We knew the Boston Red Sox’s pitching left a lot to be desired heading into the 2020 abbreviated Major League Baseball season.
Between dealing David Price to the Los Angeles Dodgers, losing Chris Sale to Tommy John surgery, Rick Porcello signing with the New York Mets and Eduardo Rodriguez still out due to complications from COVID-19, the Red Sox’s performances when Nathan Eovaldi isn’t on the mound don’t come as a surprise.
The silver lining, however, was supposed to be the batting lineup, which on paper is incredibly talented.
But those bats haven’t been able to plate runs with runners in scoring position, and until they do, what we saw Tuesday in Boston’s 8-3 loss to the Mets (and the three consecutive losses before that) might be a recurring pattern.
Because as it stands, it looks like Boston’s 13-2 Opening Day win over the Baltimore Orioles is the exception, not the rule.
Outfielder Kevin Pillar certainly believes that some run support would put the guys on the mound in a better position to succeed.
“It’s a two-way street,” Pillar said in his postgame Zoom conference. “If we’re able offensively to go out and score some runs early in the game, allow the pitchers to settle in, and vice-versa. If they’re able to put up zeros and allow us to score some runs, it’s a two-way street. We both haven’t pitched or hit up to our expectations as a team. And like I said, there’s nothing normal about what’s gong on. It’s going to take some time to adjust a little bit.
“The time for making excuses is over. This is baseball in 2020. We’ve got to figure out a way to make the best of it.”
And eventually, one side really needs to pick the other up.
“It makes a difference,” manager Ron Roenicke said in his postgame Zoom conference. “I’d like to say that it doesn’t, that they’re the same hitters, but because I’ve played and been around so long I know that it does. Any time you have the momentum when you score early, and you see teams that do score early, it changes the ballgame. It changes their attitude. They’re not pressed anymore, they’re relaxed and they just keep piling it on.
“In the two previous years I’ve been here we have been a team that’s scored early, so hopefully we can get that going again and have that bad feeling on the other team instead of us.”
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Here are some other notes from Tuesday’s Red Sox-Mets game:
— J.D. Martinez and Jackie Bradley Jr. were among six batters to not get a hit. Backup catcher Kevin Plawecki, though, continued to impress, going 3-for-4 on the night along with Pillar.
“I’d be lying to you if I said it’s not different,” Pillar said. “I think players that get the opportunity to call this home, even me as a player that came here so often as a visiting player, you’re just so accustomed to the unique atmosphere that this stadium brings. The fans, the energy in this ballpark. It’s taken some guys a little bit of time to adjust to that. You know, i think getting out on the road will be good for this team. I don’t think anyone is too overly concerned about our start but this was definitely a wake-up call to us needing to come out offensively and put some runs across.”
— The pitching continues to be historically bad.
Per The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, this is the second Red Sox team to allow more than seven runs in four of their first five games.
We can update this: This is the 2nd Red Sox team ever to allow 7+ runs in 4 of the first 5 games. The other one was the 1901 team. Worth noting that the 1901 team recovered and finished with the fewest runs allowed/game in the AL. But they also had Cy Young to throw 371 IP. https://t.co/Getk7GWPlO
— Alex Speier (@alexspeier) July 29, 2020
Additionally, the worst pitching ERA the club has posted is a 5.02 back in 1932. Five games into 2020, they’re dangerously close to breaking that at 5.50. Eek.
— Colten Brewer should not take offense to comments about the bullpen. In his 2 2/3 innings of work Tuesday, he gave up a hit but struck out four with no walks to hold the Mets scoreless while he was on the mound.
— Eovaldi went six innings in his Opening Day start, making him the only Sox starter to not give up a run in the first five innings of his outing.
So the good news is, he’ll be taking the mound Wednesday when Boston travels to Citi Field. The bad news is he’ll be facing Jacob deGrom, the two-time reigning National League Cy Young winner, so it may not be as easy for the Sox on offense.
Still, we’re looking forward to that pitching matchup.
