Sox Send Angels to Hell

As gratifying as it was to see the Sox hang 17 runs on the Angels, I take the results with a grain of salt. The Angels are in the same position as the Sox this year. They are both struggling perennial playoff teams who lost key components in the off season. Both are floundering a few games under .500 and looking up from an unaccustomed position in the bottom portion of their divisional standings (although the Sox have to play much stiffer competition).

Still it was fun to see Boston hand out a beat down instead of losing another closing one. (The Sox are 1-5 in extra frames this season.) Even the much maligned J.D. Drew got in on the act going 4-5 with 3 RBI and 2 runs. Mike Lowell stayed hot with a perfect 4-4 night that included 4 RBI and 2 runs. (Can we make him the full time DH please?!) Clay Buchholtz continued to pitch pretty well. It wasn't his best start, but it was solid, and of course, he got plenty of runs. We'll see if Jon Lester can break out of his malaise tonight.

I usually don't care for Tom Verducci that much, but here's an interesting article from today. It's about the prevalence of the walk and the strike out in contemporary baseball. One stat, the walk, no one used to care about from a hitter's performance. The other stat, the strike out, used to be an absolute no-no for hitter. Now even elite hitters strike out 100 times a season. The combination of the two is cutting down on the amount of bat-to-ball contact in MLB games. It's an interesting observation.

Sox Sweep Jays

It took some doing, but the Sox took three of three from Toronto in their building. Last night was the crowning achievement as struggling starter Jon Lester had a masterful performance striking out 11 on his way to seven shutout innings and a 2-0 win. Clay Buchholtz wasn't too shabby himself on Wednesday also going seven and allowing just one run.

Mike Lowell again played the hero two nights ago with the winning RBI on a bases loaded walk. He was pinch hitting for David Ortiz, which would have been a surprise move three years ago, but no more. Francona clearly has more confidence in Lowell right now and for good reason. Lowell seems very comfortable at the plate and content to contribute anyway he can whether it be as a pinch hitter or DH.

These wins were more like what the Red Sox Brass envisioned in spring training. The starter goes seven and renders the opponent's bats useless. The bullpen comes in and holds the lead (uneventfully). And the offense does just enough to win.

Boston Bounces Back

The Rangers and Sox both entered this series riding losing streaks, so something had to give. Fortunately for Boston it was Texas who buckled under the pressure of two close games that ended in walk off wins for the Sox. Last night saw Kevin Youkilis bust out of his slump. He is 4-10 in the series including a double for the game winning RBI last night.

I think there is a trend happening with the Red Sox that has revealed itself in this series. With little offense coming from the some positions, Francona is going to have pinch hitters late in games based on match ups. Hall, Hermida, McDonald, Reddick, and Cameron will all see action. This is something Sox fans are unaccustomed to. There were more substitutions in game one of this series than in all of 2009 it seems.

I like the fact that Mike Lowell is getting some at bats now. At this point he is making a much more effective DH than David Ortiz. He may not be able to move, but he can still hit a little. Hey, Ortiz can't move either so what's the difference. Lowell has been making the most of his opportunities and making it very difficult to take him out of the line up (or put Ortiz in). It's a small sample size, but Lowell's line looks pretty good: .375/.474/.563. Ortiz has a larger sample of at bats and the disparity is staggering: .146/.222/.268 plus 17 strikeouts in 41 AB's. Boston is lucky that trade to Texas didn't go through.

Sox Finish Off Royals

So I guess I was a bit of a drama queen in my last post. The Sox bats came alive and scored eight runs in each of the last two games to take two of three from the Royals. They even got to Zack Greinke yesterday. Of course the bullpen nearly blew it again today, but Ramon Ramirez got yanked before he could give up the lead entirely. Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon made up for previous transgressions by making the remainder of the eighth and ninth uneventful.

It was very good to see the new bats make their presences known. Jeremy Hermida and Adrian Beltre had multiple RBI in the series. It was also very good to see that Jason Varitek and Mike Lowell aren't ready for their AARP cards yet. (Although that might not be to far off for Lowell. More later.) 'Tek had two home runs in his first action of the year yesterday. Who knows, he may not hit another one the rest of the year, but it's good for him to get something positive at the plate early. Lowell had a single in four a bats and a couple of nifty defensive plays in Saturday's contest as well.

Though neither may be happy or accustomed to coming off the bench, the extra rest will likely help Varitek or Lowell be all the more productive when they are in the lineup. As I said before, it has been reported that Mike Lowell will probably retire at the end of the year. Can't say that I blame him. He's survived cancer, earned two rings and a World Series MVP. His body is falling apart, and he has young kids at home. At 36, it sounds like pretty good timing to me.

