Something beautiful happened on Memorial Day Monday. The Red Sox woke up from their coma and remembered that they are the defending World Series champions and that they were capable of winning baseball games! They put their catastrophic 10-game losing streak behind them and started a much more pleasant streak at the expense of the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves. The beginnings of their emergence from the darkness were like anyone awakening after a long slumber, disoriented and confused (courtesy of a patented 2014 Clay Buchholz performance) but they came back from the 5-run hole to defeat the Braves 8-6.
Riding some momentum for what looked like the first time this season, they rode a solid, if unspectacular Lester start and a 4-run 7th inning to a second victory. Coming home to Fenway after two games that were encouragingly reminiscent of the 2013 team, they gave John Lackey 3 runs more than he needed after shutting out the Braves over 6.1 innings with 9 Ks. It was their first shutout of the season. Their winning streak now stands at 3 games, their longest so far in 2014.
They have a chance to sweep the Braves tomorrow night and extend their winning streak to 4. However, with Jake Peavy on the mound, that might be a tall order. Still, if the Red Sox are going anywhere this season, they will need to dig out of the hole created by the 10-game losing streak sooner rather than later. These past three games have been a ray of hope, but there is much work to be done to get back into the division race. For that to happen, the back of the rotation needs to start pulling its weight and the offense needs to avoid any more prolonged slumps.
For the record, I am not expecting the Sox to repeat as World Series champions. At this point in the season given what has happened, my expectations for them are simply to contend for a playoff spot and play relevant games in September. If they turn things around in June, I would like to see them make a trade or two at the deadline to upgrade their starting rotation and/or the outfield.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Sunday, May 25, 2014
Blind Squirrel Theory and other Red Sox ramblings
The 2014 Red Sox, determined as ever to erase the memory of the magical 2013 season, are into the double digits in their losing streak, making even the Bobby V disaster of 2012 look less atrocious by comparison. Right now it looks like they will never win another game, having seemingly plumb forgot how to win baseball games. But will they really end up with a 20-142 record? Even the worst teams haven't "accomplished" that over a 162 game series. The infamous 1962 Mets won 40 games.
This begs the question, when will the 2014 Boston Blind Squirrels find their first acorn since May 14? How many more acorns will they find before the season is out? 20? 30? Will they win more games than the Houston Astros? What does the 2015 draft class look like?
The last time the Red Sox dropped 10 in a row was in 1994. 20 years ago. The season that began in the spring of my senior year in high school. That season was put out of its misery by a player's strike in August of that year. I don't see the Sox getting any sort of reprieve this season. Stephen Drew alone is not going to fix all that ails this team.
What does ail this team? Let's make a list:
1. Complacency. I won't go as far as to say that winning it all last year was a bad thing for the Red Sox. Obviously, winning a World Series is never, ever a bad thing. However, the drive and hunger that seemed to galvanize the team last year is nowhere to be found this year. Not all of this is on the players. The front office shares a considerable part of the blame, relying on magical/wishful thinking when putting together the 2014 team instead of shoring up areas of need (the outfield being the area of greatest need).
2. Injuries. Shane Victorino being a walking DL doesn't help, given the lack of defensive prowess of the rest of the outfield not named Jackie Bradley Jr. Fellow walking DL Mike Napoli is aching pretty much everywhere. Middlebrooks is no paragon of health either. However, you can't give the Red Sox a complete pass on injuries, as there are several teams in the league far more decimated such as the Texas Rangers and the team that just swept them, the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays got helped out of the basement by simply showing up to play the Red Sox. The Rangers have their head above water despite losing Prince Fielder, Jurickson Profar, a bunch of pitchers, and I'm probably leaving out a few of the Texas walking wounded.
3. Flattened Offense. The 2013 Red Sox were the most prolific run-producers in all of baseball last year. Even the 2012 Red Sox were more capable of the bat (well, until the post-Big Trade lineup in late August through September). The 2014 Red Sox have given up on the running game after failing so miserably at it so far this season. Jacoby Ellsbury's absence is hurting them tremendously. Should they have signed them to a megadeal like the Yankees did? The answer is less clear now than it was before the season. He is a home-grown talent, but he missed two of the past three seasons due to injury. Still, his presence as a base-stealing leadoff hitter made the entire lineup better. The 2014 Red Sox are finding out just how hard it is to replace his skill set at the top of the lineup. Without the running game, the pitcher can focus all of his attention on the hitter, making it all the easier to get him out.
