I've been wanted to do a 3 part series, if you will, about the Red Sox. Things have kind of calmed down a bit after the big trade of August 26th. So I'm a bit of a "Johnny come lately" on this but I want to discuss it anyway.
In late August the Red Sox were floundering. From August 1st to the 25th, they went 7-16 and that included a pair 4 game losing streaks (they also dropped 3 of 4 to the hideous Twins and were swept by the mediocre Angels). Beckett and Crawford had cleared waivers and no one wanted them. Somehow the Sox managed to put together those two with their most productive player of the season (Gonzales) in a trade with the Dodgers. There's been a lot of speculation about the trade but I buy into the fact that the Sox had to throw in Gonzales in order to get it done. According to sources in the know, Valentine liked Gonzales and didn't have a problem with him. Gonzales was also the Sox best offensive player who was the person to be in the line-up everyday. The Dodgers are allegedly hoping that a return to the National League will help Beckett and that Crawford will be out of the spotlight in Boston, take a bit of a backseat to Matt Kemp and flourish in LA next season after he recovers from elbow surgery.
It was a coup for the Sox in the fact that they not only got rid of Beckett (who's been mediocre at best since going 17-6 in 2009, lousy since September 2011 and has been plagued with minor injuries), Crawford (who has not lived up to the huge contract he signed before the 2011 season) but they dumped their salaries on the Dodgers as well. I agree with those that say the Dodgers had to make a big move to get rid of the taste of previous owner Frank McCord. The prize though was Gonzales. The Sox couldn't make the deal unless they included him. A small price to pay for the future. The Sox were going nowhere this season with him so why not let him go in order to get rid of Beckett and Crawford. Beckett by the way is 1-2 in 4 starts with the Dodgers, his ERA is 3.38 (that's nearly 2 runs lower than it was on Boston) but he's hardly l mowing them down.
The high water mark for the Red Sox was July 1st when they were 42-37 and still had hopes of a surge to get into the playoffs. Since that time they've gone 24-43, have thrown in the towel (probably the day of the trade) and have been mathematically eliminated from any playoff contention. I've watched some of their games sine the trade and I do not recognize a lot of the names. David Ortiz has been on the DL for awhile, Lester has yet to snap out of his funk and Pedroia seems to be back to old form.
With Ortiz out and Gonzales traded, the power has come from journeyman Cody Ross, who has 21 HR and 74 RBI so far. They've gotten some nice play from some young stars, Will Middlebrooks was playing so well that it made Youkilis expendable but then he got hurt and has been sidelined for most of the Summer. Pedro Ciriaco has been a bright spot and continues to play well and has potential to be a very exciting player. Pitching continues to be the problem. Other than Felix Doubront there hasn't been a young pitcher that shows a lot of promise, though with a record of 10-9 and an ERA 5.11 the jury is still out on Doubront (be advised...it's his 1st full season as a starting pitcher, so we shall see). The "anchor" of the staff has been Clay Buchholz but at 11-6 with an ERA 4.33, he's not exactly stirring up memories of Pedro Martinez. The bullpen is terrible, that's all that needs to be said.
There's been a lot of speculation about Bobby Valentine. Fans seem to either hate him or are indifferent. Red Sox fans need to realize that 2004 & 2007 are in the past and they can no longer bask in that fading glow. The talking heads say that it's not all his fault (it isn't) and he should get to manage again in 2013. There have also been reports that he's been lethargic and no longer cares. To be fair, he was snakebit before the season started. Injuries have crippled the team and the pitching has been poor all season. To be fair, the Yankees have been hit pretty hard by injuries (A-Rod, Sabathia, Pettitte and Teixiera have all had stints on the DL and Mariano Rivera blew his knee out before the season started) and they are 82-63 and lead the AL East (though the Orioles are pounding on the door).
The problems with the Red Sox start with the ownership and trickle down from there. John Henry and Larry Lucchino have been at odds at times with where the team is going and the GM Ben Cherrington has been left out of key decisions. It kind of reminds me of the Yankees when Steinbrenner was making decisions prior to their run from 1996-2003 (after losing the World Series in 2003, he started to become more hands on again until his health started failing him). If the ownership can get on the same page then maybe the ship can be righted. I would like to see them re-sign Ellsbury and go after a power hitting first basemen (admittedly, I don't know who's coming into the free agent market) but they need to be smart about it (good luck). The pitching situation can't get much worse. Dice-K is probably done but if Lester can bounce back and the bullpen can get some stability then things can pick up pitching wise.
2013 could be a make or break year. The Sox can rise up or continue to fall into the depths of mediocrity much like they did it the early 80's ('79-'85). The future is definitely cloudy but the forecast is not clear so the sun can easily shine through. Thanks for your time.
