#1: Beckett and Ortiz are off to slow starts. Beckett did not pitch well on Saturday. He lacked control and the ability to put batters away. I will not overreact, but Beckett has not looked sharp this season. Hopefully, he will get going as the weather heats up. Ortiz continues to struggle, going 2-13 in the series. It might serve the Sox to drop him in the order, especially with Lowell and Bay playing well. I would like to see Francona's line-up card look like this:
Ellsbury
Pedroia
Bay
Youk
Ortiz
Lowell
Drew
V-Tek
Green
#2: What the hell is Francona doing putting Papelbon in the game up by 5 runs after throwing 30 pitches the night before. Papelbon will face the Yankees upwards of 20 times this season, so by all means, let's have him throw in a meaningless ninth inning.
All in all, the Sox had a great homestand going 9-0 and have crept back up to the top of the AL East. Hopefully, Boston will continue their winning streak on the road this week against the struggling Indians and Rays.
3 comments:
You make a very good point about Papelbon. It was not a save situation, and I would've like to see him not pitch there. However, who else was Tito going to turn to. The only people I trust in the bullpen are Pap and Manny Delcarmen (and that may not last). Another cause for concern, Okajima has looked awful.
Saito and Ramirez have looked sharp from what I have seen.
I don't think it matters if it was a save situation. Saves are a meaningless statistic and the Red Sox know that. Francona probably figured that if the Yankees got a runner on Papelbon would have to start warming up anyway. Makes more sense just to get him in there and get the sweep.
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