Perhaps for once, the Red Sox are the overlooked team in Boston at the moment. After all, the Celtics are in the Eastern Conference Finals and ahead of the powerful Orlando Magic 1-0 in their series, while the Bruins just gagged on a 3-0 series lead to Philadelphia, sparking outrage among the local hockey nuts. Many New Englanders in a baseball-mad region may not even take notice of the Red Sox' struggles. Thankfully for them, this writer has taken the time to point this out to them.
Meanwhile, the Boston team that once prevailed in a 3-0 series comeback may be an afterthought for the moment, which takes the attention off the fact that they have stumbled into fourth place in the AL East at 19-19.
The problems go back beyond the beginning of this season. Going back to 2009, the team seemed to be falling apart as they let their division lead slip away to the Yankees, along with 9 of the last 10 games against their hated rivals. The Sox had just about run out of steam heading into the playoffs where they got swept by an Angels team that could never beat them in years past.
With the Yanks taking the opening series of the season in Fenway, the Red Sox got off to a shaky 4-9 start, headlined by the Tampa Bay Rays coming into Boston to sweep all four games and establish themselves as the top team in the AL. Now after blowing a 5-run lead in Detroit and losing on a 12th inning bases loaded walk, the Red Sox find themselves behind all but Baltimore in the division. Looming ahead is a 10-game stretch in which they face the gauntlet of the Yankees, Twins, Phillies, and Rays, which threatens to bury them even deeper than the 7.5 games back they currently stand at.
The main problem for Boston is their starting pitching. While the names may be quality, the performances have not been. Most noticeably Josh Beckett, who has been rocked twice by the Yankees en route to a 7.46 ERA (oddly enough, the same figure as his Ks/9 innings). Tim Wakefield's soft-toss act hasn't been much better, sporting an 0-2 record and a 5.63 earned-run mark. Even new acquisition John Lackey has struggled with a 4.86 ERA. This leaves them with Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester as the staff anchors and the only ones with ERAs under 4.
Of course, on the other side of things, it doesn't help that David Ortiz appears to be on his last legs with a .224 average, and Victor Martinez, hired last season for his bat, is right there with him at .226. The offense has been mostly carried by the steady Dustin Pedroia and new acquisition Adrian Beltre.
Aside from the usual concerns, the Red Sox are looking up even at the surprising Toronto Blue Jays, as well. At 23-16, they seem to be doing just fine without ace Roy Halladay, and simply add to the list of roadblocks the Red Sox must cross. In the Central, the Twins and Tigers appear poised to make any kind of wild card run equally as daunting. Minnesota has quietly risen to become one of the best teams in baseball before loudly beating down the Yanks Sunday afternoon in dramatic fashion via a Jason Kubel eighth inning grand slam against closer Mariano Rivera.
But if we know anything about baseball, it's that a quirky first half can often mean little down the stretch of a pennant race. Generally the best teams — the teams everyone expect — rise to the top eventually in the second half, but there are always exceptions. The Red Sox are at a turning point. The old guard of Ortiz, Jason Varitek, and Beckett have faded into near-oblivion, while others like Pedroia, Beltre, and Buchholz are being asked to step up and carry the team. Boston has a daunting road until the end of May, and at 7.5 back in the division, the time to right the ship is now.
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