4. Volatile Starting Pitching. Wouldn't Masahiro Tanaka look much nicer in a Red Sox uniform than those stupid pinstripes? With Jake Peavy, Felix Doubront and Clay Buchholz actually making me miss Ryan Dempster, the Red Sox starting rotation, aside from Jon Lester and John Lackey are a nuclear meltdown waiting to happen 3 out of 5 games. Even Lester and Lackey haven't been able to stop the bleeding during this 10 game nosedive.
5. Swiss Cheese Defense. This metaphor is actually a rather unfair one. Unfair to Swiss cheese, that is; I really like the stuff. The left side of the infield is fair game for line drives, grounders, tractor-trailers and possibly even mobile homes. In the absence of Victorino, anything out of Bradley's reach is fair game as well. Not to mention behind the plate. Bad defense makes good pitching even more difficult.
6. An F in Chemistry. With Ellsbury, Jarrod Saltalamachhia and Drew apparently went the team's inspiring chemistry that helped fuel their championship run. Drew's on his way back, but the other two aren't appearing in the home dugout at Fenway anymore. Salty's successor in particular was a head-scratching move by the front office. Two aging catchers behind the plate is just asking for trouble. Particularly when one of them comes with the reputation preceding A.J. Pierzynski. Besides making Lester look like his 2012 self, leading to David Ross starting most of the games he pitches, he just doesn't seem to fit well with this clubhouse. That and he tends to end many a rally by grounding into a double play.
7. No R.O.Y. Candidates Here. While Middlebrooks has too much service time to be called a rookie, Xander Bogaerts and Bradley are most definitely rooks. Middlebrooks is proving that his 2012 success (as one of the few bright spots from that season) was a case of sample size. Bradley is still lost at the plate against major league pitching. Only his glove keeps him from being sent back to AAA. Bogaerts is the most promising, but he has struggled too. His struggles are primarily on the defensive end and, combined with the struggles of Middlebrooks at the plate, prompted the Sox to resign Drew. Bogaerts hasn't been the dynamic force with the bat yet, but he's putting up a passable average for a rookie, despite his struggles with RISP.
8. Lineup Instability. This plagued the Sox in 2012 under Bobby V as well. Injuries have forced some changes, but John Farrell's tendency to sit two healthy starters at once is frustrating and it puts undue pressure on the rest of the lineup.
9. Cut Down to Size(more). Spring Training performances are almost always a mirage. In Spring 2013 it was Jackie Bradley, Jr. In Spring 2014 it was Grady Sizemore. Shortly after real baseball started, the clock struck midnight on Sizemore. His time away from major league competition has really started to show and he's performing below replacement level.
10. The Red Sox' Performance is Bipolar. From September 2011 through this current 10-game losing streak, the Red Sox have been an extremely all-or-nothing team. From the last month of 2011 through the entire 2012 season, their performance resembled depression. At the start of the 2013 season, the depression had shifted to mania and remained there for the entire championship run. The thrill was gone once the 2014 season began. General malaise has turned into a downward spiral that could doom their season if it continues any longer.
There you have it. One issue for every loss in this streak. Please don't make me think of a #11, Red Sox. Dig deep and find ways to win for a change.
This begs the question, when will the 2014 Boston Blind Squirrels find their first acorn since May 14? How many more acorns will they find before the season is out? 20? 30? Will they win more games than the Houston Astros? What does the 2015 draft class look like?
The last time the Red Sox dropped 10 in a row was in 1994. 20 years ago. The season that began in the spring of my senior year in high school. That season was put out of its misery by a player's strike in August of that year. I don't see the Sox getting any sort of reprieve this season. Stephen Drew alone is not going to fix all that ails this team.
What does ail this team? Let's make a list:
1. Complacency. I won't go as far as to say that winning it all last year was a bad thing for the Red Sox. Obviously, winning a World Series is never, ever a bad thing. However, the drive and hunger that seemed to galvanize the team last year is nowhere to be found this year. Not all of this is on the players. The front office shares a considerable part of the blame, relying on magical/wishful thinking when putting together the 2014 team instead of shoring up areas of need (the outfield being the area of greatest need).
