Month: September 2015

Thoughts on Patriots vs. Jaguars

Posted on September 27, 2015 in Random Stuff

I know I said I’d do a better job this week, and I tried, but I failed. That’s the problem with trying. Anyway, here’s my best effort.

Jerod Mayo – Whether it’s because of the Patriots’ chosen scheme over the first two games of the season (a lot of nickel) or because he hasn’t been deemed totally ready for full action after tearing his patellar tendon last year, Mayo hasn’t played a lot. His snap count did go up from week 1 (11) to week 2 (16), but the captain has had a curiously reserved role so far. It’ll be interesting to see if New England increases Mayo’s responsibilities this week against a Jacksonville offense that doesn’t have a ton of dangerous receiving options.

Offensive Line – I have to wonder if either Shaq Mason or Tre’ Jackson would be getting as much playing time as they’ve seen so far if Ryan Wendell weren’t out with his mysterious illness. On a play to play basis, they’re not doing so badly. But Mason in particular looked stiff at times, including a sack he allowed when a Bills stunt involving Marcell Dareus left him doing the splits at the line of scrimmage. Fortunately for Shaq, he got bailed out by a defensive holding call.

And fortunately for the Patriots, they’ve benefited from some unheralded and unexpectedly reliable line play from rookie free agent David Andrews and Josh Kline, who you probably remember from 2014 as the guy who kept getting beat early in the season.

Andrews and Kline are the only offensive players other than Brady who played 100% of the Pats’ offensive snaps last week. Even Nate Solder was spelled by Marcus Cannon, and it looked like he needed the break – Brady’s strip sack in the 4th quarter was the result of a failed cut block by Solder.

On the defensive side, the only players to get all the snaps were Malcolm Butler, Devin McCourty, and Jamie Collins. That should continue throughout the season.

Rich Hill Tosses Two-Hit 10 K Shutout, Is Greatest Pitcher Alive

Posted on September 26, 2015 in Game Recap
Rich Hill tossed a two hit shutout. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Rich Hill tossed a two hit shutout. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Rich Hill is really something else. Last night he logged a complete game shutout, striking out 10, allowing only two hits and walking only one Oriole. That’s good for a game score of 92, kids. His ERA is now down to 1.17 in three starts.

How did the former Long Island Duck do this, you may ask? That devastating curveball. That curveball may be the single greatest pitch in the history of the sport. Absolutely unhittable. It’s keeping batters guessing and off-balance. Look at some of these strikeouts. Professional hitters are just staring at 89 MPH cheddar right down the heart of the plate because the curveball is in the back of their mind.

If you stuck around for the end of that highlight, you saw arguably the catch of the year by Mookie Betts. He robbed Crush Davis of a homerun and preserved the shutout in one of the most impressive and athletic catches you’ll ever see.

Don obviously nailed the call. Castiglione too.

The Red Sox scored seven times on the strength of nine hits, including a bunch of run-scoring doubles. Xander and Ortiz were both 3-4.

Offense Keeps Sputtering, Sox Lose 3rd Straight

Posted on September 25, 2015 in Game Recap

Great play in a not-so-great game. (AM 930 Photo)

The Red Sox might be destined for last place after all.

Boston lost the last 3 games of a 4-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays, including the series finale last night. The Rays won 4-2. For the third consecutive game, the Red Sox only managed to put up 2 runs.

Without David Ortiz’s 1st inning home run (the 502nd of his career), the Red Sox probably wouldn’t have scored at all. It was an opposite field job, and it scored Mookie Betts, who’d singled, to give Big Papi his 100th and 101st RBIs on the season.

Boston had absolutely nothing doing for the rest of the game. Erasmo Ramirez was pretty much unhittable from the 2nd inning on, as the Red Sox went down in order in the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 7th innings. The 4th inning was also technically a 1-2-3 affair, but only because Ortiz’s single was erased when Travis Shaw grounded into a double play.

Wade Miley was sitting pretty with that 2-0 lead for a long while. He got out of a first and third jam in the 2nd and stranded Evan Longoria at second base in the 4th after a leadoff double. That double was just barely left of the bleachers, missing home run distance by feet. Unfortunately for Miley, Longoria hit it to the same spot in his next at-bat. Only, way higher and farther.

