Pitching Fails Sox Again

The last two outings have seen the Sox lose games because of their three pitching disappointments on the year. Josh Beckett, Jonathan Papelbon, and Tim Wakefield all contributed to the Sox late inning collapses. I think the Red Sox need to think long and hard about the future of each of those pitchers (except for Beckett who just signed that big extension. How nice for him).

Wakefield has clearly had it. He's been serviceable the past two or three years and has made some positive contributions. But his performance this year has shown that he is absolutely and irrevocably over the hill. Witness his 2003 ALCS reenactment last night.

I'm beginning to think that the Sox need to trade Paps while he still has some value. The fact is that a guy like Mariano Rivera or even Trevor Hoffman are very rare. Most closers are only dominant for a handful of years. Papelbon has two years left on his contract and Daniel Bard is showing legitimate closer ability this season. The Sox could keep both pitchers next year then trade Paps in the final year of the contract. I said trade him this off season before his value plummets. I'm sure they can get some idiot to trade them the farm for Paps. Closers like him are always over valued on the trade market and in free agency.

Sox Succumb to Angels. What now?

So Boston's 2009 season ends without to much of a fight as the Angels unceremoniously dispatch the Sox in three games. Though Beckett and Lester didn't have their A games, they didn't pitch horribly. The real problem was the offense. The Sox hit .158 and scored a mere seven runs in the series, six of which came in the final game. Were these the same Red Sox that finished third in all of baseball in runs? It's hard to believe that this is the same team that started with such a flourish and such lofty hopes. Yes, they won 95 games, but the way things ended, it feels like only 75. The framework will be there for another run in 2010, but there are many questions as Boston heads into the off season.

The first thing that comes to mind is that this is such a potentially undignified way for Jason Varitek's career in Boston to come to an end; without so much as a plate appearance in the post season. His contract contains both player and team options for 2010, but my guess is that Theo will just choose to buy him out and let the captain seek his fortune elsewhere. This, of course, is the right thing for Epstien to do, and it would be the right thing even if Victor Martinez wasn't waiting in the wings. Varitek has become both a liability at the plate and in the field as base runners have consistently turned things into a track meet when Tek catches. If this is the way it ends for Jason in Boston, it's far from ideal, but for athletes, the end seldom is.

My next big concern is Jonathan Papelbon. His meltdown in game three was just the culmination of his struggles this season. Though Paps saved 38 of 41 games, anyone who watched him could see that he was toeing a very thin line all season. He walked more batters than he ever has since becoming the Sox closer (24 compared to an average of 12 the last three seasons) and his WHIP was over 1.100, not very good for a closer. His time of dominance may be coming to an end. It will be interesting to see how the Sox treat him in the off season. Will they avoid arbitration again?

Another big concern in the pitching department is Dice-K. They're stuck with him through 2012 and spent a boat load of money. I will be curious to see if he will develop into a legit ace or if he will join the ranks of Mike Hampton and Carl Pavano in the free-agent-pitching-bust hall of crap. I think next season is a make or break year for him.

Finally, will the Sox retain Jason Bay? The word on the street is that he wants to stay in Boston, but we all know money talks. I would love to see the Sox keep him. He fits in well and adds some much needed pop to the lineup. But I'm not sure if the Sox will want to match what he may command in the open market. What will the cost be? Four, five, six years? $80 million? The fact is that while Bay probably has several very productive years ahead of him he is 31 years old. That could mean production until 38, or he could be washed up by 34. You have to straddle that fence very carefully. He is probably more valuable to the Sox than anyone else. I would be fine with five years $70-$75 million.

At least the Sox have some very important pieces in place. Youkilis and Pedroia are firmly entrenched as leaders and the catalysts of the lineup. Beckett and Lester left little question that they are a formidable two headed monster in the starting rotation. And Clay Buchholz emerged as a solid number three. Ellsbury will remain a menace on the bases. There will continue to be age concerns with Lowell and Big Papi, but hopefully their production will be worth their inevitable time spent on the DL. On paper, the Sox will be contenders again, but one thing I just can't shake is that late season swoon, the seemingly apathetic approach to September baseball. Their biggest mistake was the belief in the fallacy that they could simply turn it on just as the leaves turn in October. The Angels were just hungrier. Complacence is dangerous.

Red Sox Continue to Flaunt Rules

Watching baseball through the steroid-era I have seen some pretty low stuff, but Jonathan Papelbon takes the cake with this newest infraction. Apparently the Sox pitcher has been skirting the rules and taking to long to commence pitching when he comes into from the bullpen.

Frankly I'm shocked he hasn't been suspended.

Seriously, the MLB needs to get their heads on straight. I understand the need for games to move in an efficeint manner. Hell, as Yankee and Red Sox fans, we here at Brothers at Arms know better than anyone else the pain of a four and a half hour 9-8 baseball game. The reality is that games tend to slow down due to advertisement inbetween innings and during pitching changes, especially when games are nationally televised.

