April 28, 2015

Red Sox Rundown - On the Learning Curve


Boldfaced reality was the other shoe that finally dropped as Boston passed through Tampa Bay and Baltimore. In two series losses which saw both the Rays and Orioles painfully walk off in two of those six games, the master plan looked in need of a reboot. with the Jays coming to town the stark contrast of the first nineteen games can be seen below.

There is much that I have learned in the early stages of this season to date - some things blatantly obvious and other more subtle. Let's start with Wade Miley.

If nothing else, Wade has been consistent. Check this out.

The sixth inning still eludes Miley as he's almost lasted an identical 5+ innings when he has been "Good Wade" and an equal portioning as "Bad Wade". Even when he is on a roll as he was in New York and Tampa, he curiously seems to lose focus and/or command. In his last start against Baltimore, he seemed terrified to throw the ball over the plate. The nice thing about Wade is he fancies alternating his solid and shitty performances. Also when he does stink, he's quick to work with it so the odor doesn't linger. We're look for "Good Wade" in his next start, but he needs to do something about his BB/9 of 6.32 in order for more lasting changes to develop.

 Staying with pitching. we have "Five Spot" Joe Kelly. Joe has given up 5 earned runs in his last two outings and it is downright frustrating because this guy has a terrific live arm. His stuff is "top of the rotation filthy", but Joe needs to realize that pitching is like selling real estate -  it's all about location. Kelly has struck out 17 batters in his last two starts which have encompassed a total of 11 innings. Therein lies the problem - only 11 IP. He was cruising along in Tampa with a 5-1 lead, and then the wheels fell off. Last night against Toronto, he was slapped around right out of the gate for 3 in the first before minimizing further damage to reach his earned run quota once again in a no decision. He has the potential to be a leader on this staff, and Boston needs him to take that role if they hope to stay in the thick of things moving forward.

 Then we have Allen Craig with his .121 BA, and I'm mystified that the Boston front office couldn't see this coming.  Like Miley, Craig is at least consistent as he only hit .128 last season. I kind of feel sorry for the guy because he never really gets a chance to get on a roll. He should have been dealt at the height of his value in the spring, but instead they take him North and expect vintage Craig production 2 times a week? Hitting a baseball is one of the hardest things in sport, and he is a former regular playing run producer. I must say I'm not surprised at all as he's picking right up where in left of in 2014 with the Red Sox fans - in the doghouse. This wasn't more apparent after his botched diving play in RF during extra innings of the Orioles' series. The guy just can't get it done in Boston, and it was a big whiff by Ben & Co. to think that he could under the circumstances.


Koji Uehara was another guy under the microscope in the Baltimore series when it was revealed that his fastball was "humping up" at a dizzying speed of 85 mph. Personally I was a proponent of passing on re-upping with Koji due to his age and his lame duck, "get me over" fastball only perpetuated this train of thought. However, last night his heater picked up a few more ticks on the radar gun, and he brashly tossed it early in the count to set up his devastating split. We all saw the Koji we grew to love in last night's opening game victory over the visiting Blue Jays. There was some saber rattling concerning Jonathan Papelbon's availability which, I feel is ridiculous. NESN's Jerry Remy mentioned during the Philadelphia series that Pap's fastball dipped below 90 mph for some time in 2014. He's not 96 with "hair" anymore as he sits around 92 on a good night and he doesn't have the action on his split that Koji does. As far as his slider, Hanley Ramirez would have hit it a country mile on a more hospitable evening. Thanks for the memories, Pap, but no thanks. I'd prefer an in house option like Matt Barnes if the need arises.

 It also appears that Pablo Sandoval has ditched his schtick of being a 270 pound slap hitting singles corner infielder. He might want to re-consider his label as a switch hitter with a goose egg in 17 ABs though. In any event, batting righty wasn't an option last night as Pablo had a great game, but injured himself on a nice diving play to rob Dalton Pompey's bunt bid. Before his hot streak, Sandoval's was slugging around .280, but now he is delivering the goods. Hopefully,  this setback with his neck doesn't linger.
A couple of the more subtle gems cropped up in last night's game with regards to the growth of two young players. First up is Xander Bogaerts .Even though his batting average has plummeted recently, his play in the field is paying dividends. This play last night on Devon Travis saved the game for Boston. If Pillar scored from third, it would have been 6-4 Jays and Dalton Pompey's grab off Hanley's liner could have been a game saver for Toronto with the outcome still in doubt. Instead, the Red Sox picked up a run to tie things at 5 and won it in walkoff fashion. Bogie doesn't make this type of play last season.



Speaking of walkoffs, that leads me to rookie Mookie Betts. Despite being on the interstate a few days ago with regards to batting average, there is an intangible quality developing with Betts. His presence in the lineup can spark the team with his speed, aggressive baserunning, fielding range or a big hit which he parlayed into the second Red Sox  walkoff win of 2015.
Notice the pitch hit put into play on his game winning single? It was low and outside as opposing teams have been feeding him a steady diet of breaking stuff away. Obviously, he is adjusting and must continue to do so. By the way, do you remember who had the first walkoff hit this year? Yep we're back to Xander Bogaerts once again. Xander has also been fed the same diet as Mookie, and he went with the pitch in that game against the Orioles to seal the win. Both players need to remain patient at the plate because if they can lay off away and get ahead, then they'll get those pitches to crush.

 As remarkable as Mookie has been in the field, his play was somewhat uninspiring in Baltimore. I didn't care about the ball in the sun as that can happen to anyone, but the Chris Davis double in Miley's meltdown left me bewildered. Mookie was way too shallow on Davis allowing his drive to get over his head. This could have been a coaching brain cramp as well, but as he learns the hitters and evaluates his own capabilities in conjuction with this information, this type of mistake will be a rarity.

Now we must find out if Buchholz and Porcello can anchor this staff over the course of the next two nights. A sweep would prove my April forecast correct which was a 13-9 record, and both of these guys are due for a win. The team record with these men on the mound is 3-5, so let's hope for some consistency and a leveling off in that win/loss column.
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