I hope everyone braced for impact because the Red Sox have come crashing down to earth. Of course they do it at home against a team that plays horrible against just about everyone else, the White Sox. It seems like they lower the team is in the standings, the worse the Red Sox play against them. Irony or poor level of motivation?
One of the things that make this Red Sox team so streaky is the pitching, both starting and relief. The Red Sox staff ranks 9th out of 14 in the league in ERA, has the 4th most walks, and has hit the most batters. Those are not the numbers of a championship-caliber team. The hit batter numbers are disturbing because it just looks unprofessional to plunk your way through an opposing lineup. They're not hitting batters intentionally, rather they can't control where the ball goes when it comes out of their hand. Same with all the walks. Nothing like handing out free bases like they're candy on Halloween. Pitchers need to make hitters EARN their way on base. Why do the Red Sox pitchers struggle so much with command? I wish I knew. This happened under Farrell and it's happening under Young, so I don't think it has much to do with the pitching coach. I would say it's the Dice-K effect, but it wouldn't be fair to blame all the pitchers' command issues on one guy. However, it seems his style is rubbing off on his fellow moundsmen, whether they notice it or want to admit it or not. All pitchers struggle with command at some point, but the Red Sox staff's numbers show they do it more often than most of the other teams in the league.
While I understand that it was impossible to keep up the hot streak they had going last week, it's disappointing to see them regress all the way back to the way they were playing in early April, and against a team they should be able to beat easily. It's as if they are collectively suffering from Bipolar Disorder. The way they swing wildly from playing awesome baseball to playing a kind of ball that would make little-leaguers cringe makes it anyone's guess where they'll be at season's end. Like the saying goes, it could go either way.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Friday, May 27, 2011
Worst To First
In the dark, dismal early weeks of the season, the Red Sox at one point had not only the worst record in the division and the league, but the worst record in major league baseball. The light had not yet come on and the team looked fragmented and befuddled. If they were hitting, they weren't pitching. If they were pitching, they weren't hitting. When runners were in scoring position, they were going to stay there, marooned on the bases when 3 outs had been recorded. In other words, they were getting on base, but they were staying on base.
It is now Memorial Day weekend and during the month of May, the Red Sox have come charging back. There were stumbling blocks in the early part of the month, namely getting to .500, but once they got out of the red, which they accomplished by sweeping the Yankees in The Bronx, they've gone on a tear, save for the May 21 bizarre "rapture" game and Monday night's loss in Cleveland. The bats have been smokin' hot and Aceves and Wake have filled in admirably for Lackey and Dice-K. Buchholz put his early season woes behind him and started to look like the guy who had the second-lowest ERA in the league last year. Lester scuffled a bit, but the bats had his back. Beckett has continued to be Commander Kick-Ass, taking the Kick-Ass to a whole new level. It will be next to impossible to maintain this torrid pace the Red Sox are on right now, but if they continue playing the kind of baseball we all know they are capable of--and stay healthy--they should stay at or near the top of the division from here on out.
Two more games with the Tigers remain and two of the Sox' best starters are scheduled to man the bump this weekend in Buchholz and Beckett. Keep on rolling, Red Sox! I may have vented a lot of frustration toward you guys when you were playing so far below your potential, but I kept watching. Now you've turned it around and become an exciting team to watch.
Crawford. Must. Bat. 6th.
If the last two games haven't answered the question of where Carl Crawford should bat in the Red Sox lineup, I don't know what will. Small sample size aside, Crawford is 8 for 9 in the 6-hole and the Sox have scored 14 runs in each game. Nooooo-brainer, right? Suffice it to say, I hope to see Crawford batting 6th again tonight, no matter how much they have to jigger the lineup to make it happen.
If Crawford's the star of the Red Sox' 4-touchdown, 2-game performance, it's worthwhile noting that, aside from his major-league teammates, two PawSox joined the run-scoring bonanza in Drew Sutton and Josh Reddick. Reddick was called up when D-Mac hit the DL yesterday and Sutton's been up since earlier this week, when the Sox swapped him out with Jose Iglesias to get the kid more consistent playing time. As various infielders have been dealing with short-term injuries (Youk and Pedey) or getting planned days off (Lowrie), Sutton has been filling in at second, third and short. He is responsible for 5 of the team's collective 36 hits over the twin slugfests and 3 RBI Reddick, who played in yesterday's game, went 3-for 5 with 3 RBI of his own. Crawford, by the way, knocked in 5 runs over the two games, to go with his 8 hits, and was a home run shy of a double cycle. Lacking the triple he needed for the cycle on Wednesday, he hit 2 of them yesterday. The breakdown of his 8 hits: 3 singles, 2 doubles, 2 triples, and a home run.
Here's how the rest of the team did:
Ellsbury: 5 for 7, 1 HR 4 RBI
Pedroia: 3 for 11, 1 HR 4 RBI
Gonzalez: 3 for 11, 2 RBI
Youkilis: 1 for 5 (only played in yesterday's game)
Ortiz: 4 for 9, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Lowrie: 0 for 5 (only played in Wednesday's game)
Cameron: 2 for 4, 1 RBI (only played in Wednesday's game)
Varitek: 1 for 5 (only played in yesterday's game)
Saltalamacchia: 2 for 4, 1 HR, 3 RBI (only played in Wednesday's game)
After back-to-back offensive explosions, however, it wouldn't surprise me if they struggled to score runs tonight. It also wouldn't surprise me if they continued raking. For Wake's sake, I hope the latter is true, so he can pick up another W. As of today, the Red Sox are in a virtual tie with the Yankees for first place in the division, with the Rays a game and a half behind. The division is still very tight and one win or loss by any of the 5 teams can give the standings a little shake-up.
If Crawford's the star of the Red Sox' 4-touchdown, 2-game performance, it's worthwhile noting that, aside from his major-league teammates, two PawSox joined the run-scoring bonanza in Drew Sutton and Josh Reddick. Reddick was called up when D-Mac hit the DL yesterday and Sutton's been up since earlier this week, when the Sox swapped him out with Jose Iglesias to get the kid more consistent playing time. As various infielders have been dealing with short-term injuries (Youk and Pedey) or getting planned days off (Lowrie), Sutton has been filling in at second, third and short. He is responsible for 5 of the team's collective 36 hits over the twin slugfests and 3 RBI Reddick, who played in yesterday's game, went 3-for 5 with 3 RBI of his own. Crawford, by the way, knocked in 5 runs over the two games, to go with his 8 hits, and was a home run shy of a double cycle. Lacking the triple he needed for the cycle on Wednesday, he hit 2 of them yesterday. The breakdown of his 8 hits: 3 singles, 2 doubles, 2 triples, and a home run.
Here's how the rest of the team did:
Ellsbury: 5 for 7, 1 HR 4 RBI
Pedroia: 3 for 11, 1 HR 4 RBI
Gonzalez: 3 for 11, 2 RBI
Youkilis: 1 for 5 (only played in yesterday's game)
Ortiz: 4 for 9, 1 HR, 1 RBI
Lowrie: 0 for 5 (only played in Wednesday's game)
Cameron: 2 for 4, 1 RBI (only played in Wednesday's game)
Varitek: 1 for 5 (only played in yesterday's game)
Saltalamacchia: 2 for 4, 1 HR, 3 RBI (only played in Wednesday's game)
After back-to-back offensive explosions, however, it wouldn't surprise me if they struggled to score runs tonight. It also wouldn't surprise me if they continued raking. For Wake's sake, I hope the latter is true, so he can pick up another W. As of today, the Red Sox are in a virtual tie with the Yankees for first place in the division, with the Rays a game and a half behind. The division is still very tight and one win or loss by any of the 5 teams can give the standings a little shake-up.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Payback Time
The last time the Red Sox left Progressive Field in Cleveland, they were demoralized after being swept by the Tribe, coming on the heels of being swept by the Rangers in the opening series of the 2011 season. Fast forward about 6 weeks to this afternoon, as the Sox left Cleveland after having taken 2 of 3 from the team with the best record in baseball so far and having just annihilated them to the tune of 14-2. After being beaten in the 8th inning on Monday night, the Sox proceeded to put the high-flying Cleveland Indians in their place with a win last night, courtesy of some 'Tek support, and today's aforementioned bludgeoning.
