Sox recall Alvarez from Pawtucket

BOSTON -- The Red Sox recalled left-hander Abe Alvarez from Triple-A Pawtucket on Saturday after placing right-handed reliever Matt Mantei on the disabled list with a sprained left ankle.

This is Alvarez's second promotion to the Red Sox, which is pretty impressive, considering he was drafted in June 2003.

He hopes he'll last longer than one day this time around. On July 22, 2004, Alvarez was recalled from Double-A Portland to start the first game of a doubleheader against the Orioles. He suffered an 8-3 loss, but impressed the team with his poise.

Alvarez, 22, returns as a more confident pitcher who has expanded his horizons.

"I've started to throw a cutter," he said. "That's something that me and the organization wanted to work on, that's been really working for me getting me out of tough situations."

Though he's almost always been a starting pitcher, he didn't seem too worried about adapting to life in the bullpen.

"I have to change my mentality, knowing I might come in during an inning with guys on base," said Alvarez. "I did it in college with Team USA and stuff like that. It's exciting. If that's what they want me to do, I'll take the challenge and go after it."