FORT MYERS, Fla. — “Ponche! Ponche! Ponche!”
On Thursday, the signature two-strike chant by fans of Team Venezuela throughout the World Baseball Classic echoed in a nearly empty JetBlue Park. With Ranger Suarez on the mound in a simulated game, one member of the organization took it upon himself to try to bump up the intensity of Suarez’s work against Red Sox minor leaguers.
The undertaking was unnecessary. Back in Sox camp, Suarez threw darts on the edges of the strike zone with a diverse mix — four-seamer, sinker, slider, curveball, changeup, cutter — in five simulated innings.
“The action on the pitches [was] great,” manager Alex Cora said, noting Suarez, who threw just 4⅔ innings in his two WBC starts, topped out at 92 miles per hour.
Over 20 plate appearances against minor leaguers, the lefthander struck out six with no walks while allowing six hits (five singles and a double, mostly on soft contact), and threw 49 of 61 pitches for strikes. He got 12 swings-and-misses.
“Everything was where I wanted it to be today,” said Suarez.
Suarez likely will start the Sox’ final Grapefruit League game next Tuesday. Cora said there are no concerns about whether Suarez will be ready to start in the team’s first turn of the rotation, though the team is still deciding which game in Houston he’ll start.
The team is likewise confident first baseman Willson Contreras, after limited playing time for Venezuela in the WBC, can get enough at-bats to be ready for Opening Day.
Mayer a maybe
While Cora committed to Caleb Durbin at third base, he stopped short of declaring Marcelo Mayer his Opening Day second baseman. But he came close.
“We’ll make a decision [at second base]. But Marcelo has played great,” said Cora. “The kid has been good.”
Cora expressed excitement about Mayer’s defense — “Defensively, there’s never a doubt with him” — and noted the 23-year-old was chasing fewer pitches at the plate.
Meanwhile, Andruw Monasterio appears the favorite to break camp as a utility infielder after Nick Sogard and Tsung-Che Cheng were optioned to Triple A Worcester. The team also reassigned four non-roster invitees — infielder Mikey Romero, outfielder Allan Castro, and utility players Max Ferguson and Tyler McDonough — to minor league camp.
WPBL recognized
Players in the Women’s Professional Baseball League preparing for its inaugural season held their first scrimmage at Fenway South. They were recognized on the field prior to the Red Sox facing the Twins in a Grapefruit League game, with Little League World Series legend Mo’ne Davis throwing out the first pitch to Sox coach Jason Varitek.
The WPBL has a Fort Myers predecessor that altered Sox history.
In 1995, the Colorado Silver Bullets — managed and coached by famed knuckleballers Phil and Joe Niekro — held their spring training in Fort Myers. When the Red Sox signed Tim Wakefield to a minor league deal after he’d been released by the Pirates, he worked with the Niekros to regain feel of his signature pitch, a partnership that served as a springboard to a spectacular 1995 season (16-8, 2.95 ERA) and the start of a 17-year run with the Sox.
Finally, Kahnle
Righthanded reliever Tommy Kahnle arrived in camp after his minor league agreement with the team became official. The possessor of a Bugs Bunny changeup, Kahnle had been pursued by the Red Sox in several prior offseasons, even acknowledging he went to sleep one night in December 2022 expecting to sign with the club, only to change his mind and sign with the Yankees when he woke up. Kahnle, 36, last pitched in a game for Team Israel in the WBC on March 12, and hopes to get in a contest by this weekend … The Sox released six players from minor league camp, most notably 21-year-old infielder Fraymi De Leon, who had been signed for a $1.2 million bonus in 2022. De Leon, who topped out in Double A, showed solid infield defense but never gained traction as a hitter.
Alex Speier can be reached at alex.speier@globe.com. Follow him @alexspeier.