Though run support came by the boatload today, Lester returned to dominance after a 3-game slump where he gave up 4-5 runs each start. He tossed 6 shutout innings and fanned 7. He could have gone longer, having come out after 94 pitches, but the score was so lopsided by that time that there wasn't much point in running up his pitch count when they may need him to go deep in a much closer game in the future. He picked up his major-league leading 7th win of the season and improved to 7-1, bringing his ERA down from 3.42 to 3.36. His teammates gave him oodles of room to work with, putting up a 7-spot before he even took the mound.
All the starters in today's game, save for Jed Lowrie, had at least one hit. Carl Crawford lead the pack with a season-high 4 hits and was just a scoring decision away from hitting for the cycle. His second hit of the day had him reaching third on a ball that was not fielded cleanly by Shin Soo Choo in right, but with his speed, it's safe to say he might have even reached third if without the bobble by Choo. The hit was ruled a double and an error. He would go on to hit a dinger and another double, having hit a single in the first inning. Still, a 4-hit game is cause for celebration for the struggling Crawford, cycle or no.
Also going yard this afternoon were Papi, Pedey, and Salty. Pedey was 2 for 4 in his return to the lineup after a night off yesterday. Salty continues to rake, making the patient approach, despite the caterwauling of a large portion of Red Sox Nation, myself included, seem to be the wise one. Sox newbie Drew Sutton went 3 for 5, subbing for an injured Youk and Cam chipped in 2 hits as well, playing right field in place of JD Drew, whose hammy is barking. Like last Friday night against the Cubs, it was a good old-fashioned one-sided slugfest, otherwise known as in-game batting practice. When RemDawg and Don start talking about rugs, plugs, and hotel food, you know there's a blowout in progress.
Up next for the Red Sox: Motown, where they renew acquaintances with the Tigers (didn't we just see those guys, like, a week ago?). Aceves takes the mound tomorrow for his second start of the season. Let's hope he doesn't send anyone to the hospital this time! Wake goes on Friday, hoping to follow up on an excellent outing last Sunday against the Cubs. Buch and Beck are on the bump on Saturday and Sunday.
Though run support came by the boatload today, Lester returned to dominance after a 3-game slump where he gave up 4-5 runs each start. He tossed 6 shutout innings and fanned 7. He could have gone longer, having come out after 94 pitches, but the score was so lopsided by that time that there wasn't much point in running up his pitch count when they may need him to go deep in a much closer game in the future. He picked up his major-league leading 7th win of the season and improved to 7-1, bringing his ERA down from 3.42 to 3.36. His teammates gave him oodles of room to work with, putting up a 7-spot before he even took the mound.
All the starters in today's game, save for Jed Lowrie, had at least one hit. Carl Crawford lead the pack with a season-high 4 hits and was just a scoring decision away from hitting for the cycle. His second hit of the day had him reaching third on a ball that was not fielded cleanly by Shin Soo Choo in right, but with his speed, it's safe to say he might have even reached third if without the bobble by Choo. The hit was ruled a double and an error. He would go on to hit a dinger and another double, having hit a single in the first inning. Still, a 4-hit game is cause for celebration for the struggling Crawford, cycle or no.
Also going yard this afternoon were Papi, Pedey, and Salty. Pedey was 2 for 4 in his return to the lineup after a night off yesterday. Salty continues to rake, making the patient approach, despite the caterwauling of a large portion of Red Sox Nation, myself included, seem to be the wise one. Sox newbie Drew Sutton went 3 for 5, subbing for an injured Youk and Cam chipped in 2 hits as well, playing right field in place of JD Drew, whose hammy is barking. Like last Friday night against the Cubs, it was a good old-fashioned one-sided slugfest, otherwise known as in-game batting practice. When RemDawg and Don start talking about rugs, plugs, and hotel food, you know there's a blowout in progress.
Up next for the Red Sox: Motown, where they renew acquaintances with the Tigers (didn't we just see those guys, like, a week ago?). Aceves takes the mound tomorrow for his second start of the season. Let's hope he doesn't send anyone to the hospital this time! Wake goes on Friday, hoping to follow up on an excellent outing last Sunday against the Cubs. Buch and Beck are on the bump on Saturday and Sunday.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Soxpocalypse Now : Baseball Gods' Rapture Edition
The 1918 throwback uniforms may have been ugly, but they don't hold a candle to the 8th inning of tonight's game. Instead of ranting and raving, here's a passive-aggressive Top Ten list:
Top Ten Red Sox Excuses for 8th Inning Debacle
10. Now that we've gotten over .500, we have a new fear: first place!
9. That winning thing was getting really old.
8. Those really were sanitation workers on the field that inning.
7. We kinda felt sorry for those guys, having not won a World Series in like, a thousand years or something
6. Come on, it's not often you see a guy literally turn into a pumpkin on the mound. It's hard to throw strikes when you're a gourd with no arms.
5. Them Cubbies fans spiked our Red Bull with NyQuil.
4. They also replaced our gloves with oven mitts
3. Don't you know there's no trying in baseball?
2. Those blank uniforms were giving us another identity crisis.
1. It's the rapture, man! The baseball gods decided to save the Cubs instead of us, cuz, you know, at least they had their name on their uniforms.
On a serious note, I hope Marlon Byrd, who was beaned in the face by Aceves in the 2nd inning, is not seriously injured. I didn't see it happen, but he was taken to the hospital for observation.
Top Ten Red Sox Excuses for 8th Inning Debacle
10. Now that we've gotten over .500, we have a new fear: first place!
9. That winning thing was getting really old.
8. Those really were sanitation workers on the field that inning.
7. We kinda felt sorry for those guys, having not won a World Series in like, a thousand years or something
6. Come on, it's not often you see a guy literally turn into a pumpkin on the mound. It's hard to throw strikes when you're a gourd with no arms.
5. Them Cubbies fans spiked our Red Bull with NyQuil.
4. They also replaced our gloves with oven mitts
3. Don't you know there's no trying in baseball?
2. Those blank uniforms were giving us another identity crisis.
1. It's the rapture, man! The baseball gods decided to save the Cubs instead of us, cuz, you know, at least they had their name on their uniforms.
On a serious note, I hope Marlon Byrd, who was beaned in the face by Aceves in the 2nd inning, is not seriously injured. I didn't see it happen, but he was taken to the hospital for observation.
1918 Revisited...Sort Of
The Red Sox were scoring runs like there was no tomorrow (Rapture pun very much intended!), piling 15 on Chicago Cubs pitching. The only team to outdo them in the slugging department last night were my hometown Washington Nationals, who bludgeoned the O's 17-5. For the Sox, it was an offensive explosion exceeding all others so far this season and the first time they scored 10 or more runs in a game. They allowed Lester, who turned in his third sub-par start in a row, to pick up his team-leading 6th win of the season and cruised to their 7th straight win, a streak that began with sweeping the Yankees last weekend. Since their division rivals both lost, the Red Sox pulled to within a half game of first place and shoved the Yankees down to third.
This has been the kind of run the Red Sox have been waiting for all season and their ascension in the AL East standings is due to a surprising level of parity among the teams in the division. The Rays started out just as badly as the Sox, but picked up speed much sooner and started challenging the Yankees for the top spot in the latter weeks of April. The Yankees had their chances to pull away and put some distance between themselves and the rest of the division, but never capitalized, much to the delight and relief of Red Sox Nation. Consequently, the Red Sox have been able to catch up, despite an abysmal April and their seemingly endless struggles to reach .500. Now, the Sox need to keep the pedal to the metal and keep fighting for that top spot in the division. If they win tonight and the Rays lose, it's theirs for the taking.