2. Injuries. Shane Victorino being a walking DL doesn't help, given the lack of defensive prowess of the rest of the outfield not named Jackie Bradley Jr. Fellow walking DL Mike Napoli is aching pretty much everywhere. Middlebrooks is no paragon of health either. However, you can't give the Red Sox a complete pass on injuries, as there are several teams in the league far more decimated such as the Texas Rangers and the team that just swept them, the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays got helped out of the basement by simply showing up to play the Red Sox. The Rangers have their head above water despite losing Prince Fielder, Jurickson Profar, a bunch of pitchers, and I'm probably leaving out a few of the Texas walking wounded.
3. Flattened Offense. The 2013 Red Sox were the most prolific run-producers in all of baseball last year. Even the 2012 Red Sox were more capable of the bat (well, until the post-Big Trade lineup in late August through September). The 2014 Red Sox have given up on the running game after failing so miserably at it so far this season. Jacoby Ellsbury's absence is hurting them tremendously. Should they have signed them to a megadeal like the Yankees did? The answer is less clear now than it was before the season. He is a home-grown talent, but he missed two of the past three seasons due to injury. Still, his presence as a base-stealing leadoff hitter made the entire lineup better. The 2014 Red Sox are finding out just how hard it is to replace his skill set at the top of the lineup. Without the running game, the pitcher can focus all of his attention on the hitter, making it all the easier to get him out.
4. Volatile Starting Pitching. Wouldn't Masahiro Tanaka look much nicer in a Red Sox uniform than those stupid pinstripes? With Jake Peavy, Felix Doubront and Clay Buchholz actually making me miss Ryan Dempster, the Red Sox starting rotation, aside from Jon Lester and John Lackey are a nuclear meltdown waiting to happen 3 out of 5 games. Even Lester and Lackey haven't been able to stop the bleeding during this 10 game nosedive.
5. Swiss Cheese Defense. This metaphor is actually a rather unfair one. Unfair to Swiss cheese, that is; I really like the stuff. The left side of the infield is fair game for line drives, grounders, tractor-trailers and possibly even mobile homes. In the absence of Victorino, anything out of Bradley's reach is fair game as well. Not to mention behind the plate. Bad defense makes good pitching even more difficult.
6. An F in Chemistry. With Ellsbury, Jarrod Saltalamachhia and Drew apparently went the team's inspiring chemistry that helped fuel their championship run. Drew's on his way back, but the other two aren't appearing in the home dugout at Fenway anymore. Salty's successor in particular was a head-scratching move by the front office. Two aging catchers behind the plate is just asking for trouble. Particularly when one of them comes with the reputation preceding A.J. Pierzynski. Besides making Lester look like his 2012 self, leading to David Ross starting most of the games he pitches, he just doesn't seem to fit well with this clubhouse. That and he tends to end many a rally by grounding into a double play.
7. No R.O.Y. Candidates Here. While Middlebrooks has too much service time to be called a rookie, Xander Bogaerts and Bradley are most definitely rooks. Middlebrooks is proving that his 2012 success (as one of the few bright spots from that season) was a case of sample size. Bradley is still lost at the plate against major league pitching. Only his glove keeps him from being sent back to AAA. Bogaerts is the most promising, but he has struggled too. His struggles are primarily on the defensive end and, combined with the struggles of Middlebrooks at the plate, prompted the Sox to resign Drew. Bogaerts hasn't been the dynamic force with the bat yet, but he's putting up a passable average for a rookie, despite his struggles with RISP.
8. Lineup Instability. This plagued the Sox in 2012 under Bobby V as well. Injuries have forced some changes, but John Farrell's tendency to sit two healthy starters at once is frustrating and it puts undue pressure on the rest of the lineup.
9. Cut Down to Size(more). Spring Training performances are almost always a mirage. In Spring 2013 it was Jackie Bradley, Jr. In Spring 2014 it was Grady Sizemore. Shortly after real baseball started, the clock struck midnight on Sizemore. His time away from major league competition has really started to show and he's performing below replacement level.
