The Red Sox, to my surprise, have just swept the Tampa Bay Rays. The Sox consecutively defeated Rays’ “stud” pitchers Wade Davis, James Shields and Matt Garza, who has dominated them for two years. That sweep is part of a very impressive 13-game road trip, when the Red Sox went 9-4 against several of the best teams in baseball. Suddenly, this team looks quite good. I didn’t know they had it in them to sweep the Rays.
The question is: Will the team play more like this “red-hot” team of the past two weeks, or, more like the mediocre team of the first 35 games of the 2010 season? The truth may be in the middle, but, hopefully a bit slanted toward the recent trend.
The Sox have won eight of their last nine games. They won two of three in a series with the Phillies before sweeping the Rays. They swept a two-game series from the Minnesota Twins. They split a tw0-game series with the NY Yankees and they won one of three vs. the Detroit Tigers to start the trip. Their pitching has been outstanding. Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz are pitching terrifically. Daisuke Matsuzaka pitched a brilliant, near no-hitter.
So, it raises the question: Does this 2010 Red Sox team have to pitch in “lights out” form to rise to the top in the AL East and beyond?
My short answer is, basically, YES. I’ve said all along that this team would depend heavily on top-notch pitching because its hitting is not as good as its rivals in the AL East. But, I do not think they can expect the pitching to remain as good as it was in the past two weeks.
Yet, there is another factor in the mix and his name is David Ortiz. Big Papi has not only snapped out of his lengthy, troubling slump, but, he’s helping carry the team with several big, clutch hits and home runs in recent days. He’s been hitting like his old self. Can this keep up? I doubt it, but, Ortiz has looked so much better lately that it’s possible to imagine him doing at least as well as he did in 2009, when he finished with 99 RBIs and 28 HRs. Ortiz had been so good in past years that his 2009 performance seemed “quiet” and subpar, partly because he got more of his hits against bad teams and non-clutch moments. However, right now, if he could put up similar numbers in 2010, it’d certainly seem acceptable compared to how he looked in April. Some, including me, believed Ortiz might be released by the team. He looked so bad. That is what I love about sports; you never know for sure what’s going to happen on the field every day!
The Sox still need some help and my guess is they’ll swing some deals at the trading deadline to get a bat and strengthen their bullpen.
What’s been a nice coincidence is that the Yankees just finished a bad stretch and the Rays have been more “mortal-looking” as well, apparently experiencing a bit more trouble hitting. In a couple of weeks, the Rays and Yankees don’t seem at least quite as far ahead of the Sox talent and performance-wise. But, I still think the Red Sox are not as good as either of these two tough teams.
The Red Sox, even with Big Papi performing, still need to beef up their lineup. Jacoby Ellsbury is still hurting from his rib fracture and may have to return to the DL. Mike Cameron will be in more fragile condition all season due to his abdominal strain (due to a sports hernia?) Billy Hall, a utility player, has not played well in the field or at the plate. Darnell McDonald, a minor-leaguer who has filled in in center, has gotten a few big hits, but is a below-average outfielder. Jeremey Hermida has also gotten some clutch hits, but can’t field very well.
If the Red Sox can somehow add some juice to their lineup, their pitching just may keep them competitive for more of the summer. If not, their pitchers will end up carrying too much of the responsibility to limit opposing teams to a few runs a game.