Leading the hit parade in last night's game was Adrian Gonzalez, who went 4 for 6 with 4 RBI, putting him back in the lead for most RBI in the majors. Youk had 3 hits, including a 2-run blast off of Scott Maine in the 4th that put the Sox up 8-2 at the time. Ells also had 3 hits, including a 2 RBI double off of Maine. Salty was 2 for 4, going yard in the 5th. Pedey, Lowrie, and Papi each had 2 hits and Crawford had 1. The only starter not to get a hit was Mike Cameron, but he got on base twice via the walk and scored one run.
After Lester threw 6 innings and allowed the Cubs to score 5 runs, Scott Atchison came on and threw 3 scoreless frames to give his bullpen-mates some rest. With Aceves starting today and Wake tomorrow, the 'pen needs to be well rested.
This has been the kind of run the Red Sox have been waiting for all season and their ascension in the AL East standings is due to a surprising level of parity among the teams in the division. The Rays started out just as badly as the Sox, but picked up speed much sooner and started challenging the Yankees for the top spot in the latter weeks of April. The Yankees had their chances to pull away and put some distance between themselves and the rest of the division, but never capitalized, much to the delight and relief of Red Sox Nation. Consequently, the Red Sox have been able to catch up, despite an abysmal April and their seemingly endless struggles to reach .500. Now, the Sox need to keep the pedal to the metal and keep fighting for that top spot in the division. If they win tonight and the Rays lose, it's theirs for the taking.
Leading the hit parade in last night's game was Adrian Gonzalez, who went 4 for 6 with 4 RBI, putting him back in the lead for most RBI in the majors. Youk had 3 hits, including a 2-run blast off of Scott Maine in the 4th that put the Sox up 8-2 at the time. Ells also had 3 hits, including a 2 RBI double off of Maine. Salty was 2 for 4, going yard in the 5th. Pedey, Lowrie, and Papi each had 2 hits and Crawford had 1. The only starter not to get a hit was Mike Cameron, but he got on base twice via the walk and scored one run.
After Lester threw 6 innings and allowed the Cubs to score 5 runs, Scott Atchison came on and threw 3 scoreless frames to give his bullpen-mates some rest. With Aceves starting today and Wake tomorrow, the 'pen needs to be well rested.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Tigers Tamed
Carl Crawford strode to the plate in the bottom of the 9th with the sacks full and one out. After fouling off the first Al Albuquerque (yes, that's his name) pitch, he lined the second one to center over the head of Austin Jackson, who was playing shallow and in from third strode Darnell McDonald, pinch-running for Papi, with the winning run. For the third time this season, Crawford authored a walk-off victory! Despite a batting average far below his career norm, the new Sox left-fielder is earning a reputation for coming through in the clutch.
Going into the top of the 8th, it didn't appear a walk-off would be necessary to win tonight's game. The Sox were ahead 3-1, courtesy of two long balls off of Verlander by JD Drew and Papi. However, Daniel Bard was feeling extra-generous and Tiger-friendly, as he allowed the first two hitters he faced to take him yard. Poof! The Sox' 3-1 lead vanished before Bard recorded a single out! Bard recovered and got out of the inning without allowing any more runs, but he erased Beckett from the decision. Beckett threw 6 innings of 1-run ball, but was taken out after only 83 pitches. As it turned out, he left the game with neck stiffness. Let's hope this does not linger; the Sox starting pitching is so thin right now they had to go out and sign Kevin Millwood (what, Paul Byrd wasn't available?).
After the Sox go down meekly in the bottom of the 8th, Pap comes in to try to preserve the tie. Things get interesting when he's hit in the leg with a line drive off the bat of Alex Avila. He was able to get the out at first, but the next two hitters, Inge and Jackson, singled and Scott Sizemore (no relation to Grady Sizemore) walked. However, Boesch and Cabrera whiffed to end the threat. That sets the stage for the bottom of the 9th. Youk walks and Jose Iglesias pinch-runs for him. Papi singles and Iglesias takes 3rd. Albuquerque pitches around JD Drew to get to Jed Lowrie. After fouling off a slew of pitches, Lowrie hits into a force play where Iglesias is thrown out at the plate. We know what happens next. Interestingly enough, the Sox' 2 big offseason acquistions are responsible for all 4 walkoffs so far this season--Crawford with 3 and Gonzalez with 1.
Yesterday, the Sox won a wet and foggy one courtesy of a Jarrod Saltalamacchia wall-ball double which scored Crawford, who had walked, from first. Clay Buchholz threw a career-high 127 pitches over 7 shutout innings. Unfortunately, the Red Sox' run came when Buchholz was no longer eligible for the win and he settled for an ERA-lowering no-decision. Their winning streak now stands at 6 games.
The weekend series will be one for the ages. The Chicago Cubs come to town for the annual May interleague preview series--the very same Cubs who have not visited Fenway in 93 years! Not since the 1918 World Series (the last World Series the Red Sox would win in the 20th century) have the Cubs played at the only ballpark older than their own (Wrigley Field opened in 1914, 2 years after Fenway Park in 1912). And yes, the Red Sox will face Gargamel--er, Garza this series. He'll be matched up against Wake on Sunday night on ESPN. Saturday night, on the FOX game, the Sox will wear 1918-style uniforms. Unfortunately, since I live in Northern VA, my FOX affiliate is showing the Yankees-Mets game. I really wanted to see those throwback unis!
Going into the top of the 8th, it didn't appear a walk-off would be necessary to win tonight's game. The Sox were ahead 3-1, courtesy of two long balls off of Verlander by JD Drew and Papi. However, Daniel Bard was feeling extra-generous and Tiger-friendly, as he allowed the first two hitters he faced to take him yard. Poof! The Sox' 3-1 lead vanished before Bard recorded a single out! Bard recovered and got out of the inning without allowing any more runs, but he erased Beckett from the decision. Beckett threw 6 innings of 1-run ball, but was taken out after only 83 pitches. As it turned out, he left the game with neck stiffness. Let's hope this does not linger; the Sox starting pitching is so thin right now they had to go out and sign Kevin Millwood (what, Paul Byrd wasn't available?).
After the Sox go down meekly in the bottom of the 8th, Pap comes in to try to preserve the tie. Things get interesting when he's hit in the leg with a line drive off the bat of Alex Avila. He was able to get the out at first, but the next two hitters, Inge and Jackson, singled and Scott Sizemore (no relation to Grady Sizemore) walked. However, Boesch and Cabrera whiffed to end the threat. That sets the stage for the bottom of the 9th. Youk walks and Jose Iglesias pinch-runs for him. Papi singles and Iglesias takes 3rd. Albuquerque pitches around JD Drew to get to Jed Lowrie. After fouling off a slew of pitches, Lowrie hits into a force play where Iglesias is thrown out at the plate. We know what happens next. Interestingly enough, the Sox' 2 big offseason acquistions are responsible for all 4 walkoffs so far this season--Crawford with 3 and Gonzalez with 1.
Yesterday, the Sox won a wet and foggy one courtesy of a Jarrod Saltalamacchia wall-ball double which scored Crawford, who had walked, from first. Clay Buchholz threw a career-high 127 pitches over 7 shutout innings. Unfortunately, the Red Sox' run came when Buchholz was no longer eligible for the win and he settled for an ERA-lowering no-decision. Their winning streak now stands at 6 games.
The weekend series will be one for the ages. The Chicago Cubs come to town for the annual May interleague preview series--the very same Cubs who have not visited Fenway in 93 years! Not since the 1918 World Series (the last World Series the Red Sox would win in the 20th century) have the Cubs played at the only ballpark older than their own (Wrigley Field opened in 1914, 2 years after Fenway Park in 1912). And yes, the Red Sox will face Gargamel--er, Garza this series. He'll be matched up against Wake on Sunday night on ESPN. Saturday night, on the FOX game, the Sox will wear 1918-style uniforms. Unfortunately, since I live in Northern VA, my FOX affiliate is showing the Yankees-Mets game. I really wanted to see those throwback unis!
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Report Card Time
First quarter grades are in for the 2011 Red Sox. Some of them aren't pretty, but there are 3 quarters left to turn things around.