10. The Red Sox' Performance is Bipolar. From September 2011 through this current 10-game losing streak, the Red Sox have been an extremely all-or-nothing team. From the last month of 2011 through the entire 2012 season, their performance resembled depression. At the start of the 2013 season, the depression had shifted to mania and remained there for the entire championship run. The thrill was gone once the 2014 season began. General malaise has turned into a downward spiral that could doom their season if it continues any longer.
There you have it. One issue for every loss in this streak. Please don't make me think of a #11, Red Sox. Dig deep and find ways to win for a change.
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Free Fallin'
What a difference a year makes! We could say that last season with a smile on our face, but this season we say the same thing, minus the cheerful disposition. The 2014 Red Sox have lost 7 straight, have been swept in back-to-back series, and gone winless on the homestand. Deja 2012, anyone? The clock has struck midnight and Cinderella's golden coach has pumpkined. Stephen Drew rejoining the team is a step in the right direction, but is it enough to pull them out of the quicksand?
Right now, the Red Sox are dredging up September 2011 and much of 2012 on a nightly basis. No pitching. No hitting. No fielding. The Grady Train has derailed, JBJ is looking like a highly-touted prospect gone the way of Lars Anderson and Ryan Lavarnway. Xander is none too happy about moving from shortstop to third base. Middlebrooks is Middlebroken. Buchholz is buckling under. Felix is a victim of a car door. Peavy's peripheral chickens have come to roost. Lackey's up and down like a yo-yo. Even Lester got lit up like a Christmas tree. Where's a Bobby V. Blame Pie when you need it? Oh, I forgot, the expiration date on that pie was in early October of 2012.
If they're looking to out-Astro the Astros or collect another protected draft pick, they're doing a bang-up job. However, do they really want to sandwich the World Championship season with two historically atrocious ones? Are the Red Sox that bipolar? Or do they only plan on showing up in odd-numbered years? Who knows, but if they don't right the ship soon, it's going to be a long, miserable summer for Red Sox Nation.
Right now, the Red Sox are dredging up September 2011 and much of 2012 on a nightly basis. No pitching. No hitting. No fielding. The Grady Train has derailed, JBJ is looking like a highly-touted prospect gone the way of Lars Anderson and Ryan Lavarnway. Xander is none too happy about moving from shortstop to third base. Middlebrooks is Middlebroken. Buchholz is buckling under. Felix is a victim of a car door. Peavy's peripheral chickens have come to roost. Lackey's up and down like a yo-yo. Even Lester got lit up like a Christmas tree. Where's a Bobby V. Blame Pie when you need it? Oh, I forgot, the expiration date on that pie was in early October of 2012.
If they're looking to out-Astro the Astros or collect another protected draft pick, they're doing a bang-up job. However, do they really want to sandwich the World Championship season with two historically atrocious ones? Are the Red Sox that bipolar? Or do they only plan on showing up in odd-numbered years? Who knows, but if they don't right the ship soon, it's going to be a long, miserable summer for Red Sox Nation.
Thursday, April 24, 2014
The Rules Of The Game by the 2014 Boston Red Sox
Notice I don't title this post "How to Play Baseball, by the 2014 Boston Red Sox". That's because this bunch isn't playing baseball. They've invented their own game and it's so bizarre and convoluted that I can't even come up with a name for this odd mutation of the traditional bat and ball game played on a diamond shape field.
Rule 1: The guy throwing the ball and the guys behind him in the field are on opposite teams. The fielders must endeavor to keep the ball from reaching the white square bag where the runner, their teammate, is headed. This is called the Keep-Away Principle.
Rule 2: If a ball is hit in the air, the fielders must allow it to drop to the ground so that their teammates can run around the diamond and touch as many white square bags as possible. This is the Gravity Rule
Rule 3: When there are men on base, the batter has several choices. He can:
a) swing at balls thrown his way that he cannot reach with his bat
b) watch three balls thrown his way sail right over the white pentagonal plate
c) if he should inadvertently make contact with the ball, it's okay as long as one of his teammates in the field can catch it or pick it up and throw it to the white square bag to his right before his foot touches said bag. Proceed to bag as slowly as possible.
Rule 4: He who stands on a mound of dirt and throws the ball to the guy standing next to the white pentagonal plate must either throw it directly over the plate or so far away from it that the guy with the bat cannot reach it.
