The Red Sox are on the outside of the AL playoff race looking in, and a three-game sweep over the worst team in the AL East could bring the club within striking distance of the first-place Yankees and Rays. When the club returns home, the White Sox and old pal Manny Ramirez will be waiting for them at Fenway Park as the slugger makes his first appearance to Boston in an AL uniform since being traded in 2008.
Which player will weather through the pressure and hype in the next six games?
Marco Scutaro, who has quietly been the team’s most valuable player this season, could be the key to the offense at the top of the order. With Adrian Beltre and Victor Martinez nursing bumps and bruises, the lineup will need all the help it can get, and Scutaro’s ability to get on base could be key to jump-starting the bats.
Darnell McDonald has cooled off lately after riding a four-game hit streak where he went 7-for-12 from Aug. 15-20. Since that streak, he has just two hits in five games and his average is down to .271. Do you think the outfielder can break out at Fenway South?
Although his experience against the O’s is brief, Daniel Nava has some solid numbers against the Baltimore club. He’s 3-for-7 in three games and has two RBIs. Nava is struggling somewhat at the plate, but the rookie outfielder has chipped in with three RBIs in his last four games.
While the club continues to tough it out the rest of the way, the bullpen is needed now more than ever, and leading that bullpen is setup man Daniel Bard. Bard has allowed just two hits in his last six games and hasn’t allowed an earned run since Aug. 13. In just under 11 innings against the O’s, Bard has allowed six hits and three runs while striking out 17 batters.
href="http://polldaddy.com/poll/3698100/">Who will be the Top Dawg of the Week against the Orioles and White Sox?9px;">href="http://polldaddy.com/features-surveys/">survey software
Every Monday or Tuesday (depending on when the Red Sox series starts), NESN.com will release which Red Sox players are the Top Dawg contenders. The following Sunday, Jerry Remy will pick a Top Dawg of the Week.
But Jerry also wants to hear from you, Red Sox Nation, and find out who you think is the week’s Top Dawg for the Red Sox. Fans can vote for their Top Dawg of the Week. At the end of the week, we’ll see if Jerry’s Top Dawg matches up with Red Sox Nation’s Top Dawg.
