After two months of baseball, the Red Sox are 6 games above .500 for the second time, their best record in relation to that mark of the year. But they haven’t made it easy on themselves. A glut of injuries may be to blame for the 11-12 April which, to this point, is responsible for their distance from the division-leading Rays, but one of the staples of the Epstein and friends’ Red Sox has been the organization’s depth, so to point a finger at injuries is just to make excuses the likes of which David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia would spit at you for.
Sure, they’ve had problems, but how many of them (besides Lowell’s lack of gruntled-ness) have been real and how many of them have been manufactured by the media? The power struggle that everyone thought would arise when Martinez was listed as first on the depth chart at catcher never materialized – and not only has Varitek been the picture of professionalism, he’s hitting close to 100 points higher than he did last year and leads the team in OPS – an impressive feat, considering Youkilis finished the month with an OPS very close to 1.300.
While the Sox have been spurned numerous times by the media, they have responded, both on the field and in the clubhouse. Much of the bad press in April was directed at Ortiz, and the future Captain was quick to come to his aid: “In 2008, I wasn’t hitting and you [the media] were all over me, then what happened? Laser Show.” In my fifth trip to Fenway this season last weekend, I saw a handful of Laser Show shirts being sported by members of Red Sox Nation. It doesn’t take long for these things to catch on. Ortiz himself then addressed the media on WEEI regarding his struggles in mid-May, telling them, “I’m going to be done when I’ve decided that I’m done.” That was May 20th. Since then, in 9 games he’s 10-for-27 with 3 HRs, 10 RBI, 5 BB and 7 K. In May, he’s .363 (29-80) with 10 HR, 27 RBI, 10 BB and an OPS of 1.211. I guess he’s not done.
There have been those who have opened their mouths in an attempt to defend themselves without much success. Lackey, who’s challenging Dice-K for the team lead in most misplaced pitches, has said that he’s not concerned about the free passes he’s been handing out in the month, but continues to do so. The fire that everyone was expecting from him isn’t there. He looks out of place as the 3rd starter – and yes, even with Beckett hurt, he’s the third starter. Lester and Buchholz are first.
And then there’s those who just say what’s on their mind, shut up and go kick ass. After yesterday’s not-dominating-but-still-convincing performance, Lester was asked about following Buchholz in the rotation, and if Clay’s performance of late pushes him to be better. His very candid reply was, “I’m not really concerned with what he does.” He went on to note that “what Clay’s doing is great for the club, but I just want to go out there and do my job, throw strikes and give the guys a chance to win.” Since he’s won his last 6 decisions and the Sox are 7-1 in his last 8 starts, I guess he can say whatever he wants.
The real problems have been the result of injuries: a piecemeal outfield has become a staple, and while Cameron and Ellsbury have only played in 6 games together all year (and those were the first 6 of the season), Hall, Hermida and McDonald have filled in more than admirably. The biggest concern has been the health of the starting rotation, with Beckett on the DL for an unknown amount of time with a back problem that’s bothered him in the past and Matsuzaka coming up with phantom injuries as often as he has poor starts (and that’s not coincidental, either). The lack of bullpen depth is another issue that could be shored up once one Boof Bonser gets healthy and makes it to Boston. The Sox have missed the presence of Justin Masterson – not nearly as much as he has missed them, however – who could give them multiple innings out of the bullpen, fill in as a starter and come into close games and get holds. Bonser can be that guy, but he needs to get back from a groin injury that’s been nagging him since March.
The other real problem is what the Sox showed in this weekend’s series with the Royals: they’re relying too much on Lester and Buchholz. The Royals – who came in as baseball’s best hitting team, but in the lower third of OBP – scored 17 runs in the series. That averages to 4.25 runs/game. But they scored only 1 run in the last two games – and only 4 in a game where Matsuzaka issued 8 free passes in 4+ before getting yanked. The Sox scored 17 runs as well but spread them out. They stranded more men than anyone wants to count in games 1 and 3 (which they lost and won by one run, respectively) – twice leaving the bases loaded in game 3, and finally came around and hit with men on on Sunday afternoon.
The Sox are second in the AL in HR with 69 and XBH (186) – Toronto has 88 and 219, somehow – but they’re also 4th in the AL in GDP with 45. Their groundball-to-flyball ratio is 0.71, good for next to last in the AL. The last place team in that category? Toronto. If you’re shaking your head, you aren’t alone.
They’re 9th in staff ERA, but 4th in BAA and have allowed 18 unearned runs – surprisingly, that’s better than or equal to 6 other teams in the American League, but the Rays (11), Yankees (16) and Blue Jays (8!) aren’t in that group.
The problem with all those stats? Situations. The Sox have struggled to pitch out of men-on situations and have struggled to plate runners on base.
In spite of that, the season has been laced with bright spots. The re-emergence of Buchholz has energized the team, and they play better defense behind Clay than they do behind anyone else. Lester has staked his claim as staff ace, and anyone who wants to argue that when Beckett comes back will have a good, long fight on their hands. Jeremy Hermida has been a welcome addition to the lineup – he’s only hit safely 26 times, but it feels like every one of them has been a big spot or with 2 outs. Darnell McDonald and Bill Hall have filled in more than admirably in spot roles in the outfield, and we’re still waiting to see what a healthy Mike Cameron is capable of. The bats of Kevin Youkilis and Ortiz have combined for a 2.500+ OPS in May, and Varitek isn’t far behind them. Victor Martinez had a rough start, but has begun to come around, and barring any complications with his severely bruised toe, probably won’t slow down.
It’s been a roller coaster, but after 2 months of baseball, the Sox are only one loss worse than they were at the same time a year ago. The big difference? There’s a traffic jam in front of them. Don’t discount the fact that the Rays and Yankees still see each other 13 more times this year; don’t discount the fact that the Blue Jays won’t play a team with a losing record until June 28th and definitely don’t discount the fact that we still haven’t seen the best that a healthy Red Sox team has to offer. Buckle in, because the dog days of summer are ahead, and they promise many a dogfight before the finish line is even in sight.
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