Position Players
Jarrod Saltalamacchia - C Salty has been improving of late, both at and behind the dish, but the first few weeks were brutal.
Jason Varitek - C The batting average is not a sight to behold, but he is also improving (witness 2 RBI singles last night).
Adrian Gonzalez - A+ He is as advertised and the most consistent hitter and run-producer on the team. A legitimate MVP candidate and triple-crown threat, he leads the majors in RBI and is in the top 10 in home runs and top 20 in average (7th in AL). He's been money so far this season and is a joy to watch.
Dustin Pedroia - B- He's been scuffling something awful at the plate for several weeks now, but he helped the team dig out of the 2-10 hole to start the season and his D is once again Gold Glove caliber. Being a Yankee-killer helps, too.
Jed Lowrie - A He wrested the starting shortstop's job away from Marco Scutaro by virtue of his .320 batting average. The defense occasionally comes up short, but can you really give anything less than an A to a guy hitting .320 (8th in the AL)?
Kevin Youkilis - B He's come up with some big hits in the past 4 games to help spur on the Sox' winning streak. The D is also great, especially considering his changing positions for this season. The average is very un-Youk-like, however, and the K's are piling up.
Carl Crawford - C+ With a batting average just slightly north of the Mendoza line, this isn't yet the Carl Crawford who tortured the Sox as a member of the Tampa Bay Rays, but his May has been considerably better than his April and it's not for lack of effort that he is struggling.
Jacoby Ellsbury - A Considering he missed almost an entire season, Ells has bounced back admirably. His average has been hovering around .300 and his OBP is at .358. He's among the leaders in both the league and the majors in stolen bases and he's looking very much like the leadoff hitter the Red Sox need him to be.
JD Drew - C The only thing keeping that minus away from his grade is his .373 OBP. Otherwise, he hasn't been doing much in the way of producing runs, with only 8 RBI and a .243 average.
Marco Scutaro - C He lost his shortstop job to Lowrie, but he had been improving at the plate at the time of his injury.
Mike Cameron - C- Perhaps he lacks the at-bats to develop any kind of consistency at the plate, but, with the exception of that 2-homer game a few weeks ago, he hasn't made the most of his opportunities.
Darnell McDonald - Incomplete Again, not a whole lot of at-bats, but he hasn't shown much in the at-bats he has gotten. He has made two costly baserunning errors as well. Seeing what he did last year in the wake of all those injuries, I have the feeling he's a guy who needs consistent at-bats in order to produce. Therefore, the 5th outfielder thing isn't quite working out for him.
Designated Hitter
David Ortiz - A- Papi was determined not to repeat his dismal starts of the past 2 years and his determination paid off. Papi's hitting .287 with 7 HR and 19 RBI. The shift still eats him up from time to time, but he's still proving to be one of the most valuable pieces to the Red Sox offense.
Pitchers
Josh Beckett - A+ What a difference a year makes. His 2010 was dreadful, but so far his 2011 is nothing short of spectacular. He leads the league in ERA at a microscopic 1.75. If he can keep up the stellar pitching, the Sox are in good shape. The ERA will be just about impossible to maintain, but anything in the 2s or low 3s would be great.
Jon Lester - B+ After having the best April of his career, Lester has faltered some in May, giving up 9 runs over his last two starts. Fortunately, his teammates picked him up Sunday night in New York and gave him his team-leading 5th win, but it would be nice to have him get back on track in his next outing.
Clay Buchholz - B- Buchholz was having Jon Lester's typical April. He's improved a lot in May and he's looking more like the Clay we saw in 2010 and his strikeouts are rising too. Reducing contact will help with that pesky BABIP regression.
Daisuke Matsuzaka C For two starts, Dice-K was brilliant. He was pretty good for the next two as well. However, he regressed to form last night after getting drilled by a line drive on the very first pitch he threw. He gets some slack for staying in the game and keeping the Sox within striking distance, but those 7 walks--oy!
John Lackey C- Like Dice-K he pitched a few gems, particularly against AL West teams, but when when he's throwing a clunker, he clunks big-time. He's gone on the DL with an elbow injury and he's going through some family issues which likely affect his concentration on the mound.
Jonathan Papelbon - A+ He's been the Pap of 2007 and 2008 so far this year, which happens to be his walk year. If he keeps it up, the Sox will have a very difficult decision to make this offseason.
Daniel Bard - B He's been having lots of trouble with command this year, but the stuff's still there. His workload really needs to be managed in order to keep him effective.
Matt Albers - A He's been a find so far this season. The most reliable middle-relief guy in the Sox bullpen, he can take some of the workload off of Bard as long as he continues to pitch so well.
Alfredo Aceves - B+ The balk got him into trouble a few times, but he's a good long-relief guy to have around and he saved the rest of the pen by tossing the last 3 innings of last night's game.
Tim Wakefield - C While Wake has adjusted admirably to his role as a reliever and spot starter, it's not a good idea to rely to heavily on a guy whose signature pitch is one as unpredictable as the knuckleball. If the knuckler's high and flat, look out! With Lackey on the DL, however, the Sox will have to lean on Wake for a few starts and that could get scary.
Hideki Okajima - B Oki has been better than expected after a very rough 2010 season.
Rich Hill - A So far, so good for Rich Hill, who was recently called up from Pawtucket when both Wheeler and Jenks hit the DL.
Dan Wheeler - D Far from the reliable guy he was in Tampa Bay, Wheeler has disappointed so far. Let's hope this DL stint gets him back somewhere in the neighborhood of what he used to be.
Bobby Jenks - D Another high-profile bullpen pickup who hasn't fulfilled the role he was expected to, Jenks is also rehabbing from injury and ineffectiveness.
The Red Sox as a team - C The dug themselves a huge hole to start the season--one that will leave them little room for error. They had been going in circles trying to reach .500 before this weekend. Last night's victory is a potential turning point for the season, but there's plenty of room for improvement, especially in the area of hitting with RISP. Getting better results out of the back of the rotation is also key. No one has run away with this division yet and it remains to be seen whether any team will take the lead and gain some separation from the pack. The Rays have the starting pitching to compete and, as much as they're on the schneid now, you can never count out the Yankees. The Jays and the O's have been sticking around and they are not the pushovers they've been in past years.
So there you have it. I hope I didn't leave anyone out.
Position Players
Jarrod Saltalamacchia - C Salty has been improving of late, both at and behind the dish, but the first few weeks were brutal.
Jason Varitek - C The batting average is not a sight to behold, but he is also improving (witness 2 RBI singles last night).
Adrian Gonzalez - A+ He is as advertised and the most consistent hitter and run-producer on the team. A legitimate MVP candidate and triple-crown threat, he leads the majors in RBI and is in the top 10 in home runs and top 20 in average (7th in AL). He's been money so far this season and is a joy to watch.
Dustin Pedroia - B- He's been scuffling something awful at the plate for several weeks now, but he helped the team dig out of the 2-10 hole to start the season and his D is once again Gold Glove caliber. Being a Yankee-killer helps, too.
Jed Lowrie - A He wrested the starting shortstop's job away from Marco Scutaro by virtue of his .320 batting average. The defense occasionally comes up short, but can you really give anything less than an A to a guy hitting .320 (8th in the AL)?
Kevin Youkilis - B He's come up with some big hits in the past 4 games to help spur on the Sox' winning streak. The D is also great, especially considering his changing positions for this season. The average is very un-Youk-like, however, and the K's are piling up.
Carl Crawford - C+ With a batting average just slightly north of the Mendoza line, this isn't yet the Carl Crawford who tortured the Sox as a member of the Tampa Bay Rays, but his May has been considerably better than his April and it's not for lack of effort that he is struggling.
Jacoby Ellsbury - A Considering he missed almost an entire season, Ells has bounced back admirably. His average has been hovering around .300 and his OBP is at .358. He's among the leaders in both the league and the majors in stolen bases and he's looking very much like the leadoff hitter the Red Sox need him to be.
