The Red Sox had a tough test entering the 2nd half of the 2010 season against the hottest team in baseball, the Texas Rangers. They began with a 4 game series at home, losing 3 of the 4 contests as they begin to show their lack of depth and plethora of injuries. As each game passes, it becomes more necessary for their offensive threats to get back ASAP, as their offense has struggled to score runs. Granted the Ranger’s have one of the best young pitching staffs and a strong offense to boot, the Sox offense looked stagnant and weak the entire series.
The Sox managed to score a total of 11 runs, and pull off 1 victory in the 4 game series. That 1 victory was an extra innings thriller, which may be one of the best games of the year. The rest of the series lacked Sox offense firepower and exploited the weaknesses in the Sox rotation and bullpen. The Sox tried to fill in pieces after Wakefield went only 2+ in game 1, but calling-up Fernando Cabrera as back-up turned out to seriously backfire, as he imploded in game 2. Throughout the series, the Sox committed errors and other mistakes that led to Rangers runs and their ultimate demise.
As if beginning the 2nd half against the Rangers wasn’t bad enough, the Sox now go on the road for a 10-game West coast swing, stopping in Oakland, Seattle and Anaheim. No matter the level of the teams, it is always tough to travel cross country and adjust to the time zone. After that West Coast trip, the Sox are home for 7 games (Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians), then on the road for another 10-game trip against the Yankees, Blue Jays and Rangers. If the Sox can man-up and power through this stretch with a strong record, then they may find themselves within striking distance as Dustin Pedroia, Victor Martinez (hopefully) and Jeremy Hermida find their way back from injury.
The good news on the pitching front is that Clay Buchholz will return to start on Wednesday in Oakland and Josh Beckett will return to start Friday’s ball game in Seattle. This is great news, because Buchholz and Beckett are key to the Sox success down the stretch. The starting rotation may finally be complete this week, with Beckett, Lester, Buchholz, Lackey and Dice-K for the first time since the beginning of the season. John Farrell has to be breathing a sigh of relief that he won’t have to work with another spot starter, but rather his regular 5.
Watch out this week for the returns of Buchholz and Beckett on Wednesday and Friday as well as the return of Jeremy Hermida. Inserting those pieces back on to the field should not only improve the Sox play, but also inject energy into a struggling team that appears to be treading water. The AL Wild Card and even AL East division crown are not out of reach, but the Sox need to begin the surge to get back close to the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees.
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