Theo making the Moves

A couple of thoughts about the events of the past few days:

John Lackey: The guy is a gamer, a horse, an ace, or whatever other cliché you want. Lackey is good. I feel like the contract was a little big in both years and dollars, but with the possibility of Beckett leaving after this year, Theo took the opportunity to add a strong pitcher.

Mike Cameron: Jason Bay obviously doesn't understand the market for corner outfielders who are below average defensively and didn't show up in the 2009 postseason. The Sox offered 4 yrs/$60-65 million. That is about twice as much as Bay made in 2009 and a very fair offer. If Bay decides to sign with the Mets, good luck in Citi Field, also known as the last frontier.

When Bay rejected the Sox last offer, the Sox moved to try to sign Mike Cameron to play left field. (Recently, Cameron, the lifelong center fielder, decided he would be open to playing corner outfield) Cameron is an upgrade defensively and great on the base paths. Also, Cameron is known to be a great clubhouse guy.

Mike Lowell: A thumb injury seems to be holding up the deal to the Rangers for prospect Max Ramirez. If and when this happens, other moves may happen fast to acquire a bat at either 3rd or 1st. More to come from this story within the next week or so.

Halladay vs. Lee: I don't really get the point. If you wanted Halladay, you should have gotten him last August. You will probably ended up losing Kyle Drabek, one of your top prospects anyway. (This was a sticking point last August) I know you could probably save money with the extension to Halladay opposed to Lee, but Lee is younger, has less miles on his arm, and is a lefty. I guess we will have to see the final details of the trade before evaluation, but on the surface it seems silly. Halladay seems to be the favorite for the 2010 NL Cy Young.

Patrick Willis: The guy doesn't get a lot of attention playing in San Francisco, but after seeing him last night against a strong Arizona team I am pretty convinced he is the best linebacker in football. He is fast, strong, and knows how to make a play. I welcome arguments against this statement.

Lowell Out, Beltre In?

The Boston Herald, among others, reports that the Sox are close to dealing Mike Lowell to the Texas Rangers for a minor league catcher. This would free up some cash and roster space for Adrian Beltre, in whom Theo Epstein is apparently very interested. I can understand wanting to deal Lowell. He is getting a bit long in the tooth and has been slowed by injuries the past two seasons. Dumping all or part of his salary would also be helpful.

The interest in Beltre, however, is very puzzling to me. One great season parlayed a giant contract. He came crashing down to earth after that and has been a major disappointment in Seattle. Lowell out performed Beltre in every major way last eason. In only eight more games, Lowell bested Beltre in RBI (75 to 44), Avg. (.290 to .265), HR (17 to 8) and OPS (.811 to .683). Not only that, but Beltre's career OBP is a paltry .324. Of course Lowell will continue to decline, but is Beltre really the answer?

If this is the last round up for Lowell, I bid him a fond farewell. I loved the way he used to make teams pay for pitching around Ramirez and Ortiz in 2007. He will be missed, but it's probably time.

Lester's 9 K's Lead Boston to Win

A very strong outing from John Lester improved his record to 9-7 on the season. He got into a bit of trouble in the fourth, allowing two runs but cruised otherwise. Even in that inning, the Orioles basically cashed in on a couple of well placed, rinky-dink, infield hits. People have expressed concern about Lester's workload last year and the effect it would have on this season. I think Lester is proving that he is a horse in the mold of C.C. Sabathia, a power lefty with filthy off-speed stuff to compliment a dominating fast ball.

Adam LaRoche hit a homer in his Red Sox debut, not a bad way to endear yourself to the fans. It came with the Red Sox leading 5-2 in the seventh, but it put the game out of reach for Baltimore. I am curious to see how this move pans out. I have no feeling really for what kind of a player LaRoche is, but another lefty bat, this one with power the opposite way, is a nice option to have. If he can help spell Mike Lowell so he is fresh later in the season, great. I think the only way Lowell can remain an effective player at this point in his career is if he gets regular rest.

Red Sox Avoid 6th Straight Loss

Ok, ok. So they didn't play last night. Boy, do they need the rest. Again, the cure for road loser-itis seems to be returning to Fenway. And again, the competition over the next week is not the '27 Yankees. So hopefully, the Sox will get off the skids. They picked a devil of a time to fall into their worst slump of the season. Of course, it coincides with a seven game Yankee win streak.

The Sox added even more depth this week. I especially like the move to get Adam LaRoche. (Who needs Pawtucket when you have the Pirates for your AAAA farm team?) No, they didn't pick up any game changers, but the more capable bats you have, the better you can weather injuries and slumps. Mike Lowell is bound to go cold or get injured again. When that happens it will be nice to get a little pop at 1st base from LaRoche as Youkilis moves to 3rd. That may be the Sox best option going forward anyway. I hate to say it, but Lowell looks done in spite of some good moments this year. In any event LaRoche is a much better option than Kotsay or anyone else that might play first other than Youk.