JD Drew - C The only thing keeping that minus away from his grade is his .373 OBP. Otherwise, he hasn't been doing much in the way of producing runs, with only 8 RBI and a .243 average.
Marco Scutaro - C He lost his shortstop job to Lowrie, but he had been improving at the plate at the time of his injury.
Mike Cameron - C- Perhaps he lacks the at-bats to develop any kind of consistency at the plate, but, with the exception of that 2-homer game a few weeks ago, he hasn't made the most of his opportunities.
Darnell McDonald - Incomplete Again, not a whole lot of at-bats, but he hasn't shown much in the at-bats he has gotten. He has made two costly baserunning errors as well. Seeing what he did last year in the wake of all those injuries, I have the feeling he's a guy who needs consistent at-bats in order to produce. Therefore, the 5th outfielder thing isn't quite working out for him.
Designated Hitter
David Ortiz - A- Papi was determined not to repeat his dismal starts of the past 2 years and his determination paid off. Papi's hitting .287 with 7 HR and 19 RBI. The shift still eats him up from time to time, but he's still proving to be one of the most valuable pieces to the Red Sox offense.
Pitchers
Josh Beckett - A+ What a difference a year makes. His 2010 was dreadful, but so far his 2011 is nothing short of spectacular. He leads the league in ERA at a microscopic 1.75. If he can keep up the stellar pitching, the Sox are in good shape. The ERA will be just about impossible to maintain, but anything in the 2s or low 3s would be great.
Jon Lester - B+ After having the best April of his career, Lester has faltered some in May, giving up 9 runs over his last two starts. Fortunately, his teammates picked him up Sunday night in New York and gave him his team-leading 5th win, but it would be nice to have him get back on track in his next outing.
Clay Buchholz - B- Buchholz was having Jon Lester's typical April. He's improved a lot in May and he's looking more like the Clay we saw in 2010 and his strikeouts are rising too. Reducing contact will help with that pesky BABIP regression.
Daisuke Matsuzaka C For two starts, Dice-K was brilliant. He was pretty good for the next two as well. However, he regressed to form last night after getting drilled by a line drive on the very first pitch he threw. He gets some slack for staying in the game and keeping the Sox within striking distance, but those 7 walks--oy!
John Lackey C- Like Dice-K he pitched a few gems, particularly against AL West teams, but when when he's throwing a clunker, he clunks big-time. He's gone on the DL with an elbow injury and he's going through some family issues which likely affect his concentration on the mound.
Jonathan Papelbon - A+ He's been the Pap of 2007 and 2008 so far this year, which happens to be his walk year. If he keeps it up, the Sox will have a very difficult decision to make this offseason.
Daniel Bard - B He's been having lots of trouble with command this year, but the stuff's still there. His workload really needs to be managed in order to keep him effective.
Matt Albers - A He's been a find so far this season. The most reliable middle-relief guy in the Sox bullpen, he can take some of the workload off of Bard as long as he continues to pitch so well.
Alfredo Aceves - B+ The balk got him into trouble a few times, but he's a good long-relief guy to have around and he saved the rest of the pen by tossing the last 3 innings of last night's game.
Tim Wakefield - C While Wake has adjusted admirably to his role as a reliever and spot starter, it's not a good idea to rely to heavily on a guy whose signature pitch is one as unpredictable as the knuckleball. If the knuckler's high and flat, look out! With Lackey on the DL, however, the Sox will have to lean on Wake for a few starts and that could get scary.
Hideki Okajima - B Oki has been better than expected after a very rough 2010 season.
Rich Hill - A So far, so good for Rich Hill, who was recently called up from Pawtucket when both Wheeler and Jenks hit the DL.
Dan Wheeler - D Far from the reliable guy he was in Tampa Bay, Wheeler has disappointed so far. Let's hope this DL stint gets him back somewhere in the neighborhood of what he used to be.
Bobby Jenks - D Another high-profile bullpen pickup who hasn't fulfilled the role he was expected to, Jenks is also rehabbing from injury and ineffectiveness.
The Red Sox as a team - C The dug themselves a huge hole to start the season--one that will leave them little room for error. They had been going in circles trying to reach .500 before this weekend. Last night's victory is a potential turning point for the season, but there's plenty of room for improvement, especially in the area of hitting with RISP. Getting better results out of the back of the rotation is also key. No one has run away with this division yet and it remains to be seen whether any team will take the lead and gain some separation from the pack. The Rays have the starting pitching to compete and, as much as they're on the schneid now, you can never count out the Yankees. The Jays and the O's have been sticking around and they are not the pushovers they've been in past years.
So there you have it. I hope I didn't leave anyone out.
Monday, May 16, 2011
A Gonzalez Shall Lead Them
Actually, a pair of Gonzalezes, one on each team. The Sox started their rally by knocking around O's reliever Mike Gonzalez and finished it up with an Adrian Gonzalez walk-off wall-ball double in the bottom of the 9th that scored both Ells and Pedey.
What happened before the best Red Sox comeback of the 2011 season looked like the makings of a momentum-killing loss. Dice-K, who was drilled in the chest by a Brian Roberts line drive was very much the Mr. Hyde version for his 4 1/3 innings, walking 7 and allowing 5 runs. Some of that could have been due to his injury, but we've seen this Dice-K too many times to put all the blame on the unfortunate result of the first pitch of the game. Atchison, recalled from the PawSox when Lackey was DL'ed took over for Dice-K in the 5th and allowed another run to put the Sox in a 6-0 hole. It was looking downright ugly for the home team. Then the bottom of the 6th inning happened.
With Mike Gonzalez on the mound, JD Drew singles and reaches 2nd on an error by left fielder (and He Who Was Stupid Enough To Flip His Bat At Josh Beckett) Luke Scott. Lowrie's double plates Drew. Crawford reaches on a Mark Reynolds (Gee I thought the ball was in my glove) error. Tek captains up for an RBI single to drive in Lowrie. Gonzalez singles to bring Crawford home. Youk caps the 5-run inning with a double that knocks in both Gonzo and Tek, two runners who are not exactly fleet of foot. Papi walks, but Drew, batting for the second time in the inning, snuffs out the rally one run short of a tie with a groundout to second base.
As the Sox draw to within a run, Aceves takes the hill and promptly gives a run back to the O's with a cookie to Mark Reynolds. That's all the O's would get off of Aceves, though. He settles down to pitch 3 innings, keeping the O's at bay the rest of the way. In the meantime, the Red Sox had some more comebacking to do. Lowrie leads off the bottom of the 7th with a 3-bagger. Tek chips in another ribbie and the Sox are back within a run. They miss a chance to plate the tying run when, after an Ells single, Pedey lines out and Gonzo K's.
Two innings later, with O's closer Kevin Gregg on the hill, the two table-setters, Ells and Pedey take their walks, with Ells swiping second as Pedey was grinding his way to his own ball four. Up to the plate strides Adrian Gonzalez. His fellow newbie Carl Crawford already has two wak-off hits so Adrian had some catching up to do. He wasn't about to let his team come within a run and falling short after almost 4 hours of fighting their way back into the game, so he collaborated with the Green Monster to drive in both the tying and winning runs. After all, who wants extra innings on top of a 4-hour game on a cold, rainy Monday night? The Fenway Faithful who sat through the nasty weather and the hard-to-watch first 5 1/2 innings were handsomely rewarded, as were those who followed it long-distance, whether it be on TV, the internet, or the radio or some combination of the three.
A win like this can be huge for the Red Sox, especially following the weekend sweep of the Yankees and the long-awaited attainment of a .500 record. Now, they are over .500 for the first time this season and they sure don't want to look back. They have a tall task in front of them tomorrow night, however, as they send Wake to the bump to square off against promising young pitcher Zach Britton, who spun a gem against the Sox at Camden Yards last month. If they can win tomorrow night, despite a pitching matchup overwhelmingly in the Orioles' favor, that would be a sign that they have really turned the corner and gotten off that exasperating hamster wheel they've been on for the first quarter of the season.
Stay tuned for the Red Sox first quarter report cards! Lucky for them, tonight's comeback win has me in a good mood...
