Certainly, several new Boston players have looked a bit uncomfortable in their skin. Until Monday's 8-2 loss to the Rays, John Lackey had been the exception.
With his worst outing since late in the 2008 season, Lackey has joined a group of newcomers in experiencing some early struggles in a Red Sox uniform.
After giving up eight runs on nine hits in 3 1/3 innings, he could only focus on his own issues.
"Obviously it hasn't been good," Lackey said of Boston's 4-9 start. "I have enough to work on myself before I start talking about anybody else on the team. Hopefully we're getting it all out of our systems early on."
It has been a team-wide debacle the past five days, but there is an increasing focus on a host of imports brought in to solidify the defense, bolster the pitching staff and strengthen the bench. While Lackey, whose ERA ballooned to 5.62, and others have had some nice moments, the newbies as a group have yet to make a serious impression.
Adrian Beltre and Marco Scutaro, the fresh left side of the infield, are hitting a collective .292 but have combined for four errors, each of which has led to runs. Bill Hall has more errors (two) than hits (one). Jeremy Hermida has had a handful of big hits but is just 7-for-32 (.219) overall and has looked lost at times in left field.
And Cameron, who is hitting .233 with no RBIs and made a crucial error in one of the losses to the Rays, spent all of Patriots' Day in Massachusetts General Hospital to find the cause of persistent pain initially thought to be a kidney stone.
"We're going through a really tough time," Francona said.
With both Cameron and Jacoby Ellsbury sidelined, Hall and Hermida have been forced into regular outfield duty without much practice. It's a recipe for disaster at a park like Fenway.
"It's tough," Hall said of learning the outfield on the fly. "Coming into the season, center field was probably the last place I would have to go in and play. … There's a lot of things going on out there in the outfield, period."
Such was the case as Lackey's start dragged on. The best Red Sox pitcher since the start of spring training, Lackey allowed a run within minutes of throwing his first pitch. He worked around two hits in the second but soon teamed with Hall and Hermida to help the Rays take a commanding lead.
With one out in the third, Hermida allowed a Jason Bartlett single to skip by him in left and roll to the wall. It was the third error by an outfielder during the Red Sox' five-game losing streak. Bartlett was one of two Tampa Bay runners to come in on Evan Longoria's double moments later.
Hall was the next newbie to find himself in the middle of the action.
He first made a valiant effort on a drive off the bat of B.J. Upton that was ticketed for the Boston bullpen. The default center fielder ran full speed into the wall, crumbling to the ground as Upton rounded the bases with a three-run homer.
It would have been a great catch, but the ball hit off Hall's glove. A seemingly easy carom off the Green Monster one inning later did not, as the ball bounded by his glove as it rolled toward center and Bartlett raced all the way to third. It was originally ruled a double and an error but later changed to a triple for Bartlett. Either way, it was a play Hall should make, and it allowed Tampa Bay to add a run on a sacrifice fly.
"Balls off the wall, you have to learn the angle they come off the wall," Hall said. "Just a lot of stuff out there. It takes a little time."
The triple came on Lackey's last pitch of the game. One newcomer on the front of the play and another on the back end, covering a position normally manned by a third that is in the hospital. Not exactly what the Red Sox had in mind when they revamped their roster this offseason.
