NEW YORK – This was not how the season was to go for the Boston Red Sox.
Going into the year, they built their team on pitching and defense, knowing that their offense would not be the same as it was in previous seasons.
What they did not expect was everything to turn out they it has so far.
Last night, Boston escaped Yankee Stadium with 7-6 victory, rallying from a 5-0 deficit for the second night in a row to take the lead, finally hang on in the ninth when closer Jonathan Papelbon, who gave up a two-run ninth inning lead the previous night when the Yankees scored four runs on two two-run blasts. He blew Randy Winn away with a fastball to give the Red Sox an inspiring win, showing that they have still have a beating pulse inside.
With 20 wins and 20 losses after 40 games this season, the Red Sox look at the standings and see not only the Yankees, but the Tampa Bay Rays growing sizeable leads in the AL East. Both teams right now have the makeup and talent to win nearly 100 games this season.
If that is the case, where does that leave the Red Sox? The team started the season high on quality starting pitching and bullpen depth, but coming up low on season performance.
Surely, they will turn their season around at some point and play good baseball, the question is “When?” And if they do not by a certain point, when do they wave the proverbial “white flag” on their season.
The Yankees will not see the Red Sox against until the first week of August. As they part company for the next ten weeks, the only question that exists is whether Boston will be so far behind that the final ten games of the season will have any meaning at all, or will “The Rivalry” as we know it be reduced to nothing more than overhyped exhibitions.
Actually, the way the last 18 games have played out, the long standing blood feud has been remarkably one-sided.
Last year the Yankees lost the first eight games to the Red Sox. Since then they have won 14 of the last 18 and many of them have not been that close.
The standings may only show a 5 1/2 game difference between the two teams, but in reality, it is much, much more. While the Yankees have their own touch stretch of games currently playing out right now through the end of next week, Boston has 17 games against teams that were in the playoffs last season. To be at .500 after 40 games with 23 of those games at Fenway Park only presents trouble.
Meanwhile the Yankees have played 17 home games so far and have a set of 16 games against the Indians (four), Orioles (six), Blue Jays (three) and Astros (three). Outside of the Blue Jays, the utter incompetence of these teams should serve as a fine elixir for even this depleted Yankee team and allow them to fatten up their record.
Mix in the two and you have a situation the puts Boston far, far out of the race.
Outside of Dustin Pedroia and JD Drew, each position on the field is a question mark.
Victor Martinez cannot effectively catch the pitching staff and has been an open invitation to steal, further putting pressure on the pitchers.
Marco Scutaro can work a count when he comes to the plate, but is in no way the offensive defensive force the Red Sox expected. With two more errors last night, he has not been an upgrade over any previous shortstop they have had in the past not named Edgar Renteria or Julio Lugo.
Once regarded as recently as last year as one the league’s best fielding third basemen, Adrian Beltre suddenly can’t catch anything, giving credence to the thought that he cannot play in Boston.
Jacoby Ellsbury has not been in the lineup due to injury along with Mike Cameron. JD Drew has his moments where he performs to all of his talent and others where he is on the missing person’s list. Right now, he is blistering hot in May, carrying the club on offense, but it is only a matter of time before past history catches up with him.
The much greater concern is the pitching staff that many projected to be the best and deepest in baseball when the season began.
Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz have held up their end, pitching well.
Newcomer John Lackey has been more than bad. But it has been Daisuke Matzusaka and Josh Beckett that have been downright horrific in the early going.
Add in an inconsistent bullpen and it is a team that has many leaky holes that cannot be covered up instantly without another opening up.
If Beckett is not pitching to his usual self, the Red Sox have zero chance. Add in shaky performances from anyone else, and the team will be kaput by the trade deadline.
Luckily for them it is still early and there are enough games to attempt to make up the already lost ground.
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