Throughout the 2010 season, the Boston Red Sox have been on the cusp of making the playoffs. With Dustin Pedroia hitting the disabled list for the second time this season, it appears that it’s finally time to throw in the towel. This team could still make the playoffs and Dustin Pedroia could be back by the end of September, but realistically, this is likely the end of the road.
It’s just been a horrible year full of growing pains for the Red Sox. They lack an identity and they’re not the team that we thought they were.
Besides Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz and to an extent Daisuke Matsuzaka, the starting pitchers have been a disappointment.
Josh Beckett has been the poster boy for disappointment. Granted, he has spent a significant amount of time on the DL but really? 19 earned runs in his past three starts.
Has John Lackey really been even remotely close to good? Terry Francona will tell you he has but that’s just because he has to.
The offense exceeded expectations but they flamed out when everybody realized the season doesn’t end in July. Oh, and missing Kevin Youkilis has been a big reason for the flame out as well. Guys like Adrian Beltre and David Ortiz have quite frankly been the only impact bats on the team who haven’t been injured.
Injuries have definitely been a problem but they shouldn’t excuse the poor structure of the team. The only players on the team who have hit well have been Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis, Adrian Beltre and David Ortiz. Where is the big bat in the outfield though? Combined, Sox outfielders (Drew, Ellsbury, Hermida, Hall, Cameron, Nava, Kalish, Reddick, Van Every, Patterson, McDonald) have hit 55 home runs.
To put that into perspective, Red Sox outfielders rank dead last in the AL East in long balls. That’s right, they’re worse than the Baltimore Orioles at something.
The bullpen struggles go without mentioning.
It’s time for Theo Epstein and company to get on the phone and make some changes!