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By Jimmy, 5/6/2010 9:17 am

5/5/10: Red Sox 3, Angels 1

Mia looks especially happy to be here.

When Theo Epstein acquired pitcher John Lackey and third baseman Adrian Beltre over the winter, last night’s performance was undoubtedly the type of thing he was hoping to see from both players.

Lackey: 7 quick innings in which he only allowed 4 baserunners.
Beltre: Terrific defense (calmly initiating a double play while a broken bat fragment was sailing towards his noggin), and a clutch home run in the 8th inning.

Notes & Takeaways:

• As of right now, Adrian Beltre has been the second best 3B in the American League (behind Evan Longoria), and John Lackey has made “quality starts” (6 or more innings, 3 or less earned runs) in all but one of his appearances.  You can attribute the team’s early struggles to many things, but the new guys (including Marco Scutaro) are not sharing any slices of the blame pie.
• I overheard a fan complaining that Beltre “hot dogged” too much at third base.  My first though was: what the hell is this guy talking about?  Then it occurred to me; he would not be saying that if Beltre looked a bit more like Tim Neahring (if you get my drift).  Some fans still mentally reside in Southie circa 1972.
• Since America celebrates Cinco De Mayo, can we go head and dub May 6th “National Diarrhea and Headache Day”?  I did not have any Mexican food or tequila last night, and this morning I’m oddly experiencing typical May 6th symptoms.  Maybe they never purified the drinking water in Somerville.

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By Jimmy, 5/5/2010 12:34 pm

In a way, being manager of the Boston Red Sox is sort of like being the head of a crime syndicate or the president of Honduras; you don’t really expect to enjoy a long tenure before being forcibly removed.  So, let’s take a minute to recognize the magnitude of Terry Francona’s accomplishment tonight: managing his 1,000th game for the most heavily scrutinized sports franchise in the country.

Only three other managers have sat in his seat for longer.  Two of them (Rough Carrigan and Joe Cronin) were player-managers for the majority of their tenure, and thus had some extra job security that modern day managers can only dream of.  The third, Pinky Higgins, was the BFF of team owner Tom Yawkey and was therefore able to manage 1,119 games despite never finishing above third place.

In all honestly, I consider it a goddamn miracle that Francona has managed the Sox for this long without bludgeoning a media member to death with a fungo bat.  I suppose he really does love the job.  It can’t be just for the money.  He makes a few million dollars a year, which is great, but when his heart finally explodes in his chest cavity like a hot dog in a microwave, a wad of $100 bills won’t really gauze the wound.

At this point, I think we can say without much hesitation that Terry Francona is the greatest manager we’ve ever had in Boston.

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By Jimmy,

5/4/10: Red Sox 5, Angels 1

It was another one of those nights where you could hear an awkward smattering of boos after every one of David Ortiz’ failed plate appearances.  The Red Sox had not been hitting well against Angels starter Ervin Santana, and the team’s offensive futility seemed to be personified by the struggling DH in the eyes of the fans.

Things nearly came to boil in the bottom of the 8th inning with the game tied at 1, when Ortiz stepped to the plate with no outs and the bases loaded and promptly grounded into a 4-2-3 double play.  However, Jeremy Hermida’s 3-run double rendered the GIDP harmless (as far as the win/loss column is concerned, anyway).

If I miss down, I’m fine, if I miss up, that’s when things are not going right. I’ll take throwing the ball to the bottom of Victor’s glove every time. You can always adjust up, it’s hard to adjust down sometimes.

-John Lester, 5/4/10

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By Jimmy, 5/4/2010 9:08 am

5/3/10: Red Sox 17, Angels 8

The Angels actually find themselves in a similar position as the Red Sox; under performing a bit after making the playoffs last season.  The main difference between the two clubs is that many people expected the Angels to struggle.  I don’t think the same could be said for the Sox.

Last night, the Red Sox did their best “Dexter” impersonation; taking out their frustration and torment from past events by methodically  butchering and mutilating their current adversary.  I think the emotional atmosphere can best be summed up by Dustin Pedroia’s post-game quote (or “tirade” if you prefer):

“Everybody can be (bleep) happy when you’re (bleep) 30-1, but what is everybody going to do when we’re 12-14? Are you going to show up to work the next day and write an (bleep) story? Hell no. You’re going to write the best story of your life. We’re going to try and play the best (bleep) game of our life tomorrow. That’s what you’ve got to do when you’re 12-14. Don’t put your head down and mope. Grind it out. You believe. That’s what we’re built on.

Okay, settle down, Rudy.

While last night was good to see, we should temper our excitement by noting that none of the three pitchers roughed up by the Sox are “good” by any means.  Oh, sure, Saunders, Palmer, and Stokes all had decent years in 2009, but all three of these guys benefited by BABIP-oriented luck, and have been hit hard thus far in 2010.

Notes & Takeaways:

• Clay Buchholz was hit with a line drive in the ankle in the 2nd inning, which may or may not have affected his performance.  He was “tight” when he left the game, so it’s something to keep an eye on.
• Francona’s LHP platoon paid off in a big way, as Mike Lowell went 4 for 4 and even Bill Hall joined the party, hitting what probably was the catalyzing HR in the 2nd inning.
• I will say, if the team is facing a lefty at Fenway Park, you could do a lot worse than having Mike Lowell standing in the batter’s box.  Of course, Lowell believes he should play more, especially now that he is hitting.  The one problem is that his platoon mate is just coming off of a 2 HR game himself, as is also a guy who has “earned respect” or whatever.
• There are grumblings (unsubstantiated talk on 98.5 heard this morning) of a rift between the guys who have been on the team for a couple of years and the newcomers.  The rumor stated that only Marco Scutaro has really gelled with the 2007 crew thus far.  I wouldn’t be shocked if it were at least somewhat true.  The Goatee Mafia has lost a starting job at C, 3B, and SP, all due to newly acquired talent.  Scutaro wasn’t taking anyone’s job, he was filling an empty hole.  I would like to think that a bunch of guys in their late 30′s/early 40′s would handle this sort of thing with dignity, but human nature is what it is.
• We are once again reminded that regardless of your age or physical shape, you are always standing in cancer’s wheelhouse.