Rule 5: Points are scored by the number of dropped balls, men left in the vicinity of the white bags after three outs are made, and most balls thrown far away from the pentagonal plate. If the guy with the bat hits it out of the yard, the guy on this hill gets bonus points.
Got it? Now go put on some uniforms and try to figure out who's on whose team. Looks of confusion are worth 5 points apiece. Hands thrown up in the air in abject frustration are worth 10. Play...something!
Rule 1: The guy throwing the ball and the guys behind him in the field are on opposite teams. The fielders must endeavor to keep the ball from reaching the white square bag where the runner, their teammate, is headed. This is called the Keep-Away Principle.
Rule 2: If a ball is hit in the air, the fielders must allow it to drop to the ground so that their teammates can run around the diamond and touch as many white square bags as possible. This is the Gravity Rule
Rule 3: When there are men on base, the batter has several choices. He can:
a) swing at balls thrown his way that he cannot reach with his bat
b) watch three balls thrown his way sail right over the white pentagonal plate
c) if he should inadvertently make contact with the ball, it's okay as long as one of his teammates in the field can catch it or pick it up and throw it to the white square bag to his right before his foot touches said bag. Proceed to bag as slowly as possible.
Rule 4: He who stands on a mound of dirt and throws the ball to the guy standing next to the white pentagonal plate must either throw it directly over the plate or so far away from it that the guy with the bat cannot reach it.
Rule 5: Points are scored by the number of dropped balls, men left in the vicinity of the white bags after three outs are made, and most balls thrown far away from the pentagonal plate. If the guy with the bat hits it out of the yard, the guy on this hill gets bonus points.
Got it? Now go put on some uniforms and try to figure out who's on whose team. Looks of confusion are worth 5 points apiece. Hands thrown up in the air in abject frustration are worth 10. Play...something!
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Was the 2013 Season a Fluke?
With the 2014 Red Sox picking up where they left off in 2012, as if 2013 never happened, it begs the question: was that World Championship season a mere fluke? The Red Sox last year were a talented group, but they weren't the most talented of all 30 teams in MLB. They won with some luck, career years from the likes of Daniel Nava, Shane Victorino, John Lackey, Clay Buchholz before his injury, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and a defense up the middle that included Stephen Drew, Dustin Pedroia, and Jacoby Ellsbury. They had a lot of team chemistry for sure, and a will to win that had not been seen in previous years, but all of that has disappeared with the change of the calendar year.
Is the player turnover from last season to this one responsible for the return to futility? Did all the mojo leave with Stephen Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Jarrod Saltalamacchia? Or did Bobby V-style bad karma come with the likes of AJ Pierzynski, Edward Mujica, Grady Sizemore, Burke Badenhop and Chris Capuano. Capuano is certainly not part of the problem and Sizemore, while he fooled the Sox into thinking he could be an impact player with a blazing Spring Training, isn't as big of a problem as Pierzynski, Mujica and Badenhop have been. Pierzynski, in particular, had an unsavory reputation precede him. Mujica and Badenhop have just been ineffective.
What of the young players that were supposed to make this season at lea st somewhat fun to watch? It seems Jackie Bradley Jr and Xander Bogaerts have been dragged down with the rest of the team. Bogaerts, in particular, is off to a disappointing start after being such a dynamic force in the playoffs and having a very solid Spring Training. His fielding has been woeful and his approach at the plate has taken a step back (Pierzynski School of Plate Discipline, perhaps?).
Let's be clear on one thing: I am not expecting the Red Sox to win a World Series every year. I'm not expecting them to repeat this year. I do, however, want them to at least be competitive, and by that I don't mean competing with the Astros for the top draft pick. I want to see Bogaerts and Bradley start to live up to their potential and stop being dragged down into the morass of malaise that has ensnared the rest of the team. It consumed the offense and defense first and now it's pulled the starting pitching right down with it. Lackey, Buchholz and Lester have all taken turns playing pinata in the last four games, with the only reprieve being a solid start from Doubront.
Another depressing reminder of 2012 is this team's atrocious play at home. So far, the last place team in the AL East has gone 4-7 at Fenway. So much for home field advantage! Like 2012, the 2014 Red Sox are one step forward, two steps back. One great year, sandwiched between what's looking like two miserable ones. It may still be early, but this isn't Spring Training. Unless MLB has changed the rules, April games count in the standings as much as games in September and the deeper the hole the Red Sox dig early in the season, the harder it is going to be to crawl out. Get your shit together, Red Sox, and get it together in a hurry. What's the point of going worst to first if you're going right back down to worst again?
