Midseason(ish) Report: Red Sox Infielders

Posted on August 4, 2015 in Players

The whole crew. Minus Brock (I think) and the young'ns. (Andy Marlin/USA TODAY Sports)

I thought I’d give all you diehards out there a little treat after an off day to get you amped for the upcoming series against the Yankees. That’s right, it’s a player-by-player breakdown of the infielders on a 47-win team! Boy, are you lucky.

The plan, going into 2015, was to have an offense-first 1st baseman (Mike Napoli), a four-time Gold Glove winner and career .300 hitter at 2nd base (Dustin Pedroia), a free-swinging, pretty-good-defensively 3rd baseman (Pablo Sandoval), and an unproven but clearly talented commodity at shortstop (Xander Bogaerts) playing on the dirt. Of course, this hasn’t gone entirely according to the script. Pedroia’s been held back by nagging injuries (he’s currently on the DL), Sandoval’s continued his offensive regression and started a defensive one, Napoli’s having the worst offensive season of his career by a country mile, and Xander – well, Xander’s been great, actually. But, obviously, it hasn’t been enough. Oh, and there’s also an All-Star by the name of Brock Holt who’s been hanging around.

Napoli

(AP Photo)

Mike Napoli

On April 5: Despite amassing 500 plate appearances, Nap was never fully healthy in 2014, battling a slew of injuries that kept him from performing at a high level. Combine that with the fact that the dude hadn’t dreamt in EIGHT YEARS due to his sleep apnea, and it’s no surprise that he had his lowest OPS since 2010 (.789) and a career low slugging percentage (.419). Thanks to a few surgeries, Napoli finally looks to be healthy entering the season. He’s dreaming with regularity, has ten straight fingers, and is lifting weights without feeling like he wants to die afterwards. He slugged 6 homers this spring, and I expect him to continue to rake once the season starts. – Righty

On August 3: I think it’s safe to say that dreams haven’t helped Napoli’s performance. I’d hazard a guess that he’s had nothing but nightmares since his apnea was cured. Yeah, last year’s slugging percentage was a career low at .419, but he’s sitting at a robust .386 in 2015. Decent, if not excellent months in May and July are framed by putrid offensive stretches in April and June. When he leads off an inning, he’s 6 for 64 on the season. Napoli’s struck out 30 times to end an inning and gone down immediately to fiddle with his shoes or his shin guard or whatever it is. There’s no nice way to talk around it. He’s been a complete black hole in the lineup.

And yet, even though he’s spent the entirety of 2015 dancing under and over the Mendoza line, he’s still played in 95 games as John Farrell has let him attempt to work himself out of the slump. It hasn’t worked. On the defensive side, Napoli leads the American League in both Total Zone Runs at 1B (good) and errors (bad). The Sox weren’t able to move him at the deadline for anything. His contract, which he certainly didn’t live up to ($32 million over two years) expires at the end of the year, and it would be a surprise to see him return.

Pedroia DL

(John Angelillo/UPI)

Dustin Pedroia

On April 5: Pedey might quietly be one of the keys to the Red Sox 2015 campaign (the rotation obviously being the other). Similar to Napoli, Pedroia was bothered by a nagging injury last year (wrist) that had given him problems in the past, and required off-season surgery to fix. 2014 saw Dustin post career lows in almost every major offensive category. The wrist sapped his power and really hampered his ability to turn on inside pitches and keep them fair (the ones he did turn on, he hooked foul). If he can return to form and hold down the 2-hole, this Sox lineup will be downright scary. He’s been talking shit to Shaughnessy (and anyone else who will listen) about how great he’s going to be this year. Good sign. And of course, Pedey will play Gold Glove defense, sacrifice his body, and make you say “wow” almost nightly. – Righty

On August 3: If Pedroia was to be one of the keys to the Red Sox’ season, it’s no surprise that he’s been hurt, because this team stinks. When he’s been available, he’s been performing well on defense and hitting about as well as he did in 2013. He’s stopped running almost entirely, but he’s 31 now and has been caught as many times as he’s been successful from 2014-2015. His home/away splits are glaring: he’s hitting .361/.421/.519 at Fenway and .229/.288/.353 on the road. And as he goes, so goes the team. In wins: .369/.423/.500. In losses: .232/.296/.376. But anyway you splice it or split it, it’s just been a depressing year. Make me feel better Dustin.