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By Jimmy, 5/3/2010 9:54 am

Since I started writing here 3 years ago, I’ve been relatively spoiled by covering a perennial World Series contender.  So, it’s always odd when the Red Sox go through a period of futility like this one.  Usually, it’s just a collective slump, and they eventually snap out of it.  I think this is again the case here, but I will say that this is the worst they’ve looked since I arrived here in 2007.

Yes, we should be concerned.  When Tampa Bay appears to be proving that 2009 was an aberration and the Yankees are playing like the fantasy team they are on paper, there’s just not a whole lot of wiggle room for the Red Sox.  They are now in a bit of a hole, and while there is plenty of time to crawl out of it, it’s not an ideal position when your team plays in the toughest division in baseball.

Now, there are things that have gone wrong for the Sox that will eventually go right.  On the other hand, there are some legitimate problems that will not go away very easily.  I think it might be worth it to identify each of these things, and perhaps restore some sanity to the fanbase.

Glimmers of hope:

J.D. Drew: Through the first 14 games of the season (9 of which the Red Sox lost), J.D. hit an abysmal .133/.250/.222.  He’s heated up recently, hitting .279/.353/.628 since then.  Now, I’m an unabashed Drew supporter, but even from an objective point of view, which set of numbers more closely resembles what we’d expect from him given his track record?

Jon Lester: In true Lester fashion, he started out the year poorly but has been dominant in his last two starts, striking out 18 hitters in 12.2 innings pitched.

Josh Beckett: Not really a glimmer hope in the “wow, he’s looked good” sense.  It’s more of a “wow, he can’t be this bad” statement.  While Beckett’s performances have been a tad more volatile than Lester’s, he looked OK in his most recent start.  His velocity isn’t noticeably down this year, and like Lester, he pitched poorly in April of 2009 as well.  When all is said and done, he’ll be a decent #2/#3 guy at minimum.

Victor Martinez (offensively): Similar to the Beckett situation.  Victor has been one of the most consistent hitters in the AL over the past few years, and is now hitting uncharacteristically poorly.  He’s only 31 years old, and he’ll turn it around.  When Victor starts hitting, the Red Sox will be a better team.

Infield defense: While Adrian Beltre has had some hiccups in the field, he’s also made a bunch of plays that no one else on the roster could make.  Beltre’s bat may come back down to earth a bit, but he’ll continue to flash the leather at 3B.  Marco Scutaro has been fine at shortstop (and he’s not a terrible hitter, which is a bonus), and Pedroia/Youkilis are both as advertized with the glove.    

Legitimate concerns:

David Ortiz: If a pitcher makes a mistake, Ortiz can still make them pay for it.  However, he’s clearly a shell of his former self, and not someone you want to have at the plate against a halfway-decent major league pitcher.  While a Mike Lowell platoon might be a more attractive option, the problem is that Ortiz has looked just as bad against right-handers as he has against lefties.  At this point, Jeremty Hermida is undoubtedly a better hitter than Ortiz, and the team would be better/more flexible without Ortiz on the roster. (Wow, that sounds harsh.  Unfortunately, it’s true).

Center field: When the Sox acquired Mike Cameron, they knew it came with the risks inherent in any athlete in his late-30′s.  However, Jacoby Ellsbury’s presence hedged this concern a bit, and made it easier for the team to take a chance on the aging Cameron.  Of course, Murphy’s Law went into effect and both players are now hurt, with little prognosis on when either will be healthy.  Darnell McDonald has filled in and given the fans something to smile at here and there, but the euphoria will eventually wear off once he regresses to the mean.  With Josh Reddick apparently not ready for prime time, this will be an area of weakness until Ellsbury is 100%.

Daisuke Matsuzaka: I was at a wedding on Saturday, and like a true douchebag Bostonian, I spent most of the night following the Red Sox through my cell phone.  Things appeared to turn to shit rather quickly for Daisuke after a few promising innings.  Pitch FX had his average speed at close to 92 MPH,  which is an improvement this time last year (he was below 90 in April of 2009), but it’s not really his velocity we are worried about.  While he appears to be healthier, he’ll need to prove once again that he can retire MLB hitters for string of innings without having the roof cave in on him.

The bench: Jason Varitek will eventually end his Mike Piazza impersonation, and when the smoke clears, this bench will be one of the thinnest in the American League.  Bill Hall brings nothing to the table, and the other guys on the bench are DHs.  In fact, when you really think about it, this team has 5 DHs on the roster, which is a good segway into the next area of concern…

Opposing Baserunners: The team’s inability to deter runners from advancing is unprecedented, and was highlighted by the pick-off gaffe from the late innings yesterday.  When pitchers lose focus on the hitter because our catcher has an arm like the drummer from Def Leppard, it’s a problem.  My guess is that a move will probably be made here before the trade deadline.  It will probably be an awkward move where salaries are eaten and bridges are burnt, but it will be a necessity.

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By Jimmy,

5/2/10: Orioles 3, Red Sox 2 (10 innings)