Is the player turnover from last season to this one responsible for the return to futility? Did all the mojo leave with Stephen Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Jarrod Saltalamacchia? Or did Bobby V-style bad karma come with the likes of AJ Pierzynski, Edward Mujica, Grady Sizemore, Burke Badenhop and Chris Capuano. Capuano is certainly not part of the problem and Sizemore, while he fooled the Sox into thinking he could be an impact player with a blazing Spring Training, isn't as big of a problem as Pierzynski, Mujica and Badenhop have been. Pierzynski, in particular, had an unsavory reputation precede him. Mujica and Badenhop have just been ineffective.
What of the young players that were supposed to make this season at lea st somewhat fun to watch? It seems Jackie Bradley Jr and Xander Bogaerts have been dragged down with the rest of the team. Bogaerts, in particular, is off to a disappointing start after being such a dynamic force in the playoffs and having a very solid Spring Training. His fielding has been woeful and his approach at the plate has taken a step back (Pierzynski School of Plate Discipline, perhaps?).
Let's be clear on one thing: I am not expecting the Red Sox to win a World Series every year. I'm not expecting them to repeat this year. I do, however, want them to at least be competitive, and by that I don't mean competing with the Astros for the top draft pick. I want to see Bogaerts and Bradley start to live up to their potential and stop being dragged down into the morass of malaise that has ensnared the rest of the team. It consumed the offense and defense first and now it's pulled the starting pitching right down with it. Lackey, Buchholz and Lester have all taken turns playing pinata in the last four games, with the only reprieve being a solid start from Doubront.
Another depressing reminder of 2012 is this team's atrocious play at home. So far, the last place team in the AL East has gone 4-7 at Fenway. So much for home field advantage! Like 2012, the 2014 Red Sox are one step forward, two steps back. One great year, sandwiched between what's looking like two miserable ones. It may still be early, but this isn't Spring Training. Unless MLB has changed the rules, April games count in the standings as much as games in September and the deeper the hole the Red Sox dig early in the season, the harder it is going to be to crawl out. Get your shit together, Red Sox, and get it together in a hurry. What's the point of going worst to first if you're going right back down to worst again?
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Where Have You Gone, 2013 Red Sox?
It is very early in the season, but so far, the 2014 Red Sox are making last season's World Championship run look like a fluke. Injuries are piling up out of the gate and the Sox are playing some listless, uninspired baseball in the month of April. If this keeps up, it's going to be a long, painful, 2012-esque season.
Perhaps the 2014 Red Sox are going the route of the 2013 Giants, who followed up their 2012 World Series championship with the dreaded "hangover season". Perhaps the magic had 10/30/13 expiration date. Perhaps this is the "bridge year" for the Red Sox that 2013 was supposed to be. One thing is certain: Right now, "every little thing" is far from "alright".
Perhaps the 2014 Red Sox are going the route of the 2013 Giants, who followed up their 2012 World Series championship with the dreaded "hangover season". Perhaps the magic had 10/30/13 expiration date. Perhaps this is the "bridge year" for the Red Sox that 2013 was supposed to be. One thing is certain: Right now, "every little thing" is far from "alright".
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Pre-Spring Training Red Sox Thoughts
As I write this blog, I am listening to the song that became somewhat of a theme song for the 2013 Red Sox: Bob Marley's "Three Little Birds". What started out as Shane Victorino's walk-up song caught fire in Red Sox Nation down the stretch and into the playoffs and came to symbolize what this resilient, bearded, determined team was all about. The 2013 Red Sox are a tough act to follow.
While the great majority of the team is returning (sans Ellsbury, Saltalamacchia, and possibly Stephen Drew), there are still a lot of questions surrounding the 2014 team. In case you've been living under a rock since August 2011, things have been rather mercurial around The Fens in the past two and a half years. First, the epic collapse of September 2011, then the ousting of Francona, the departure of Theo Epstein for the Windy City, the Bobby Valentine hire, the flotsam and jetsam that was the 2012 season, the Big Trade, and then, the phoenix-from-the-ashes rise of the Red Sox in 2013, capturing their third World Series title in a decade.
