PORTLAND – Hope springs eternal on Opening Day. Offense, however, is sometimes tough to come by.

Five Connecticut pitchers combined to limit the Portland Sea Dogs to just four hits in Thursday night’s Eastern League opener and the Defenders trumped Junichi Tazawa’s professional debut with a 3-0 shutout. Yet the Sea Dogs and Boston Red Sox fans among the 5,719 in attendance at Hadlock Field had reason to leave optimistic.

Tazawa took the loss, but showed why the Red Sox signed him to a three-year major league contract, even though his pitching resume consisted only of a four-year stint in the amateur Japan Industrial League. He topped out at 93 MPH on the radar gun while striking out seven and giving up a run and four hits in his five innings of work. He showed poise by working out of a couple of jams, but may have staved off comparisons to his notoriously nibbling countryman, Daisuke Matsuzaka, for at least one start with a fairly efficient 66-pitch, one walk performance. He threw 44 strikes, but also hit a batter and was called for a balk.

“He pitched well,” Sea Dogs manager Arnie Beyeler said. “He worked ahead of guys and he was aggressive. He goes out and pitches five innings and gives up just one run, he’s going to be fine if he keeps doing that.”

Tazawa termed his outing “so-so” through interpreter Kiyoshi Otani.

“I gave up easy base hits, doubles and triples,” said Tazawa, who had a half-dozen members of the Japanese media following him.

The lone walk ended up spoiling the 22-year-old righthander’s night, though. Eddy Martinez-Esteve took the free pass with one out in the fourth, moved to second on a ground out, then scored when Brett Pill ripped a 1-2 pitch along the left field line for a double, one of three extra base hits yielded by Tazawa.

Tazawa escaped his first jam as a Sea Dog in the second. Bobby Felmy ripped his first pitch of the frame into the gap in left-center for a double. Tazawa fanned Pill looking and Andrew D’Alessio swinging, and after balking Felmy to third, snagged a hard grounder back to him to escape.

In what turned out to be its best chance on the night, Portland left the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning against Connecticut starter Daryl Maday, who allowed two hits and two walks in four innings.

Mike Musgrave got the win with 1 1/3 innings of hitless relief. Musgrave, Ben Snyder, Joe Paterson and Daniel Otero, who picked up the save, combined to scatter two hits in five innings of relief.

“They worked ahead in the count and … really pounded the outside part of the plate,” Beyeler said. “We had a chance early in the game with the bases loaded and two outs. Other than that, we didn’t get (any) people to third base all night. You have to tip your cap to them. They outpitched us.”

“We like to get guys out of there on a positive, especially early in the season when we’re looking to build confidence,” Defenders manager Steve Decker said.

Tazawa left on a positive after pitching out of trouble in the fifth. After surrendering a lead-off triple to Mike Mooney, he struck out David Maroul and Jackson Williams, then retired Brad Boyer on a pop fly to third.

“He showed the ability to minimize a big inning and cut down a threat before it really became a threat,” Sea Dogs pitching coach Mike Cather said. “I’m real happy with his abilities and his ability to adjust.”

“He shouldn’t be in this league. He’s better than this league,” Decker said. “He’s throwing 93 MPH with a 2-0 breaking ball for a strike to the No. 8 hitter (Maroul) and throwing 3-1 breaking balls for strikes. He’s got stuff. He’s good. He’s legit.”

Mooney doubled the Defenders’ lead with a solo homer off reliever Dustin Richardson in the sixth. They tacked on another run in the eighth on Brian Bocock’s RBI single off Bryce Cox.

Notes: Pregame festivities included a moment of silence for Judy Bray and Harold “Top Dog” Lucas, two longtime employee of the Sea Dogs. Lucas, a well-known umpire, coach and fan from Auburn, died in February at 80. Sea Dogs fans may remember him best as being the first face they saw inside the entrance of Hadlock Field, where he would be selling programs. Bray served as the Sea Dogs’ office manager from 1994-2008 … Former Sea Dog John Nathans threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Nathans spent parts of the 2003 and 2004 seasons in Portland. His career came to an abrupt end on Aug. 4, 2007, when he was struck in the head with a baseball bat by former Red Sox second baseman Jose Offerman during an on-field incident. Nathans suffered permanent head injuries as a result and has not returned to baseball since … Red Sox blood certainly runs through the Sea Dogs. Of the 24 players on Portland’s roster, 23 were either signed or drafted by the Red Sox. Catcher Juan Apodaca was acquired in a trade with the Reds in December, 2007.