Monday Links

Photo by Kelly O’Connor of sittingstill.net

In a rematch of the 2013 ALCS, the Red Sox and Tigers met over the weekend for the first time since last October. However unlike in the ALCS, the Tigers dominated Boston in ever aspect of the game from Friday to Sunday. Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello, and Anibal Sanchez stymied the Red Sox offense, while Detroit’s MLB leading offense flexed its collective muscle. Just as it’s been all season, the Red Sox struggled to get the offense going, as the team went just 1-for-14 with runners in scoring position, and mustered 4 runs during the series. When the weekend was all said and done, the Red Sox record dipped to 3 games below .500.

• Will Middlebrooks tough season only got tougher on Saturday as the Red Sox third baseman landed on the disabled list with a broken finger. After two inconsistent season, this year in particular is an important year for the 25 year old, but injuries and small sample sizes have made evaluating Middlebrooks tough. (Injuries making evaluation of Will Middlebrooks difficult)

• Moving from the minors leagues to the MLB can be overwhelming at times for any rookie, and Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley are no exception. Therefore, John Farrell has tried to give his struggling rookies a breather in hopes that an day off will help refocus their mind. (For young players, “a breather can be helpful”)

• For the Red Sox struggling offense, it doesn’t seem to matter who is on the hill for the opposition. But when looking at the teams platoon splits, and comparing them to last years team numbers, the difference in performance is staggering. (All wrong against right: How Red Sox became AL’s worst team(for two out of every three games))

• Mookie Betts on-base streak ended at 66 games on Saturday afternoon, after the infielder went 0-4. While the 22 year old’s amazing stretch fell just 5 games short of the minor league record, it ignited “Mookie Madness” and shot the infielder up the Red Sox prospect list. (Mookie Betts’ on-base streak ends)

• The image of Torii Hunter flipping over the right field wall, while bullpen officer Steve Horgan stands with his arms raised will forever live in Red Sox history. Now 7 months later, the always funny Torri Hunter had some interesting things to say about his place in Red Sox lore. (Torii Hunter recalls ALCS bullpen flip)

• While the Red Sox might be a less than average major league club right now, Jackie Bradley’s new hair tops the competition. Sporting braids for most of his time in Boston, the struggling center fielder unleashed an afro of epic proportions over the weekend. (Jackie Bradley Jr now has a glorious afro)

• Tweet of the Day: Apparently Lackey is responsible for the ‘fro. Now we know who to thank.