Going into last year, few expected the team to be a serious World Series contender, let alone win the whole shebang. The strategy Ben Cherington adopted was to build the team not with high-price, high-risk free agents, but with quality major-league talent that had the right mentality to succeed in the baseball-obsessed Boston market. Depth at the major-league level was key to Cherington and it paid off in the best way possible: A World Series title and the honor of being named Executive of the Year. Cherington also had to find the right man to lead the team after Valentine's catastrophic year at the helm.
The 2014 Red Sox have most of their team back, along with John Farrell and the rest of the coaching staff. They acquired some more depth this off-season, once again staying away from monster contracts or farm-gutting trades. How will the extra month of play affect the players, especially the pitchers? Will Jackie Bradley, Jr. earn the starting spot in center or will Grady Sizemore stay healthy long enough and perform well enough after two seasons away from baseball to keep the prospect in Pawtucket. How will Xander Bogaerts do at whatever position he ends up playing (hopefully, shortstop)? Can Will Middlebrooks improve his approach at the plate enough to become a middle-of-the-order righty power threat? Or, should we settle for a viable major-league third baseman out of him? Will all the age behind the plate (two 37-year-olds) catch up to them?
The Red Sox, due to their major and minor league depth, are in good shape heading into the 2014 season and beyond. If they can avoid too much regression from the likes of Victorino, Napoli, Nava, Carp, Lackey, and Lester, if Doubront can finally put together a consistently solid season and if Buchholz can stay healthy, they have a good chance to be in the playoffs again. Can they repeat? Anything is possible, but very few teams manage to go back-to-back (and even fewer that don't play their home games in the Bronx). 2013 was a special, magical, endearing, redemptive season for the Red Sox, but soon the page will turn to 2014. Let's hope some of that magic rolls over into the new season.
While the great majority of the team is returning (sans Ellsbury, Saltalamacchia, and possibly Stephen Drew), there are still a lot of questions surrounding the 2014 team. In case you've been living under a rock since August 2011, things have been rather mercurial around The Fens in the past two and a half years. First, the epic collapse of September 2011, then the ousting of Francona, the departure of Theo Epstein for the Windy City, the Bobby Valentine hire, the flotsam and jetsam that was the 2012 season, the Big Trade, and then, the phoenix-from-the-ashes rise of the Red Sox in 2013, capturing their third World Series title in a decade.
Going into last year, few expected the team to be a serious World Series contender, let alone win the whole shebang. The strategy Ben Cherington adopted was to build the team not with high-price, high-risk free agents, but with quality major-league talent that had the right mentality to succeed in the baseball-obsessed Boston market. Depth at the major-league level was key to Cherington and it paid off in the best way possible: A World Series title and the honor of being named Executive of the Year. Cherington also had to find the right man to lead the team after Valentine's catastrophic year at the helm.
The 2014 Red Sox have most of their team back, along with John Farrell and the rest of the coaching staff. They acquired some more depth this off-season, once again staying away from monster contracts or farm-gutting trades. How will the extra month of play affect the players, especially the pitchers? Will Jackie Bradley, Jr. earn the starting spot in center or will Grady Sizemore stay healthy long enough and perform well enough after two seasons away from baseball to keep the prospect in Pawtucket. How will Xander Bogaerts do at whatever position he ends up playing (hopefully, shortstop)? Can Will Middlebrooks improve his approach at the plate enough to become a middle-of-the-order righty power threat? Or, should we settle for a viable major-league third baseman out of him? Will all the age behind the plate (two 37-year-olds) catch up to them?
The Red Sox, due to their major and minor league depth, are in good shape heading into the 2014 season and beyond. If they can avoid too much regression from the likes of Victorino, Napoli, Nava, Carp, Lackey, and Lester, if Doubront can finally put together a consistently solid season and if Buchholz can stay healthy, they have a good chance to be in the playoffs again. Can they repeat? Anything is possible, but very few teams manage to go back-to-back (and even fewer that don't play their home games in the Bronx). 2013 was a special, magical, endearing, redemptive season for the Red Sox, but soon the page will turn to 2014. Let's hope some of that magic rolls over into the new season.
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