Erik Bedard made his first start in a Red Sox uniform last night, and some people have already made their mind up about the power pitching Canadian left-hander. Quelle surprise!
“But did Boston really get better with its 11th-hour deal for Seattle lefthander Erik Bedard? He did little to provide an answer in his first Boston start Thursday night, taking a no-decision after allowing three runs and seven hits over five innings in a 7-3 loss to Cleveland that dropped the Red Sox into a first-place tie with the Yankees in the AL East.
(snip)
Bedard’s pitch count was to be limited to 75-80 pitches because he was making only his second start since returning from a left knee injury. His velocity was good and curve sharp. But he blew a 2-0 first-inning lead when he allowed all three runs and all seven hits – including one that brought home a run when he didn’t cover first – during the second and third innings. He retired the last seven batters he faced.”
Bedard was making his second start since being activated off of the DL last Friday, and was limited to a 75-80 pitch count. All things considered, I’d say giving up three runs on seven hits, while striking out five and walking none, in five innings against a decent team like Clevelandis pretty solid. Then again, my name isn’t Roger Ruben; I don’t write for the New York Daily News; and I don’t have an obvious slant I’m trying to use to hook my more fervent readers.
Look, I’m not going to say Bedard’s performance last night was optimal. It wasn’t. He gave up three runs on seven hits, most of which were the result of giving up five line drives during the game; and only induced there whiffs on the night despite throwing 49 of 70 pitches for strikes and striking out five. Clearly, he had neither his best stuff, nor his best command. His curve ball was sharp, and his two seamer sat in the mid-90s with a good down breaking movement. He struggled to command his four-seamer at times, occasionally leaving it over the plate; hence the line drives and the poor +0.7689 linear weight score. (Remember positive scores are bad in this case). He still has a few kinks to work out, but overall his performance was encouraging.
As for Ruben’s question at hand: Did the Red Sox improve as a result of the Bedard trade? Is there any doubt? While there’s no question the Red Sox would be in a better position with Clay Buchholz taking his turn in the rotation every five days, it’s not exactly an option. After being diagnosed with a stress fracture in his back, it’s unlikely he’ll return either before the end of the season or the playoffs. As a result, the dilemma of Buchholz vs. Bedard is completely irrelevant.
Furthermore, had the Red Sox not pulled the trigger on the Bedard deal; they would’ve been forced to rely on the three-headed replacement level monster of Andrew Miller, Kyle Weiland, and Alfredo Aceves out of the number five spot in their rotation for the remainder of the season. Think about that for a second. Is Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, John Lackey, Tim Wakefield, and Miller/Weiland/Aceves a rotation capable of leading the Red Sox to the promised land? Sure it is…if the promised land is the ALCS. Is Lester, Beckett, Bedard, Lackey, andWakefielda better rotation? I don’t know yet, but considering Bedard’s significantly higher ceiling; I’d much rather go to battle with him than the three headed monster.
Maybe it’s just me, but I prefer not to make snap, biased judgments based on five innings of work.