In late August the Red Sox were floundering. From August 1st to the 25th, they went 7-16 and that included a pair 4 game losing streaks (they also dropped 3 of 4 to the hideous Twins and were swept by the mediocre Angels). Beckett and Crawford had cleared waivers and no one wanted them. Somehow the Sox managed to put together those two with their most productive player of the season (Gonzales) in a trade with the Dodgers. There's been a lot of speculation about the trade but I buy into the fact that the Sox had to throw in Gonzales in order to get it done. According to sources in the know, Valentine liked Gonzales and didn't have a problem with him. Gonzales was also the Sox best offensive player who was the person to be in the line-up everyday. The Dodgers are allegedly hoping that a return to the National League will help Beckett and that Crawford will be out of the spotlight in Boston, take a bit of a backseat to Matt Kemp and flourish in LA next season after he recovers from elbow surgery.
It was a coup for the Sox in the fact that they not only got rid of Beckett (who's been mediocre at best since going 17-6 in 2009, lousy since September 2011 and has been plagued with minor injuries), Crawford (who has not lived up to the huge contract he signed before the 2011 season) but they dumped their salaries on the Dodgers as well. I agree with those that say the Dodgers had to make a big move to get rid of the taste of previous owner Frank McCord. The prize though was Gonzales. The Sox couldn't make the deal unless they included him. A small price to pay for the future. The Sox were going nowhere this season with him so why not let him go in order to get rid of Beckett and Crawford. Beckett by the way is 1-2 in 4 starts with the Dodgers, his ERA is 3.38 (that's nearly 2 runs lower than it was on Boston) but he's hardly l mowing them down.
The high water mark for the Red Sox was July 1st when they were 42-37 and still had hopes of a surge to get into the playoffs. Since that time they've gone 24-43, have thrown in the towel (probably the day of the trade) and have been mathematically eliminated from any playoff contention. I've watched some of their games sine the trade and I do not recognize a lot of the names. David Ortiz has been on the DL for awhile, Lester has yet to snap out of his funk and Pedroia seems to be back to old form.
With Ortiz out and Gonzales traded, the power has come from journeyman Cody Ross, who has 21 HR and 74 RBI so far. They've gotten some nice play from some young stars, Will Middlebrooks was playing so well that it made Youkilis expendable but then he got hurt and has been sidelined for most of the Summer. Pedro Ciriaco has been a bright spot and continues to play well and has potential to be a very exciting player. Pitching continues to be the problem. Other than Felix Doubront there hasn't been a young pitcher that shows a lot of promise, though with a record of 10-9 and an ERA 5.11 the jury is still out on Doubront (be advised...it's his 1st full season as a starting pitcher, so we shall see). The "anchor" of the staff has been Clay Buchholz but at 11-6 with an ERA 4.33, he's not exactly stirring up memories of Pedro Martinez. The bullpen is terrible, that's all that needs to be said.
There's been a lot of speculation about Bobby Valentine. Fans seem to either hate him or are indifferent. Red Sox fans need to realize that 2004 & 2007 are in the past and they can no longer bask in that fading glow. The talking heads say that it's not all his fault (it isn't) and he should get to manage again in 2013. There have also been reports that he's been lethargic and no longer cares. To be fair, he was snakebit before the season started. Injuries have crippled the team and the pitching has been poor all season. To be fair, the Yankees have been hit pretty hard by injuries (A-Rod, Sabathia, Pettitte and Teixiera have all had stints on the DL and Mariano Rivera blew his knee out before the season started) and they are 82-63 and lead the AL East (though the Orioles are pounding on the door).
The problems with the Red Sox start with the ownership and trickle down from there. John Henry and Larry Lucchino have been at odds at times with where the team is going and the GM Ben Cherrington has been left out of key decisions. It kind of reminds me of the Yankees when Steinbrenner was making decisions prior to their run from 1996-2003 (after losing the World Series in 2003, he started to become more hands on again until his health started failing him). If the ownership can get on the same page then maybe the ship can be righted. I would like to see them re-sign Ellsbury and go after a power hitting first basemen (admittedly, I don't know who's coming into the free agent market) but they need to be smart about it (good luck). The pitching situation can't get much worse. Dice-K is probably done but if Lester can bounce back and the bullpen can get some stability then things can pick up pitching wise.
2013 could be a make or break year. The Sox can rise up or continue to fall into the depths of mediocrity much like they did it the early 80's ('79-'85). The future is definitely cloudy but the forecast is not clear so the sun can easily shine through. Thanks for your time.