What happened before the best Red Sox comeback of the 2011 season looked like the makings of a momentum-killing loss. Dice-K, who was drilled in the chest by a Brian Roberts line drive was very much the Mr. Hyde version for his 4 1/3 innings, walking 7 and allowing 5 runs. Some of that could have been due to his injury, but we've seen this Dice-K too many times to put all the blame on the unfortunate result of the first pitch of the game. Atchison, recalled from the PawSox when Lackey was DL'ed took over for Dice-K in the 5th and allowed another run to put the Sox in a 6-0 hole. It was looking downright ugly for the home team. Then the bottom of the 6th inning happened.
With Mike Gonzalez on the mound, JD Drew singles and reaches 2nd on an error by left fielder (and He Who Was Stupid Enough To Flip His Bat At Josh Beckett) Luke Scott. Lowrie's double plates Drew. Crawford reaches on a Mark Reynolds (Gee I thought the ball was in my glove) error. Tek captains up for an RBI single to drive in Lowrie. Gonzalez singles to bring Crawford home. Youk caps the 5-run inning with a double that knocks in both Gonzo and Tek, two runners who are not exactly fleet of foot. Papi walks, but Drew, batting for the second time in the inning, snuffs out the rally one run short of a tie with a groundout to second base.
As the Sox draw to within a run, Aceves takes the hill and promptly gives a run back to the O's with a cookie to Mark Reynolds. That's all the O's would get off of Aceves, though. He settles down to pitch 3 innings, keeping the O's at bay the rest of the way. In the meantime, the Red Sox had some more comebacking to do. Lowrie leads off the bottom of the 7th with a 3-bagger. Tek chips in another ribbie and the Sox are back within a run. They miss a chance to plate the tying run when, after an Ells single, Pedey lines out and Gonzo K's.
Two innings later, with O's closer Kevin Gregg on the hill, the two table-setters, Ells and Pedey take their walks, with Ells swiping second as Pedey was grinding his way to his own ball four. Up to the plate strides Adrian Gonzalez. His fellow newbie Carl Crawford already has two wak-off hits so Adrian had some catching up to do. He wasn't about to let his team come within a run and falling short after almost 4 hours of fighting their way back into the game, so he collaborated with the Green Monster to drive in both the tying and winning runs. After all, who wants extra innings on top of a 4-hour game on a cold, rainy Monday night? The Fenway Faithful who sat through the nasty weather and the hard-to-watch first 5 1/2 innings were handsomely rewarded, as were those who followed it long-distance, whether it be on TV, the internet, or the radio or some combination of the three.
A win like this can be huge for the Red Sox, especially following the weekend sweep of the Yankees and the long-awaited attainment of a .500 record. Now, they are over .500 for the first time this season and they sure don't want to look back. They have a tall task in front of them tomorrow night, however, as they send Wake to the bump to square off against promising young pitcher Zach Britton, who spun a gem against the Sox at Camden Yards last month. If they can win tomorrow night, despite a pitching matchup overwhelmingly in the Orioles' favor, that would be a sign that they have really turned the corner and gotten off that exasperating hamster wheel they've been on for the first quarter of the season.
Stay tuned for the Red Sox first quarter report cards! Lucky for them, tonight's comeback win has me in a good mood...
Sunday, May 15, 2011
20-20
They had me on pins and needles for almost 4 hours, but they got the job done. For the first time in almost a decade the Red Sox swept a 3-game series at Yankee Stadium and this sweep brought them to the previously-unattainable .500 mark. In the early going of tonight's rumble in the Bronx, it wasn't looking good for the Sox. Lester was looking too much like he did last Tuesday in Toronto. For the first time in the series, the Yanks beat the Sox to the scoreboard, plating a run in the bottom of the 1st. The Sox answered with a Jed Lowrie sac fly in the top of the 2nd, but Lester got even more generous in the bottom of the frame, serving up gopher balls to Curtis Granderson (2 runs) and Andruw Jones.
Fortunately for the Red Sox, Garcia was feeling just as generous as Lester. In the top of the 4th, with Ells and Gonzo on, Youk belted a 3-run jack to left and the game was tied. As Lester settled down, his teammates added on, little by little. In the 5th, Papi took Garcia yard and cracked his bat in the process. The 7th inning saw A-Rod doing his very best Bill Buckner impression on a grounder by Youk, plating Pedey, who walked and swiped a bag. After Crawford matched A-Rod error-for-error in the bottom of the inning, the Yanks pulled within a run. An unlikely hero added back an insurance run in the 8th: Salty knocked his first 4-bagger of the year to make the score 7-5. After a white-knuckle bottom of the 8th with Bard walking this weekend's Drama King Jorge Posada, a non-save appearance by Mo Rivera and a 1-2-3 save by Pap, the game was in the books. The Red Sox pulled off a sweep of the Yankees at Yankee Stadium and got that .500 monkey off their back.
After all they went through this season to get there, arriving at .500 for the first time is an accomplishment worthy of celebrating. However, there's a lot more to be done. First order of business: keeping some high-flying orange birds in their cages. The O's are coming off a series win over the first-place Rays and they're going to be feeling all bad-ass coming into Fenway. Dice-K takes the mound tomorrow night and Tuesday, Lackey is scheduled to pitch. The offense is going to need to put up some heavy-duty run support this series, so it's incumbent on guys like Ells and Gonzo to stay hot and other guys to start getting hot. I love that Pedey's a Yankee-killer, but he needs to start putting the hurting on other teams too. Youk's been warming up, but the K's are still a concern. Papi's been pretty steady, as is Lowrie (despite the latter going hitless tonight) Salty's showing signs of improvement at the dish. Crawford has looked more like himself this month and would have had at least one hit had it not been for the excellent glove of Brett Gardner. JD's still battling the strike zone and should probably be moved down to 7th in the lineup.
When all is said and done, it was a very satisfying weekend for the Red Sox. They moved within a game of the Yankees and made up some ground on the Rays as well. Keep rolling, Red Sox!
Fortunately for the Red Sox, Garcia was feeling just as generous as Lester. In the top of the 4th, with Ells and Gonzo on, Youk belted a 3-run jack to left and the game was tied. As Lester settled down, his teammates added on, little by little. In the 5th, Papi took Garcia yard and cracked his bat in the process. The 7th inning saw A-Rod doing his very best Bill Buckner impression on a grounder by Youk, plating Pedey, who walked and swiped a bag. After Crawford matched A-Rod error-for-error in the bottom of the inning, the Yanks pulled within a run. An unlikely hero added back an insurance run in the 8th: Salty knocked his first 4-bagger of the year to make the score 7-5. After a white-knuckle bottom of the 8th with Bard walking this weekend's Drama King Jorge Posada, a non-save appearance by Mo Rivera and a 1-2-3 save by Pap, the game was in the books. The Red Sox pulled off a sweep of the Yankees at Yankee Stadium and got that .500 monkey off their back.
After all they went through this season to get there, arriving at .500 for the first time is an accomplishment worthy of celebrating. However, there's a lot more to be done. First order of business: keeping some high-flying orange birds in their cages. The O's are coming off a series win over the first-place Rays and they're going to be feeling all bad-ass coming into Fenway. Dice-K takes the mound tomorrow night and Tuesday, Lackey is scheduled to pitch. The offense is going to need to put up some heavy-duty run support this series, so it's incumbent on guys like Ells and Gonzo to stay hot and other guys to start getting hot. I love that Pedey's a Yankee-killer, but he needs to start putting the hurting on other teams too. Youk's been warming up, but the K's are still a concern. Papi's been pretty steady, as is Lowrie (despite the latter going hitless tonight) Salty's showing signs of improvement at the dish. Crawford has looked more like himself this month and would have had at least one hit had it not been for the excellent glove of Brett Gardner. JD's still battling the strike zone and should probably be moved down to 7th in the lineup.
