Now that John Lackey is back and apparently giving some hope for improvement, it rests with two other starters-Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester- to come out of the funk they have been in.
Going into this season, Buchholz and Lester were expected to be the anchors of the rotation. Lackey was coming off a disappointing year despite 14 wins. Josh Beckett had been injured a good part of last year and had an ERA of almost 6. Daisuke Matsuzaka was also a question mark.
Things have not quite turned out the way the Sox hoped. Beckett has been excellent, with a 4-2 mark and stellar 2.01 ERA. With Matsuzaka apparently facing surgery and Lackey missing several starts, Tim Wakefield and Alfredo Aceves have been godsends, pitching capably both as starters and relievers. But Lester and Buchholz have lacked consistency. Despite last night’s win to give him an 8-2 mark, Lester’s ERA is a high 3.98; Buchholz is similar with 4-3 and 3.82. In the important stat of hits to innings pitched, both have numbers that are close to one hit per inning, okay but certainly not great and far different from their 2010 performances.
So far the team has been inconsistent-winning streaks followed by losing streaks. Playoff teams need consistency, and it is up to Lester and Buchholz to start providing it.
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