Thanks. That helped.

(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

Pablo Sandoval

On April 5: Everyone knows the story here. His OPS has fallen for three straight years, but he still brings the noise in the playoffs, having won a WS ring in two of those three years of decline. Sox are hoping for a return to form offensively (seems like we’ve found a common theme amongst these infielders) for the big man who’s a surprisingly good defender at the hot corner. Cherington is hoping the next 2-3 years of production justify the money guaranteed to a hefty man seemingly already in decline. The Kung Fu Panda is sure to be a fan favorite, so be prepared to bear (get it?) with lots of kids wearing panda hats. I’m sure John Henry has some promotion in mind featuring the Fenway green paint and bamboo. Or something, I don’t know, I’m not Jackie Moon, you come up with something better. – Righty

On August 3: Well, Sandoval’s OPS has continued to fall in 2015. It’s at a measly .683, which is lower than Mike Napoli’s (.692), who’s batting .207. TWO OH SEVEN. In terms of WAR, he’s the worst regular hitter on the team, and he’s only performing marginally better than Rick Porcello and Joe Kelly. So that should give you some idea of what we’re dealing with here.

The free swinging thing isn’t just infuriating to watch, it’s been a statistically bad approach. If he makes contact on that first pitch he sees, great, he’s hitting .347 and slugging .612. But if he doesn’t, in 184 plate appearances after he’s down 0-1, he’s slashing a terrible .219/.239/.264. Whereas if he takes a ball, he’s hitting .286/.375/.455 in 128 plate appearances. Sure, Sandoval has been good when he makes contact on the first pitch. But the advantage gained isn’t worth the disadvantage he’s at when he’s down 0-1. Situations after the count is at 1-1 aren’t much better (.223/.254/.286 in 112 plate appearances). Unfortunately, leopards (pandas?) don’t usually change their spots on stuff like this. And the Red Sox are tied up in a bad contract for this Panda’s services ($72.4 million over the next four years).

(OutsidePitchMLB.com)

(OutsidePitchMLB.com)

Xander Bogaerts

On April 5: After being a vital piece of the Sox 2013 playoff and World Series run, it was a rough 2014 campaign for the X-man. He showed flashes of brilliance, especially towards the end of the season (encouraging), but overall he posted meager offensive numbers while playing subpar defense. Not a winning combination, especially given the importance of his position to the team’s overall defense. HOWEVER. Given the strength of the starting 9, Xander should slot in around #7 in the order, taking a lot of pressure off his shoulders. Something would have to go terribly wrong for Bogaerts to not post significantly better offensive numbers. More cause for optimism: he’s still just 22, and reports out of the Fort cite Xander’s improved first step, range, and overall defensive instincts. This should make the Red Sox groundball-happy pitching staff smile. – Righty

On August 3: 11th-best batting average in baseball at .319. He’s tied for the AL lead in singles, with 95. 7th in MLB with 123 hits. And all this while Farrell wasted him in the 6, 7, and 8 spots in the lineup for 53 games. Since moving to the 3-spot, he’s hitting .347/.359/.419. He still doesn’t walk, and he doesn’t hit home runs, but this is one guy whose approach I wouldn’t want to mess with right now. And, of course, he’s gotten a well-deserved reputation for hitting with runners in scoring position, slashing .391/.391/.529 with men on 2nd or 3rd (with 6 doubles and 3 triples).

Defensively, he’s come a long way from a year ago, when he was 2nd in the AL with 20 errors. He’s 3rd in range factor per game (putouts + assists / games played) among AL shortstops, and 3rd in fielding percentage as well. He looks miles more confident, and he’s been an absolute rock up the middle with Pedroia missing significant time.

