doesn't have much more to work on."

When Slack was managing Bristol to a Double A championship at the end of last season, he "never hesitated to bring him in--if it's a 2-2 ball game, or 3-3--and that'll tell you how good he is." The formula for these things is usually having two good back-to-back years in the minors. If Brayton performs well for Bristol this year--or for Pawtucket, where he could go in mid-season--then he's ready for the big leagues.

There's only one thing running against him--the fact that left-handed pitchers have never been a prize commodity in Fenway Park with its short left field wall, and the staff only retains one starter who's a leftie, and two or three relievers. Three pitchers (Craig Skoke, Steve Baar, Roger Moret) have vacated with only one left-handed acquisition (Tom House), but the minor league pitching "is the best we've ever had, all the way down through the organization," according to Slack and his 25 years. His future might be with another team, particularly if he has a good year, in which case he'll be drafted unless the new lefties above Brayton in the hierarchy fold up. Slack just hopes Brayton in the hierarchy fold up. Slack just hopes Brayton doesn't get depressed about it, because "he's not so old for how well he's doing in the organization." So who can say? "It's sort of selfish," says the coach. "It's not what he wants, but what we need. If we have a space for him, we'll use him."