Category: Jon Lester

 Bill Hall

Sox Farmhands Make Good: Buchholz, Kalish, Pedroia, and the Future

Boston Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz pitches to the Toronto Blue Jays during the eighth inning of their MLB American League baseball game in Toronto, August 11, 2010. REUTERS/Mark Blinch (CANADA - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)
Last night's 6-0 victory over the Angels didn't gain the Sox any games in the standings. With the Yankees and Rays both victorious, Boston still sits five and a half games behind the AL East's co-leaders. You'd be forgiven, though, if you felt a surge of hope after the final out, because this game displayed all the reasons the Sox are still in contention this year, and a harbinger of the one recovery that might propel them ahead.

This season has been as trying as any in recent Red Sox history, but it has also been as inspiring. Going into the year, I anticipated this club to be one of my favorites, and it turns out I was right, but for the wrong reasons: while I was expecting a run-prevention monster with a solid, top-five AL offense, what I got was a ragtag crew beset by injury but still, through a better than expected offense and contributions from the most unexpected of places, managing to hang in contention all year. Between the strong and consistent pitching of Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester to the season-saving heroics of journeymen and minor leaguers like Darnell McDonald, Bill Hall, Daniel Nava and Ryan Kalish, this team has kept on the trail of a playoff berth when they should have been written off. And now, the day after Dustin Pedroia's emotional return, the most important cog in the team's machinery is back where he belongs. This season has defied every prediction so far, but if the Sox were to go on a tear from here on out, count me among those who wouldn't be in the least surprised.

August 18, 2010 andrew lipsett
Cliff Lee

Sox sign Delgado, Lester’s place among the AL’s top pitchers

Boston Red Sox's Jon Lester pitches against the Cleveland Indians in the first inning of their MLB American League baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts, August 4, 2010. REUTERS/Brian Snyder (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)
For three years, Jon Lester has been among the most productive and most dominating pitchers in the American League. With excellent command, swing-and-miss stuff, and ground ball tendencies, few pitchers can match Lester’s rare mix.

There is little doubt that Lester is among the five or ten best American League starters, but just how good is he? It’s time he was placed side-by-side with the AL’s best!

August 9, 2010 mike silver
Alex Rodriguez

Reflecting on Boston’s good contracts as a declining A-Rod hits No. 600

Aug. 04, 2010 - New York, New York, U.S. - ALEX RODRIGUEZ.hits his 600th career home run, became the.seventh and youngest in Major League Baseball.History also 3 Years to the day he hit his 500th home run .at game vs Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium.08-04-2010. 2010..K65445JBB. © Red Carpet Pictures
Yesterday, Alex Rodriguez hit his 600th career home run. While fanfare was mixed -- most non-Yankee fans could care less -- the one thing that jumped to my mind was how rough of a season A-Rod is actually having and how hard it was for him to finally reach 600 home runs. I then took a second look at his 10-year/$275 million dollar contract, which has seven years remaining. In my opinion, it could end up being the worst contract in baseball history. That got me thinking of some of the Red Sox current contracts and how they blow the A-Rod deal out of the water.

The first contract that stands out in my mind is the 6-year/$45.5 million dollar deal Dustin Pedroia signed before the 2009 season. Even in a "down year" last season, Pedroia was worth 5 WAR and even having missed a chunk of time this season he has already been worth 3.5 WAR. As a comparison, Alex Rodriguez, to this point in the season, has been worth only 2 WAR. Pedroia is signed through his prime seasons (27-31) and will make no more than $10 million, which comes at the end of the deal (also and $11 million dollar club option for 2015).

August 5, 2010 charliesap
Clay Buchholz

Is This It?

Boston Red Sox Kevin Youkilis reacts after being hit by a pitch against the Detroit Tigers during the seventh inning of their MLB American League baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts July 31, 2010. REUTERS/Adam Hunger (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)
For a brief shining moment there, it seemed like these Red Sox were poised for a legendary season. Beset by injuries, hampered by a slow and painful start, facing an uphill battle against two tough divisional foes, the Sox rode unlikely bats, some exceptional pitching by Lester and Buchholz, and the resurgence of David Ortiz to within four games before the All-Star Break. It was a hell of a story, but it appears that the story may finally be grinding to a halt.

The injury to Kevin Youkilis could be seen as just another blow to a lineup already held together by wishes and duct tape, but it's more than that. Youkilis has been the Sox most potent offensive force for at least two years now, and he was the glue that held this offense together for most of the season. His loss leaves the club a second rate power, and it leaves the offense without its most important player for the first time all year. 6.5 games out, with the Rays surging and the Yankees treading water, the team is not done, but they cannot afford to lose any more ground or waste any more time. They need a run of epic proportions, and that's what Youk's injury endangers more than anything else.

August 5, 2010 andrew lipsett