Of Some Concern...
In the week or so since my last post, the Red Sox have managed to shake off the fairy dust they wore for the first two weeks of the season, and have looked more flawed than flawless against the recent competition. A large portion of these losses can be blamed on two things: poor pitching and little offense.
We all saw Clement and Wells get lit up in their starts against the Blue Jays 2 weeks ago, and we've seen Lenny DiNardo manage to get knocked out of his start at the Rogers Center before the 4th inning. All spring the only thing people could talk about was how the Sox had a rare advantage over the rest of the league, with seven possible starters competing for rotation spots and a place as the long man in the bullpen. This of course helped everyone justify the trade of Arroyo for Wily Mo, because it cleared up some space and picked up an upside bat. Thing is, now we're hearing David Wells (who's back on the DL) talk about possibly retiring if he can't come back from this injury at the level he desires, and Lenny DiNardo is not a realistic long-term solution. Jon Papelbon shouldn't be moved from the closer's role as long as he's effective, and any potential Rocket Reentry is still at least a month away.
To add insult to injury, Wily Mo has done very little to appease the fans. There was the assist he gave to Frank Catalanotto for a 3 run jack during Wily's first appearance, there's the almost sure-bet strikeout when he steps up to the plate, though to be fair he does appear to be looking to gain patience: some of his strikeouts were on bordeline calls. And oh yea, ever seen him sprint in the outfield? Yea, me either. He loafs like it's his job, and his only compensation is a cannon for a right arm.
Still, Pena's growing pains were to be expected. What wasn't expected was the sending down of Adam Stern, our Rule 5 Energizer Bunny, to AAA for hitting work so that we could have Willie Harris' stellar .175 AAA average in the lineup to help kill rallies after Alex Gonzalez strikes out. I agree that Stern needs at bats in the minors, but the timing of the move, coming when the team has looked flat and mainly uninspired, should be questioned. Harris is gives nothing more than Stern, outside of the fact that Harris know he's a backup.
After his seemingly daring decision to choose the rookie over the veteran to help close out the 2-1 lead in Texas during the season's third game, Francona has done nothing to disprove he's one of the worst, or at the very minimum one of the streakiest (as far as creativity and intelligence goes) managers in the game. He follows lefty/righty matchups religiously and never seems to know exactly when to and not to play the JV squad. Actually, check that. If Wakefield is pitching, it's apparently a JV game. Poor guy.
Oh yea, and Josh Beckett gave up nine earned runs yesterday to the AL's best offense, while Alex Cora went 3-3 for the AL's 11th. Sweet.
Here's hoping for a little change in the wind, because there's no way all of these bad things can be blamed on my switch away from the lucky hat to the more comfortable hat.
We all saw Clement and Wells get lit up in their starts against the Blue Jays 2 weeks ago, and we've seen Lenny DiNardo manage to get knocked out of his start at the Rogers Center before the 4th inning. All spring the only thing people could talk about was how the Sox had a rare advantage over the rest of the league, with seven possible starters competing for rotation spots and a place as the long man in the bullpen. This of course helped everyone justify the trade of Arroyo for Wily Mo, because it cleared up some space and picked up an upside bat. Thing is, now we're hearing David Wells (who's back on the DL) talk about possibly retiring if he can't come back from this injury at the level he desires, and Lenny DiNardo is not a realistic long-term solution. Jon Papelbon shouldn't be moved from the closer's role as long as he's effective, and any potential Rocket Reentry is still at least a month away.
To add insult to injury, Wily Mo has done very little to appease the fans. There was the assist he gave to Frank Catalanotto for a 3 run jack during Wily's first appearance, there's the almost sure-bet strikeout when he steps up to the plate, though to be fair he does appear to be looking to gain patience: some of his strikeouts were on bordeline calls. And oh yea, ever seen him sprint in the outfield? Yea, me either. He loafs like it's his job, and his only compensation is a cannon for a right arm.
Still, Pena's growing pains were to be expected. What wasn't expected was the sending down of Adam Stern, our Rule 5 Energizer Bunny, to AAA for hitting work so that we could have Willie Harris' stellar .175 AAA average in the lineup to help kill rallies after Alex Gonzalez strikes out. I agree that Stern needs at bats in the minors, but the timing of the move, coming when the team has looked flat and mainly uninspired, should be questioned. Harris is gives nothing more than Stern, outside of the fact that Harris know he's a backup.
After his seemingly daring decision to choose the rookie over the veteran to help close out the 2-1 lead in Texas during the season's third game, Francona has done nothing to disprove he's one of the worst, or at the very minimum one of the streakiest (as far as creativity and intelligence goes) managers in the game. He follows lefty/righty matchups religiously and never seems to know exactly when to and not to play the JV squad. Actually, check that. If Wakefield is pitching, it's apparently a JV game. Poor guy.
Oh yea, and Josh Beckett gave up nine earned runs yesterday to the AL's best offense, while Alex Cora went 3-3 for the AL's 11th. Sweet.
Here's hoping for a little change in the wind, because there's no way all of these bad things can be blamed on my switch away from the lucky hat to the more comfortable hat.
Labels: 2006 Season
Ryan Brodeur at 12:33 PM
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