(ABCNews.com)

(ABCNews.com)

Brock Holt

On April 5: Everyone’s favorite Matt Damon lookalike. The consummate professional (utility) player. A sparkplug. A dynamo. Did you know he finished 8th in Rookie of the Year voting last year?? Probably not, but you do now! It’s natural to expect a regression from the Brock Star, as he showed signs of slowing down even before his injury in September. Inconsistent playing time and competing for at-bats with not only the Sox’ starters, but also their stacked bench, will make it difficult for him to duplicate last year’s early-season success. But a trade of Craig/Nava/Victorino could help him get more consistent reps. I don’t see the Sox moving their most versatile bench player. – Righty

On August 3: If you claim to have thought that Brock Holt was going to be an All-Star in 2015, I’m sorry, but you’re a liar. Even if you thought he’d have enough production, he had to compete with too many other bats on this team. But Allen Craig was (okay, predictably) terrible, Daniel Nava was (less predictably, but equally) terrible, and Shane Victorino got hurt twice, only playing 33 games for Boston before being traded to the Angels before the deadline. So Brock got his share of outfield run in the early going, and allowed Farrell to give literally anyone a day off in the infield. And Pedroia’s only played 6 games since June 24, so Holt’s slotted in at second base since then.

Games by position: 33 at 2B, 16 in RF, 14 at 3B (when Sandoval hit the DL), 8 in LF, 7 at 1B, 7 at SS, 2 in CF. The guy is incredible. He’s hitting .284, has walked 33 times, and has 23 extra base hits on the year. Brock’s problem is a habit of fading as the season progresses. He’s only hit 2 doubles (and no triples or HRs) since the end of June, and his career OPS averages in July (.672), August (.546), and September (.628) aren’t impressive. He needs to break out of that pattern this year to change the story.

(Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

(Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Josh Rutledge

On April 5: In Anaheim.

On August 3: Rutledge is the return the Sox got for Shane Victorino and cash. I don’t know anything about him other than his pretty good fantasy baseball year in 73 games in 2012 (.775 OPS). He followed that up with a much lower quality performance in 88 games in 2013 (.630) and a slight return to form in 105 games in 2014 (.728). He was traded to the Angels in the offseason and spent 2015 slashing .274/.323/.403 in AAA. He’s played 3 games at third base for the Sox so far, and I’m sure the best is yet to come with him, but I’m not sure how good that is. Probably pretty middling.

(AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

(AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

Travis Shaw

On April 5: In Pawtucket.

On August 3: Shaw has also spent most of his year in AAA, where he hasn’t been very good (.249/.318/.356). He wasn’t very memorable in his spring call-ups to Boston either, failing to record a hit in 10 plate appearances over 6 games. But on July 7th, he went 3 for 4, and on August 1st, he went 4-4 with 2 home runs. So maybe Shaw still has something to show. He can play both first and third base, and the Sox are weak at both corner spots, so the opportunity is there.

Boston’s Three-Game Streak Ends; Momentum Not Quite Dead?

Posted on August 3, 2015 in Game Recap

Good ol' Wade. They let you down, Wade. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images North America)

The Red Sox, before losing to the Rays 4-3 on Sunday, continued to shuffle their roster. Rick Porcello was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a “right triceps strain” aka “he stinks.” Rumor has it that Henry Owens, he of the gigantic hands, will be replacing Porcello in his first major league start on Tuesday in Yankee Stadium.

Sunday’s game started out in the usual way: Wade Miley served up a full count fastball to light-hitting Brandon Guyer, who, of course, took it over the Green Monster and into the AAA-Mapfre Insurance sign for an immediate 1-0 lead.

But in holding true to another recent trend, the Sox quickly bounced back from an early deficit in the bottom of the 1st. Hanley Ramirez took the first pitch he saw from Jake Odorizzi off the right edge of the Monster to double in Xander Bogaerts, who’d singled and stolen second. And Mike Napoli gave Boston the lead with a ground ball RBI single through the left side on a high fastball. 2-1, Boston.

David Ortiz padded the Sox’ one-run lead with an RBI double of his own in the bottom of the 3rd, this one hitting the top of the scoreboard and scoring Bogaerts again, who came around from first after being hit by a pitch.

Miley, meanwhile, was on a hot streak after his game-opening mistake. He’d retired 11 out of 12 batters (having only given up an infield single in the 3rd) when, with 2 outs in the 4th, he gave up a single to Asdrubal Cabrera and a double to James Loney. Cabrera came around from first and the score stood at 3-2, Boston.

