So it’s really come down to this. Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports that the Red Sox continue to scour the trade market for someone to start a potential Game 163, and one of the potential targets is Royals LHP Bruce Chen.
Before you start kicking and screaming (as I did just a minute ago), let’s try to look at this objectively for a moment. While Chen has been a little homer happy this year (18 in 147 innings), he’s actually been pretty solid; all things considered. With the Royals this season, he’s produced a 12-8 record with a 3.98 ERA, 4.48 FIP, and a 93/48 K/BB ratio.
Is he spectacular? No. Is he an optimal starter for the most important game of the season? Far from it. Still, he’d be the best option should hTheo pull the trigger on the trade. That is, unless you consider either the potentially unstable John Lackey (4.71 FIP) on short rest, or the aging Tim Wakefield (4.99 FIP) as better options. I do not. The good news is that the Rays haven’t fared as well against LHP as they have RHP. From a matchup standpoint, this deal would theoretically work in the Red Sox’s favor.
There’s just one fly in the ointment. Chen is scheduled to pitch for the Royals tonight. Presumably, if a deal is made, the Red Sox would nix that start. The question is: will the front office pull the trigger on a potentially unnecessary trade (and give up a player) prior to the outcome of tonight’s games? If they don’t, will the Royals agree to keep Chen from starting their season’s final game? Of course, these questions are moot if the deal is only for cash considerations.
There’s still a lot to be answered in the next 12 hours or so. Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy ride.
Categories: Boston Red Sox
Such a joke. Can't win an important game with the "talent" on the field, so let's go throw MORE money. So sick of baseball and, more specifically, the Red Sox.
Let's go Bruins.
@_wW – That was incredibly lucid and rational…actually, I'm lying. Are you really complaining about the front office pulling out all of the stops to get into the playoffs? I'm guessing you were also the same guy that was complaining Theo didn't do enough at the deadline to begin with.
If the Sox could exhume Walter Johnson and magically return him to his prime for Game 163, I wouldn't feel good about it. How can any fan cheer on a one-day, rent-a-player for the biggest game of the season when the guy hasn't been a part of the team all year. As fans, we develop emotional attachments to players on our team. You can't help but do it … even in this era of mercenaries. But Bruce Chen? Tomorrow in Game 163? If they are really trying to acquire him or any other pitcher, that's sick!
It's not optimal, but the other options are Lackey and Wake. They've been trying to pick up another pitcher for a couple of weeks.
Agreed, Chip. I don't relish either Wakefield or Lackey pitching the biggest game of the season. But bringing in some guy who hasn't been on your roster all season to start Game 163? That's a lot different than, say, getting Chris Capuano for a couple of starts in the last two weeks. Despite Rosenthal's report, I find it hard to believe this would really happen. But, hey, it's been a strange, strange month.
My first reaction was that if the Sox give up anything at all to get a starter for tomorrow, it'll be an admission that this is their last chance – that they don't expect to contend next year despite a huge payroll and a strong core of players in their prime. On second thought, if they could acquire a halfway decent starter under contract for next season – well, that's a step toward addressing their problems. But not another lefty, please.
I don't think picking up a pitcher on the last day of the season would mean this is their last chance. Injuries and a rather untimely slump happened to crush the the team down the stretch. No team goes 81-41 over 122 games by accident. Sometimes shit happens. Sometimes, you can explain it. Other times, not so much. In this case, it's somewhere in between.
Can't Beckett start on short rest?