Granted the O's aren't exactly doormats anymore (more on that in a bit), but it borders on unacceptable to go 1-5 in a homestand against Oakland and Baltimore.
The Sox need to snap out of this in the worst way. It won't be easy, especially given the fact that they're banged up in some positions and playing shorthanded to begin with.
No one wants to hear excuses, though, and simply put, they need to be better. In order to do so, they, like a certain band of super heroes from the 90s, need a hero.
That's where we start the first leg of this week's 6-4-3.
Six Red Sox Thoughts
1. Someone needs to step up and carry this team through the difficult times
So many times when teams are going through slumps like the Red Sox are right now, it's usually the play of one player that helps them break out. It can be a starting pitcher who picks up the bullpen with a deep, dominant outing and then turns in a few good starts to help balance things out. Other times it's the play of a position player who gets red-hot at the plate a la J.D. Drew in June of 2008. They've gotten some solid performances out of players like David Ortiz and Ryan Sweeney this season, but no one has said "Get on my back, boys" and helped jump-start something. If you're looking for one player, your best bet would be Dustin Pedroia, but it would certainly be nice to see Adrian Gonzalez get hot, too. Speaking of…
2. Gonzo is officially pressing
Gonzalez is his own worst enemy right now. If you want proof of that, Sunday's 0-for-8 should do the trick. It's one thing to go 0-for-8 (though it is kind of tough to do so), but Gonzalez looked lost in extra innings. He saw six pitches in extra frames. In just those six pitches, he grounded out twice, popped out and struck out on three pitches against Chris Davis, who gets paid to be a designated hitter. He looked like he was trying to do too much, and the results back that up. Coincidentally, he had three hits both Friday and Saturday. Still, fans want to see him come through when it really matters, something that he's struggled to do this season.
3. The pen is mightier — for now
You could complain about a lot of things about this weekend's series from a Red Sox perspective, but the bullpen is not something to be unhappy with. Sox relievers turned in an incredible effort over the weekend. Not including Darnell McDonald's work because he's Darnell McDonald, the pen went 25 2/3 innings over the weekend giving up just four runs. In fact, they were called on for 37 1/3 innings over the two-series homestand. The results are good right now, but don't expect that to continue. It can't, not with this type of workload. So as good as the bullpen has been, the starting rotation must be much better, as you can't expect a bullpen to throw five innings a night and be solid in doing so.
4. Clay Buchholz continues to look for answers
We mentioned last week that Clay Buchholz needed to be better for the Sox and that he was a key to solidifying the rotation. Well, he was touched up again on Sunday afternoon, and he couldn't even get out of the third inning. The right-hander has now made six starts, and he's given up no fewer than five runs in any of those starts. He's averaging just over five innings per start, and his 9.09 ERA will tell you he's averaging more than a run per inning. He's also given up 10 home runs, which is one more than he surrendered in all of 2010 — when he pitched 173 2/3 innings. Bobby Valentine mentioned a blister issue last week, so maybe that's playing a role, and there are inevitable questions about the health of his back. Whatever it is, the Sox and Buchholz need it fixed in some capacity soon. Incredibly, though, he's 3-1. Baseball.
5. Middlebrooks will be good, but he's still a kid
We saw the best of Will Middlebrooks on Sunday, and then we were offered a reminder that he is indeed still a rookie. The third baseman absolutely hammered a nothing curveball from Tommy Hunter for a grand slam in the fifth that tied the game. It had the feeling of a game-changing, even season-changing blast for the Sox, but we know how that turned out. He then, however, didn't run out a ball down the left-field line in the 11th, a ball that could have been a double, but was instead a single. That's the type of thing that you expect out of a rookie which he still is, but it's abundantly clear after just one series that there is a ton of potential there.
6. So much for homefield advantage
Dominance at Fenway Park has become a hallmark for the Red Sox in the last decade, but they've been anything but dominant at home this year. A sweep at the hands of the Orioles leaves the Sox at just 4-10 at home for the year. That number needs to be a lot better if Boston is going to turn things around, especially with a eight-game road trip in Tampa, Philadelphia and Baltimore looming for the middle of this month.
Four Observations Around Baseball
1. It may be time to take the Orioles seriously
When a team is as bad as the Orioles have been for so long, you're skeptical of any success they have. That being said, they leave Fenway as the owners of the best record in baseball. Just as impressive was how they won this weekend, going into extra innings at Fenway twice to do so. That's a reflection of how good their bullpen has been this season. Matt Lindstrom, Darren O'Day, Luis Ayala and Jim Johnson all have an ERA of 0.64 or better in a combined 55 1/3 innings. The only slouch among Buck Showalter's go-to guys is Pedro Strop with a 1.59 ERA in 17 innings. We'll learn a lot more about the O's this week, though. They head home for four with Texas before three with the Rays and two with the Yankees. If they're still baseball's best then, it may be time to really take this team seriously.
2. Harper's debut has been can't-miss baseball
Bryce Harper may be the best thing to happen to baseball in quite some time. The Nationals phenom has helped make the Nats a must-see team after being called up last week. On Sunday night alone, Harper stole home and was also the center of some controversy when Cole Hamels plunked him with the first pitch in Harper's first at-bat. Hamels admitted after the game that he was trying to hit him, essentially using "just because" as his reasoning. If you love Harper or hate him, you can't deny that he's exciting to watch.
3. The defending champs keep chugging along
The St. Louis Cardinals were up against it heading into this season. They lost the best player in the game —Albert Pujols — to the Angels in free agency and were forced to start the season without ace Chris Carpenter. Yet, the Cards have managed to stay afloat under rookie skipper Mike Matheny, thanks in large part to Lance Lynn. The 24-year-old right-hander is 5-0 through five starts with a tidy 1.60 ERA and an incredible 0.77 WHIP. Offensively, David Freese picked up where he left off last October, and Jon Jay of all people is hitting .392. You wonder how long they can keep it up, but for now, the Cardinals look like a team that can hang around.
4. The Yankees are left to pick up the pieces without Mo
The Mariano Rivera injury sucks. He's a living legend and is a terrific human being by all accounts, but don't think for a second that anyone is going to feel bad for the Yankees. Brian Cashman and Joe Girardi are left to pick up the pieces in the bullpen moving forward, and it won't be easy. Not only do you lose the best closer ever, but you're forced to reshuffle things out there in a bullpen that has rarely been disturbed. Roles for guys like David Robertson and Rafael Soriano now get changed around some, and only time will tell what kind of impact that has on them.
Three Things to Watch This Week
1. Rays get their chance to emerge as AL's elite team
The Tampa Bay Rays have a big week ahead of them. The Orioles may have the best record in baseball, but one could certainly argue that Joe Maddon's bunch is the best team in baseball. Tampa heads out onto the road for an eight-game road trip that features stops in New York, Baltimore and Toronto. If they're successful on that trip, they could put some pretty good distance between themselves and the always dangerous AL East field.
2. Braves look to stay hot
The Atlanta Braves stumbled out of the gates losing their first four of 2012, picking up right where they left off last season. No worries, though, as they've turned things around going 14-7 since. They've been helped along by Michael Bourn, who may finally be coming along at the plate. He has all the speed in the world, but has struggled throughout his career to get on base. He's hitting .331 and has put those issues to rest, at least for now. Twenty-five-year old Brandon Beachy has been terrific at the top of the rotation, as the Braves look to stay hot during a nine-game road trip that began with a three-game sweep of the Rockies over the weekend.
3. More … hair!