The score remained 3-2 when Kevin Kiermaier hit a two-out triple off Miley in the top of the 7th. Miley had thrown 120 pitches (!) at this point, so he got the hook in favor of Robbie Ross, Jr., who proceeded to do Robbie Ross, Jr. things. He hit catcher Curt Casali to start, then walked Guyer before mercifully striking Joey Butler out to escape the bases-loaded situation he’d manufactured.

After the Sox went down in order in their half of the 7th, Junichi Tazawa came in to relieve Ross and, well, things just aren’t going well for Taz right now. My theory that I threw out the other night that he’s better when he has a clean inning to work with didn’t get a lot of support here. Evan Longoria doubled on the second pitch he saw from Tazawa, and after a Logan Forsythe popout, Asdrubal Cabrera hit a ground rule double over Rusney Castillo’s head to tie the game. The real bummer, though, came when James Loney hit a blooper to center between Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley, Jr. It dropped for a single and brought Cabrera around to score. Giving up a bloop single to lose a game never feels quite right.

Because they did lose from there. Five out of the last seven Boston batters struck out swinging, which is a fine and honorable way to go down, but it’s no less of a loss for the trying.

Travis Shaw Leads Offensive Onslaught Versus Rays

Posted on August 1, 2015 in Game Recap
Travis Shaw watches his first Major League homerun fly out of Fenway. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

Travis Shaw watches his first Major League homerun fly out of Fenway. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

Travis Shaw made the most of his most recent call-up to the big club. Stepping into action after Sandoval got hit in his forearm on a swinging strike on Thursday, Shaw went 4 for 4 yesterday, including his first

and second major league homeruns, and a double. He drove in three runs, walked once, and scored all FIVE times he was on base, including once on a nifty slide to avoid a tag when the throw beat him to the plate. Pretty impressive stuff from the rookie. He’s definitely earned himself some more at-bats in the coming two months.

It was another great day for the offense. Everyone contributed (except Napoli, but he was probably tired from being the hero on Friday night), and they strung together a lot of good at-bats.

Why did the Red Sox need breathing room in a game that they scored 11 runs? Good question. The Sox provided Joe Kelly with a six run cushion to work with, and for the first three innings, everything was a-okay. He allowed a single to the first batter of the game, but then retired the next 9 Rays he faced, striking out four. At the end of three, the score was 6-0 good guys. But then old Pumpsie became a little too enamored with his fastball and gave up two in the 4th, two in the 5th, and one in the 6th before being lifted for Justin Masterson. It’s really incredible how hittable his 98 MPH fastball is. There’s an old baseball adage about some guys who throw a “heavy ball’, meaning they may not be lighting up the radar gun, but batters have a hard time squaring it up and/or hitting it far. Unfortunately, Joe Kelly is the opposite of that. He throws a very light 98.

In any case, the offense did more than enough to back him, and he got the W, despite the following pitching line:

Pitchers IP  H  R ER BB SO HR ERA
Kelly (W, 3-6) 5.0 9 5 5 1 6 0 6.11

and bumping his ERA up to an unsightly 6.11.

Notes:

-I will be traveling for the next two weeks so Righty’s recaps may be at times a. late to post b. short and c. lacking in any sort of multimedia so if you notice these things, know that I’m not mailing it in. I apologize in advance.

-Red Sox team President and CEO Larry Lucchino announced that he will be stepping down after this season. I don’t really have a strong opinion about him one way or the other, but The Old Boy is thrilled.

-I’ve always thought that umpires names are a great representation of perfectly average American names. They tend not to have the cool, flashy names like a lot of the players, but good, honest, respectable names. Names you can do business with. Yesterday’s umps were Sam Holbrook, Greg Gibson, Clint Fagan, and Chris Conroy. Don’t those sound like the boxcar children’s dads?

Are the Red Sox Turning Things Around? I Dunno, Maybe

Posted on August 1, 2015 in Game Recap

And it feels so gooooood! We throw our hands up in the air! (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Your intrepid reporter has rolled out of bed to write this, and I hope our surely-huge-by-now fanbase appreciates that. Last night, the Red Sox won a baseball game. Their second in a row, in fact. The last time Boston won at least two consecutive games was a four-game streak from July 5-8. It’s been a pretty tough stretch, but now we’ve come out the other side and the team will make a big turnaround and win the pennant and all of our estranged fathers will agree to live with us. It’s good to know that things are gonna be all right again.