When all is said and done, it was a very satisfying weekend for the Red Sox. They moved within a game of the Yankees and made up some ground on the Rays as well. Keep rolling, Red Sox!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
They've Met The Enemy and the Enemy is Them
The Red Sox' worst enemy isn't the Blue Jays. It isn't the Indians, the Rangers, the Orioles, the Mariners, or even the Yankees. It's the Red Sox themselves. They can't get out of their own way:
1. Blunderous Baserunning: Running into outs, whether it be at home plate (see #2) or getting caught trying to steal is a surefire rally-killer.
2. A Certain Defective Windmill Still Stands in the Third Base Coaching Box: His name has been turned into a verb for being thrown out at the plate.
3. GIDP: Hitting into double plays, especially ones that end an inning, are like a hammer to the head of any sort of rally. The Sox seem to hit into at least 2 per game.
4. Grand Theft Base: Allowing guys like Rajai Davis to run wild on the basepaths is like gift-wrapping a run for the opposing team.
5. Come Get Yer Free Passes Here: Here a walk, there a walk, everywhere a walk walk that turns into a run run. (if Aceves is on the mound, substitute "balk" for "walk")
6. Wonky Switch on the Offense: The Sox' on again-off again offense is like a toddler standing within reach of a light switch, turning the lights on and off and on and off just because it's so much fun for him and drives everyone else insane.
7. .500-ophobia: Discussed in last night's blog, the 2011 Red Sox are deathly afraid of reaching .500. I could understand if they were north of .500, but they like to hover just south of the mark of mediocrity.
8. Airline Food Makes Us Queasy: The Sox don't travel well. It's customary for them to lose the first game of a series upon arrival in whatever city they happen to be playing
9. But...But We Won the World Series on Paper: Do the Red Sox believe their pre-season hype and think they just have to show up at the ballpark in order to win?
10. "Missing Personality Chip" Peter Gammons may have coined a new catchphrase for the 2011 Red Sox
1. Blunderous Baserunning: Running into outs, whether it be at home plate (see #2) or getting caught trying to steal is a surefire rally-killer.
2. A Certain Defective Windmill Still Stands in the Third Base Coaching Box: His name has been turned into a verb for being thrown out at the plate.
3. GIDP: Hitting into double plays, especially ones that end an inning, are like a hammer to the head of any sort of rally. The Sox seem to hit into at least 2 per game.
4. Grand Theft Base: Allowing guys like Rajai Davis to run wild on the basepaths is like gift-wrapping a run for the opposing team.
5. Come Get Yer Free Passes Here: Here a walk, there a walk, everywhere a walk walk that turns into a run run. (if Aceves is on the mound, substitute "balk" for "walk")
6. Wonky Switch on the Offense: The Sox' on again-off again offense is like a toddler standing within reach of a light switch, turning the lights on and off and on and off just because it's so much fun for him and drives everyone else insane.
7. .500-ophobia: Discussed in last night's blog, the 2011 Red Sox are deathly afraid of reaching .500. I could understand if they were north of .500, but they like to hover just south of the mark of mediocrity.
8. Airline Food Makes Us Queasy: The Sox don't travel well. It's customary for them to lose the first game of a series upon arrival in whatever city they happen to be playing
9. But...But We Won the World Series on Paper: Do the Red Sox believe their pre-season hype and think they just have to show up at the ballpark in order to win?
10. "Missing Personality Chip" Peter Gammons may have coined a new catchphrase for the 2011 Red Sox
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
The Curse of .500
2004 may have killed the Curse of the Bambino, but a new curse has emerged this year: The Curse of .500. The Sox have had 3 chances (4 if you count game 2 in Texas after losing the first game) to break even on the season and choked their way out of each one. Lester laid a 5-run egg tonight when the Sox needed him to be the ace. Tek's inability to throw out base stealers bit them in the end, when Rajai Davis stole both second and third after reaching on a single with no outs. It's as if Davis hit a leadoff triple when the Sox had no margin for error. Of course the next guy comes up and hits a sac fly and the game's over. Regardless of how many times the bats tied the score, the pitching and defense had to give it right back because, well, the world's gonna explode if the Red Sox reach .500. Tito and his boys are sure of it--that's why you can bet on a loss every time the team is within a game of that ever-dangerous milestone. Sure, they'll come up with the walk-off wins when there's at least a 2-game buffer zone between the win column and the loss column, but heaven forbid they win without that "safety net".
All sarcasm aside, this inability to get to .500 is a really maddening trend with this team. They have yet to win the first game of a road trip, even after winning a few games on the homestand to "attempt" to build momentum. Carrying the momentum to another city is just about impossible for them. Something gets lost on the flight over, whether it be the hitting, the pitching, the defense, or all three. Winning teams have no problem carrying their momentum across state lines. The Sox, so far, cannot manage the load. That's why they've lost more games than they've won and why they swing and miss when it comes time to break even. A true test of them turning the corner would be to win a road game after winning the last game(s) of a homestand. That and getting over the "monumental" .500 hump. The time has come to put up or shut up. Which is it going to be, Red Sox? Which is it going to be?
All sarcasm aside, this inability to get to .500 is a really maddening trend with this team. They have yet to win the first game of a road trip, even after winning a few games on the homestand to "attempt" to build momentum. Carrying the momentum to another city is just about impossible for them. Something gets lost on the flight over, whether it be the hitting, the pitching, the defense, or all three. Winning teams have no problem carrying their momentum across state lines. The Sox, so far, cannot manage the load. That's why they've lost more games than they've won and why they swing and miss when it comes time to break even. A true test of them turning the corner would be to win a road game after winning the last game(s) of a homestand. That and getting over the "monumental" .500 hump. The time has come to put up or shut up. Which is it going to be, Red Sox? Which is it going to be?
Monday, May 9, 2011
The Walk-Off Guy
Carl Crawford does it again! For the second time on this homestand, number 13 drives in the winning run in walk-off fashion. Both times came with 2 outs in the inning, although this one was in extras with a maxed-out bullpen that forced Oki to throw 2 innings. Oki did his job, despite home plate ump Joe "Look at me!" West and his fresh-squeezed strike zone. That set the stage for Crawford, who came to the plate with a runner on first--Jose Iglesias, who pinch-ran for Lowrie, who worked a walk--to hit one off the wall to score "Iggy". What a way to score your first run in the bigs!
The Sox had their opportunities early in the game, but were only able to cash in once: in the 5th, when Adrian Gonzalez plated Tek, who doubled for his first of 2 hits tonight. Yes, Tek had a multi-hit game for the first time this season. Beckett, who tossed 7 shutout innings was denied the win when Pap came in with 2 outs in the 8h and a runner on second (who reached second on a balk by Aceves) and Jason Kubel singled in the tying run. With squandered scoring opportunities left and right, it looked to be one of those infuriating losses waiting to happen, especially when pinch-runner Darnell McDonald, the Tim Bogar of baserunning, got caught in a rundown in the 10th while trying to steal. Fortunately, Crawford still had some business to take care of: keeping his hitting streak alive while creating some more walk-off magic in the process.
With tonight's win, the Sox are once again at the precipice of .500. So far this season, that's been a dangerous place to be--they've been there twice before and lost the game that would have evened their record. Let the third time be a charm, boys! Who better to lead the way than Jon Lester?
The Sox had their opportunities early in the game, but were only able to cash in once: in the 5th, when Adrian Gonzalez plated Tek, who doubled for his first of 2 hits tonight. Yes, Tek had a multi-hit game for the first time this season. Beckett, who tossed 7 shutout innings was denied the win when Pap came in with 2 outs in the 8h and a runner on second (who reached second on a balk by Aceves) and Jason Kubel singled in the tying run. With squandered scoring opportunities left and right, it looked to be one of those infuriating losses waiting to happen, especially when pinch-runner Darnell McDonald, the Tim Bogar of baserunning, got caught in a rundown in the 10th while trying to steal. Fortunately, Crawford still had some business to take care of: keeping his hitting streak alive while creating some more walk-off magic in the process.
With tonight's win, the Sox are once again at the precipice of .500. So far this season, that's been a dangerous place to be--they've been there twice before and lost the game that would have evened their record. Let the third time be a charm, boys! Who better to lead the way than Jon Lester?
