The only significant deal that the Red Sox made at the trade deadline has backfired big time so far. Eric Gagne is 1-1 with a 9.00 ERA and 2.20 WHIP since coming to Boston from the Rangers. Meanwhile, David Murphy and Kason Gabbard have both enjoyed some success in their new digs down south, and Engel Beltre remains a solid, albeit young and unpolished, prospect.
However, there is reason to believe that the tide may be turning on this deal, in favor of the Sox. Gagne has thrown scoreless frames in each of his last four outings, surrendering four hits and a walk, while striking-out five. Unfortunately, he also hasn’t pitched since August 26th due to shoulder tenderness.
After struggling horribly in his first few appearances as a Red Sock, Gagne spent extra time with pitching coach John Farrell, working on his mechanics, stuff, and command. In fact, it was in one of his additional side sessions that Gagne apparently over-worked his shoulder, causing the irritation which has sidelined him for the past two weeks. Farrell was concerned that Gagne was tipping his pitches — specifically his offspeed offerings — and they spent a fair amount of time working to fix the problem, including a couple of meetings during the righthander’s stint on the shelf.
After a successful 25 pitch side session on Thursday, Gagne said he felt fine, and was optimistic that he would be able to return on Monday, barring complications during a follow-up session on Saturday. Before the third game of the Sox’s four-game set at Camden Yards, Gagne tossed 40 pitches in the bullpen, and told Farrell and Francona that he felt great. “I didn’t feel any stiffness … Day off tomorrow and then start throwing in games,” was Gagne’s response when asked by reporters about his shoulder.
Gagne was actually rather upbeat about his time off, saying that it allowed him to calm down, figure things out, and hopefully return to the form that led him to 16 saves and an excellent 2.16 ERA for Texas earlier this year. The veteran reliever had this to say:
“When my shoulder was starting to hurt a little bit, that’s when I really figured out a lot of stuff. It was unfortunate, but I had four or five good outings. I’m just happy I’ll be able to get some innings in the bullpen so they don’t have to be overworked.”
I’m sure Hideki Okajima will be one of the many Red Sox who’ll be pleased to see number 83 back in uniform on Monday, when the Sox take on the Devil Rays. Okaji has had a rough September so far, posting a 6.00 ERA. The lefty also struggled in late-August, ending up with a 5.06 ERA last month, while allowing 10 hits and 4 walks in 10.2 innings. Having thrown 65.1 innings already this season, Okajima is more than likely fatigued, and could certainly use some rest ahead of the postseason (as could his country-man, by the way, who has looked completely blown-out of late).
Up by 5.5 games in the AL East, and all but certain to make the postseason, the Red Sox need to be smart with their pitching staff over the final few weeks. They might consider giving Daisuke Matsuzaka more rest, while allowing Clay Buchholz, Julian Tavarez, and Devern Hansack to start a game or two each. But apart from the rotation, it’s up to Terry Francona to use his bullpen wisely — something that he has done inconsistently during his tenure in Boston. With Gagne available, Tito needs to limit Okajima’s innings, and use the French-swearing righthander and Manny Delcarmen in the majority of setup situations. If the Red Sox manage their pitchers intelligently — and they have the depth to do it — they should have a relatively fresh staff come October, something that is likely to be of considerable importance given the likely matchups in the playoffs.
If his time off brings Eric Gagne back to his old self, it could very well be a blessing in disguise for the Sox. If it doesn’t, we’ll be swearing like French sailors by the time mid-October rolls around.
Daniel Rathman
Quotes from this Ian Browne column on Redsox.com