At the beginning of the season, the Red Sox looked to have one of the MLB's strongest starting pitching rotations. Well, on paper at least.
Perhaps Boston's most talented starter, Josh Beckett has had an inconsistent year while battling injuries. Most recently, Beckett was held out of the rotation with back spasms that he began suffering on July 31, when he was pulled from his start after only throwing 2 2/3 innings.
After his name was thrown around in trade rumors coming up to the July 31 deadline, some have questioned what to expect from what could have been Boston's ace this season. After Wednesday afternoon's start in which Beckett allowed eight earned runs over five innings of work, those questions still remain, but we'll see how the right-hander responds going forward.
Will we see the dominant starter that helped bring a World Series to Boston in 2007? Or will back injuries get the better of Beckett for the remainder of the season?