Friday, May 6, 2011
It Wasn't Supposed To Be Like This
This season was supposed to make us forget about last year's injury-riddled season. It was supposed to be a fresh start, with the addition of two all-stars who would more than compensate for the loss of V-Mart and Beltre. Playing left field, after all, just got a lot safer without the hard-charging, rib-cracking Beltre playing third base. While I never bought into the 100+ win, lock for the World Series hype, I was expecting much better than what I've seen so far this season. Sure, I was concerned about the catching situation and how some of last season's underperforming members of the rotation would do, but my wishful thinking said that the improved offense and defense would offset those concerns.
Aside from Papi getting off to a decent start and raking against lefties, Beckett pitching more like his 2007 self, Lester pitching well in April, and Adrian Gonzalez hitting over .300, the rest of the team has been a colossal disappointment so far. By the way, since when did Jed Lowrie become The Ghost of Julio Lugo? He had a game tonight that would make even Dr. Strangeglove cringe. And when did Pedey start looking like a blind squirrel at the plate? Aside from that epic at-bat in Monday night's game, he's been striking out to beat the band and lunging after bad pitches in a way that would be hilarious if he were playing for another team. To think, he used to be one of the hardest guys to strike out.
And then there's Lackey. He's either been lights-out or lit up like a Christmas tree. Not much middle ground there. High-profile bullpen pickups Jenks and Wheeler are both on the DL, Jenks with arm issues and Wheeler with what is being called on the paperwork as a sore calf, but what is really inflammation and swelling of the ERA. Wake is being relied on much more than he should be, as he is effective only in very small doses. Of course, he would also be more effective if the defense behind him did their job. Even the sure-gloved Gonzo let one get by him in the 2nd inning and 2 runs scored. He made up for one of those runs with a solo shot off the Sports Authority sign, but that was one of only two runs the Sox would score tonight. JD Drew went yard in the 2nd for the other one.
There is a lot of talent on this team. The problem is, most of them are playing far below their ability and show flashes of it only occasionally. They don't appear to be on the same page and working as a team. Until they get their act together, they will continue to chase .500, but never get there. The coaching staff needs to take a more active role in getting this team on the same page and if they are unable to do so, it's time to find replacements who can. The lack of leadership is painfully evident in games like tonight's and yesterday's and in their overall inconsistent play. Somebody has to get this team to cowboy up before spring turns into a long, frustrating summer in the American League cellar.
Aside from Papi getting off to a decent start and raking against lefties, Beckett pitching more like his 2007 self, Lester pitching well in April, and Adrian Gonzalez hitting over .300, the rest of the team has been a colossal disappointment so far. By the way, since when did Jed Lowrie become The Ghost of Julio Lugo? He had a game tonight that would make even Dr. Strangeglove cringe. And when did Pedey start looking like a blind squirrel at the plate? Aside from that epic at-bat in Monday night's game, he's been striking out to beat the band and lunging after bad pitches in a way that would be hilarious if he were playing for another team. To think, he used to be one of the hardest guys to strike out.
And then there's Lackey. He's either been lights-out or lit up like a Christmas tree. Not much middle ground there. High-profile bullpen pickups Jenks and Wheeler are both on the DL, Jenks with arm issues and Wheeler with what is being called on the paperwork as a sore calf, but what is really inflammation and swelling of the ERA. Wake is being relied on much more than he should be, as he is effective only in very small doses. Of course, he would also be more effective if the defense behind him did their job. Even the sure-gloved Gonzo let one get by him in the 2nd inning and 2 runs scored. He made up for one of those runs with a solo shot off the Sports Authority sign, but that was one of only two runs the Sox would score tonight. JD Drew went yard in the 2nd for the other one.
There is a lot of talent on this team. The problem is, most of them are playing far below their ability and show flashes of it only occasionally. They don't appear to be on the same page and working as a team. Until they get their act together, they will continue to chase .500, but never get there. The coaching staff needs to take a more active role in getting this team on the same page and if they are unable to do so, it's time to find replacements who can. The lack of leadership is painfully evident in games like tonight's and yesterday's and in their overall inconsistent play. Somebody has to get this team to cowboy up before spring turns into a long, frustrating summer in the American League cellar.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Merry Merry Month of May?
No one is happier than the Red Sox that the month of April is over. Probably the happiest to bid the old month adieu is Carl Crawford, who has started the month of May with a 3-game hitting streak in which he has gotten 2 hits in each game. He's starting to look like his old self (that is, the version of him we saw when he was a Tampa Bay Ray) and the walk-off hit on Sunday afternoon, though the sample size since the is microscopic, looks to be the start of good things for him. For Big Papi and Adrian Gonzalez, May reunited them with their home run stroke. Papi has hit 2 and Gonzo 1 in the first 3 days of the month. Even the scuffling Scoots found some power when he went yard tonight for the 3rd dinger of the 8th inning.
Lester fanned 11 Angels en route to his 4th win of the season, allowing 1 run over 7 innings. His ERA on the season is now 2.33 and he's finished the best April of his career. Beckett had a nice first month of the season too, rediscovering the form that made him dominant in 2007 and for stretches in 2009. Dice-K and Lackey improved considerably in the latter part of the month. As for Buchholz, he's got to be hoping last night's start is the beginning of better things for him too. It was his first quality start of the season, giving up 2 runs over 6 2/3 innings.
The bullpen has been up and down. Papelbon looks like the dominant closer of '07 and '08, tonight's non-save outing where he gave up 2 runs notwithstanding. Bard has been more good than bad, but the bad outings, like the one in Baltimore where he gave up the go-ahead run after Youk had tied the game in the top of the inning with a 3-run bomb, show that his command can go AWOL at inopportune times. Jenks started out great, but has run into trouble recently. Wheeler so far doesn't look like the guy the Sox saw in Tampa Bay and has been relegated to mop-up work. Oki has had some good outings and some bad ones, but he's better than Dennys Reyes. Albers has been very good, probably the best guy in the bullpen not named Papelbon. Finally Wake has done a pretty good job out of the 'pen and he provided the Sox with an emergency start last Sunday, going 5 1/3 and giving up one run against Seattle.
The offense is looking mighty fine against the Angels, but against the rest of the league, it's another story. Let's hope they start piling up the runs against other teams in May because after Thursday, that's all they're going to see of the Halos for the rest of the regular season. Should the Sox start requiring all visiting teams to don Angels uniforms?
Lester fanned 11 Angels en route to his 4th win of the season, allowing 1 run over 7 innings. His ERA on the season is now 2.33 and he's finished the best April of his career. Beckett had a nice first month of the season too, rediscovering the form that made him dominant in 2007 and for stretches in 2009. Dice-K and Lackey improved considerably in the latter part of the month. As for Buchholz, he's got to be hoping last night's start is the beginning of better things for him too. It was his first quality start of the season, giving up 2 runs over 6 2/3 innings.
The bullpen has been up and down. Papelbon looks like the dominant closer of '07 and '08, tonight's non-save outing where he gave up 2 runs notwithstanding. Bard has been more good than bad, but the bad outings, like the one in Baltimore where he gave up the go-ahead run after Youk had tied the game in the top of the inning with a 3-run bomb, show that his command can go AWOL at inopportune times. Jenks started out great, but has run into trouble recently. Wheeler so far doesn't look like the guy the Sox saw in Tampa Bay and has been relegated to mop-up work. Oki has had some good outings and some bad ones, but he's better than Dennys Reyes. Albers has been very good, probably the best guy in the bullpen not named Papelbon. Finally Wake has done a pretty good job out of the 'pen and he provided the Sox with an emergency start last Sunday, going 5 1/3 and giving up one run against Seattle.
The offense is looking mighty fine against the Angels, but against the rest of the league, it's another story. Let's hope they start piling up the runs against other teams in May because after Thursday, that's all they're going to see of the Halos for the rest of the regular season. Should the Sox start requiring all visiting teams to don Angels uniforms?
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