So continues the vexing rule of Bud Selig.

Lester Remains Hot

John Lester pitched 8 scoreless innings and Dustin Pedroia's RBI double in the bottom of the 8th allowed the Sox to eek out a 1-0 win vs. the Royals, who apparently had Bob Gibson pitching for them last night. I will refrain from complaining about the Sox bats any further and focus on their pitching. They did, after all, manage to get hits at a crucial time and push across the winning run.

In Lester's last eight starts he is 5-1 with a 1.49 ERA. During that stretch he also has two complete games, more than making up for his sluggish start. It's nice to see a young pitcher getting stronger as the season progresses instead of getting weaker. I just hope that he isn't peaking just prior to a let down.

We also got an encouraging sign from Jonathan Papelbon last night. He was starting to look like Jeff Reardon out there. Last night he had a very dominating ninth, the first 1,2,3 ninth inning I can remember in a long time. The fast ball topped out at 97. We haven't seen that in a while either.

Sox Have Comeback of Their Own

After giving up an 8 run lead in last night's wacky rain delayed game, the Sox came back from 5-1 down and took two of three from Baltimore this afternoon. This win should assuage some of the bitter taste from last night's debacle. Josh Beckett didn't pitch great, but he gave Boston seven innings and didn't let things get too out of hand.

Jonathan Papelbon made amends for his blown save yesterday and in the process became the Red Sox all time saves leader. Now with 133 career saves, he's only 467 behind Mariano Rivera.

Disturbing observation of the week: Jason Bay seems to be striking out a ton lately. He struck out 5 times today and his average has fallen from around .280 to .262. This is not completely unlike him. He's struck out an average of 141 times a season since 2004. It just seems like recently he's been struggling mightily and punching out at inopportune times.

The Red Sox Road Ahead

Josh Beckett had another standout performance last night in a 4-1 against the Braves. He is grooving and looking comfortable in start after start. He threw his curve ball for strikes in 20 of 28 attempts for the game, and when he has control of that pitch, he's as good as anyone in baseball.

After this three game set at Atlanta, the Red Sox upcoming schedule appears to be as favorable as it gets. Three games in Baltimore are followed by a ten game home stand featuring the likes of the Mariners, A's, and Royals. This is a golden opportunity to do some damage and create some distance in the AL East. Of course this probably means that the Sox will go 7-6 over these 13 games.

Jonathan Papelbon continues to look shaky in closing situations. He gave up a solo home run last night in addition to allowing a couple of base runners. Statistically he's getting it done, but I'm wondering how long he can walk the razor's edge.

Matsuzaka Gets His First Win

Although he still allowed too many base runners and only went five innings, Daisuke pitched relatively well in the Sox 5-1 win over Detroit. He walked six, yet I didn't feel the angst I usually do when he pitches. His stuff looked good, and when he went after hitters he made a few look silly.

Of course the bullpen had to pick him up. They did a good job until Papelbon loaded the bases in the ninth with no outs before battling to strike out the next three batters. He got some bad luck when Magglio Ordonez hit a broken bat bloop single to lead off the inning. However, I'm growing a little weary of these 45 minute long ninth innings from Paps lately.

The Sox have been doing some interesting things with their lineup recently. They have Pedroia leading off with Ellsbury batting eighth. It helps to turn the line up over quicker. This way when you get to the eighth spot, it's like you have to start over again. Ellsbury serves a lead off role, followed by Nick Green, then your at Pedroia again, and J.D. Drew is effectively a clean up hitter. It makes the lineup very tough to pitch through. I hope Francona sticks with it for a while. I'd like to see where it goes.

Finally, congrats to Terry Francona on his 500th win as Red Sox manager.

Long Weekend Part II

Though the Sox swept this weekend, the nation should not be that excited less than 20 games into the season. To counter Dan's post, here are a couple things I didn't like about the weekend.

#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.

Easter Baseball

I don't know why but Sunday afternoon baseball on Easter was always something that really tickled me. Not quite to the same extent as say, Thanksgiving Day football, but more on the level of having your family around to watch the game. It may not have huge implications, but everyone there is just relaxing and enjoying baseball together for the first time during the new season.

Today the Yanks go for the sweep of the Royals and Joba gets his first start of the year after sitting for a week. That usually isn't good for a pitcher, especially one of his age. I would expect him to be a little slow out of the gate and I will also be waiting to see the ridiculous headlines the papers come up with if he doesn't match the dominance of CC and Pettitte.

The end of the Sox game yesterday was great. The Angels rallying against Papelbon who had to fight through the last inning without his best command. I mean this is why we love baseball right? Bottom of the ninth, bases loaded, down by one and its just the pitcher and the batter going at it for 10 pitches. Great stuff. God I've missed baseball.

Whatever you're up to today, enjoy your Sunday and watch some baseball. It promises to be a good day.