Worth noting

• Melvin confirmed that first baseman Kyle Blanks strained his left calf muscle during Friday night's game. The platooning, right-handed-hitting Blanks, however, would seem to be a fair bet to start Sunday against Red Sox left-hander Jon Lester.

• There is no timetable for the return of lefty starter Drew Pomeranz, who broke his right hand. Pomeranz will be able to keep his left arm in pitching shape, Melvin said, until he's able to return to action.

• Melvin said upcoming off-days on Monday and Thursday of next week could affect his rotation. He said he would have an announcement on Sunday. Left-handed starter Brad Mills, who made his A's debut Friday night, could stay with the team even if his turn in the rotation is skipped.

• Melvin commented on the two-hit debut of third baseman Matt Chapman, the A's first pick in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft, who started with the Rookie level Arizona League A's on Friday night.

"Obviously we drafted him for a reason," the skipper said. "The guys that come out of college and are drafted high are usually on a quicker track to the big leagues. My guess is that'll be the case with him. We do have a pretty good third baseman in the big leagues right now, but depending on the timetable for him, we'll see. I know there are high expectations for him."

• Nick Punto's 4-year-old son, Nash, took batting practice and fielded grounders at third base before the A's started warmups. Nash Punto hit a couple of screamers off of bench coach Chip Hale.

• Outfield prospect Billy Burns, who is in his first year in the A's organization, stole his 35th base of the season for Double-A Midland on Friday night. Burns is 35-for-38 on the basepaths in 2014.

• Hall of Famer and former A's closer Dennis Eckersley, in town to do Red Sox TV analysis for NESN, threw out a one-hop ceremonial-first-pitch fastball to current A's closer Sean Doolittle before Saturday's game.