With two outs in the 6th inning, Miley gave up an absolute bomb to Longoria.

Miley tried to shrug it off (I mean that literally – I’m pretty sure I saw him shrug at Ryan Hanigan), but it all unraveled after that. Logan Forsythe singled and scored to tie the game on a long double off the right edge of the Monster by Asdrubal Cabrera. Steven Souza, Jr. also used the Monster to double in Cabrera and give the Rays a 3-2 lead. All of this came with two outs, by the way. Hanigan caught Souza trying to advance on a pitch in the dirt to end the inning.

The Red Sox responded with a two-out infield single by Dustin Pedroia and nothing else.

Kevin Kiermaier hit a solo home run over the right field porch on a decent pitch by Miley to start off the 7th inning and add a run to the Tampa lead. After light-hitting catcher Luke Maile doubled with 1 out, Lovullo replaced Miley with Heath Hembree, who got out of the inning.

Miley pitched fine, giving up 4 earned runs over 6.1 innings. Actually, a more accurate way to put it is that he pitched really well, and then suddenly he was the most hittable guy on the planet, giving up 4 earned runs and 5 extra-base hits while only getting one more out off a Tampa bat. That, mixed with a slumping offense, is not a recipe for success.

Xander Bogaerts drew the only Boston walk of the night in the 9th inning, ending his 12-game hitting streak. In fact, closer Brad Boxberger threw six consecutive balls to walk Bogaerts and give Ortiz a 3-0 count before settling down to throw a strike and induce a game-ending double play. 4-2, final.

Notes:

1. Blake Swihart, who pinch-hit for Hanigan in the 8th, threw down to catch Kiermaier stealing. Xander made a really nice catch to put the tag on the runner.

2. Mike Hazen is your new Red Sox General Manager. Congrats, Mike! This always ends well.

Porcello Turns in Quality Start, Machi Ejected, Red Sox Lose

Posted on September 24, 2015 in Game Recap
Hm does this ump not know I have no control? (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Hm does this ump not know my control is suspect? (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Red Sox dropped their second straight game to the 4th-place Rays last night, this time losing 6-2. The first two-thirds of this one was a pitchers duel, with Rick Porcello matching zeroes with the Rays’ Drew Smyly through six.

Our old friend Daniel Nava (a.k.a. the Thumb Faced Idiot) would break the scoreless tie in the top of the 7th. Batting with runners at first and third with two outs, Nava sent a chopper just out of Dustin Pedroia‘s reach and through the right side for an RBI single.

Porcello would escape the inning with no further damage, but failed to retire anyone in the 8th, and the bullpen did him dirty, allowing both inherited runners to score.

I feel like this was kind of the Platonic Ideal of a Rick Porcello start. He gave up 11 hits, but only three runs, one of which was unearned. He walked only one and struck out eight, while pitching into the 8th inning. He induced seven ground balls and two double plays (one of them was this beaut turned by Marrero and Pedey). Obviously the only thing missing was the “W” but I’m sure Ben Cherington envisioned a lifetime of these starts (or four years) when he signed Freddie to that contract extension.

Pitchers IP  H  R ER BB SO HR ERA
Porcello (L, 8-14) 7.0 11 3 2 1 8 0 5.04

Notable:

Mookie was 3-5 with a runs scored, and swiped his 20th bag of the season. Don’t be surprised if he becomes a 20/20 guy in the near future.

Bogaerts extended his hitting streak to 12 games with an RBI single in the 9th.

Jean Machi got tossed in the 9th after throwing a ball that went over Steven Souza Jr.’s head. It was a breaking ball that got away, and Machi clearly had no intent of hitting Souza; pretty quick trigger by home plate ump Bill Welke. After Jean gets tossed you can hear some wise guy taking the umpire to task with some good clean burns.

“C’mon blue! Get a grip, will ya?”

“Hey blue get a grip! We’re losing ya idiot!”

“Hey blue! Wake up blue!”

Papi showed everyone he can still pick it, working from the ground up.