Why am I so sure? Oh, I don’t know, because of a little trade you might’ve heard about that brought in former All-Star Ryan Cook, NO BIG DEAL. In all seriousness, though, I don’t think I’m going that far out on a limb in thinking that Cook’s 2015 results so far (10.38 ERA, 2.31 WHIP, 6.2 K/9) are probably not indicative of his current level of play. He only faced 23 batters at the major league level before being sent down to AAA, where he’s been better, though perhaps not remarkably better (4.05 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 7.0 K/9). His issues are probably indicative of some 2014 injuries (shoulder inflammation, forearm strain). Yes, he’s dropped off from where he was from 2012-14, but he’s not complete garbage. I hope. Either way, we got him for a ham sandwich/washing machine, so it’s worth a shot.

Last night, the Red Sox did what they love to do recently, and that’s ALLOW THE OTHER TEAM TO SCORE FIRST. It’s a bold strategy, but it worked out for them last night. The Rays got their first run after Eduardo Rodriguez (who had neither his best stuff nor his worst) loaded the bases with 1 out. Joey Butler grounded into what might’ve been an inning-ending double play, but Brock Holt and Xander Bogaerts couldn’t turn it in time, and Brandon Guyer scored from third to make it 1-0.

However, in keeping with another, more positive Red Sox trend, the offense responded to a deficit! Both Bogaerts and David Ortiz got aboard thanks to infield errors and Mike Napoli walked to load the bases with one out. Both Alejandro De Aza and Blake Swihart managed to register base hits, bringing in 3 runs between them, to make it 3-1.

Rodriguez gave a run back in the top of the 2nd, but it was kind of a tough break. With two outs and a runner on second (center fielder Mikie Mahtook, who’d doubled) Rodriguez struck Brandon Guyer out, but the pitch was in the dirt and got away from Swihart. Guyer was easily safe at first and Mahtook advanced to third. Mahtook scored on a Steven Souza, Jr. chopper to the left side that newcomer Josh Rutledge did his best to field, but there was nothing to be done. 3-2, Boston. Mahtook would also single in Asdrubal Cabrera in the top of the 3rd to tie the game at 3.

The score would remain tied until the bottom of the 5th, when De Aza came through with his second RBI single of the night, driving in Brock Holt to make it 4-3.

Eduardo Rodriguez, having thrown 110 pitches through 5 innings, was removed in favor of Alexi Ogando for the 6th inning. Alexi did a fine job, allowing only an infield single, but Robbie Ross, Jr. ran into trouble in the top of the 7th. He walked Joey Butler to start the inning and hit Mahtook with two outs. Farrell brought in Junichi Tazawa to put out the fire. I’d like to see a split of Tazawa’s stats between when he gets his own fresh inning to work with and when he has to clean up someone else’s mess. I’m not sure he really excels in the firefighter role, and last night’s performance backed up my hunch, as he allowed both Butler and Mahtook to score on a John Jaso double. He struck out Kevin Kiermaier to strand Jaso at third, but the damage was done and the Red Sox were losing 5-4.

Side note: Ross got a hold for his outing last night, which really has me questioning the statistical validity of the hold. I know, stats are stupid.

Fortunately for Tazawa, Big Papi drew an impressive 11-pitch, 2-out walk and Mike Napoli, only hours removed from sweating out the trade deadline, took a high fastball into the Monster seats to give Boston the lead, 6-5.

Tazawa also got himself into trouble in the top of the 8th, giving up two singles to start the inning, but eventually got Butler to ground into a double play to end the inning. Napoli made an incredible scoop on a one-hop Brock Holt throw to first to complete the play.

Blake Swihart gave Koji Uehara a little insurance in the bottom of the 8th, doubling with one out, advancing to third on a Jackie Bradley, Jr. groundout, and scoring on a wild pitch by Brandon Gomes.

Uehara walked Cabrera to start the 9th, but got the next two outs to bring up Rene Rivera, the Rays’ light-hitting everyday catcher. Uehara got two strikes to start the at-bat, then threw three consecutive balls. Rivera then fouled off six consecutive pitches before striking out swinging to end the game. 7-5, Red Sox.