The Boston Red Sox stand at 12-13 through almost a complete month of the seasonand are only 2.5 games behind the New York Yankees for the top spot in the AL East. After a slow start with the offense, pieces are starting to come back and the Red Sox have started to win games with their bats, especially the last two contests against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Xander Bogaerts leads the team in errors so far in 2014, but should Red Sox fans be worried? (Photo by Kelly O’Connor via SittingStill.smugmug.com)
With a tough stretch ahead with contests against the AL-leading Oakland Athletics and the Tampa Bay Rays at home, the Red Sox will need to be able to score runs throughout the lineup, including the bottom of the order.
Full Stating Lineup Finally Back
Friday marked the first time all season that the full projected starting lineup was intact from top to bottom. Will Middlebrooks was activated before the contest against the Blue Jays. Shane Victorino was activated Thursday in the 14-5 blowout loss to the New York Yankees.
Both players have made an impact in the lineup so far. Victorino has made it possible to push Grady Sizemore lower in the order and deepen the middle part of the lineup. His 2-for-15 start with five strikeouts is concerning, but he has made up for it with his glove in right field. Will Middlebrooks showed that an 0-for-10 rehab stint was nothing too worry about with already a homer and a double with three RBI in just eight at-bats. The 3-for-8 start in two games since returning is a big bolster to the bottom of the order, especially with three of those outs being hard hit outs on line drives.
Both these players were definitely missed for the roles they have on this Red Sox club and their returns have made this team better going forward.
Defense Not So Hot
The defense last season was something the Red Sox could rely on, especially in the infield, but this year the left side of the field has shown that they have to work on defense on an everyday basis.
Xander Bogaerts has been the real problem with three of the team’s 19 errors, but could have more if the statisticians changed some hits to errors in the early going. Bogaerts really needs to start showing that he can handle the glove sooner rather than later or else Jonathan Herrera might be coming in late as a defensive replacement.
Daniel Nava also has three errors and his defense was one of the probable reasons the Red Sox optioned him to Pawtucket this past week before Victorino was back with the team.
The Red Sox have the fourth most errors in the AL with 19 and rank 10th in the AL with a .980 fielding percentage.
The defense has shown holes of weakness and was a big reason for the 14-5 loss on Thursday night as the Red Sox committed five errors in the field along with a passed ball and two wild pitches. Ten of the 23 runs in the two losses of the Yankees series at Fenway were unearned, so the Red Sox really need to show that they can at least play decent defense to stay in the games against the tougher opponents this season.
Going Forward
The Red Sox have six games this week with an off day on Monday. Five of these six games are at home where the Red Sox are 5-8 on the season. After the one contest at the Rogers Centre this afternoon, the Red Sox will have a three-game set against the Rays and a three-game set against the Oakland Athletics.
Prediction: 4-2; The pitching has been there all season for the Red Sox as they rank second to only Oakland (18) in quality starts with 15 on the year. The Athletics will put up a tough fight, but the Red Sox should be able to pull out some tough, grinded-out wins at home this week.