This week, Red Sox fans have a bit more of an optimistic tone when speaking of their beloved home-town team. The Red Sox have finally begun to turn their season around, winning 4 of their last 5 games, climbing to 6 wins on the season. Overall, the pitching staff has been the biggest difference over the past week or so, posting a lot of zeros on the score board. The offense is beginning to turn around, posting 5+ runs in 3 of the last 4 games and 4+ runs in 9 of their last 11 games. Improved pitching and better clutch hitting is a recipe for success, but can the Red Sox sustain the hot streak? They are at 6-11 because of some great individual and team performances, so without further ado, let’s take a look at this edition of Weekly Superlatives.
The ‘Most Likely to Play Every Day, Regardless of the Position’ Award
What a start to the 2011 season for Jed Lowrie. He has been a monster in the batter’s box, hitting at .462 with 3 home runs and 11 RBIs. The switch-hitter has been the most valuable hitter on the team thus far, carrying the offense to victory on numerous occasions. He has 5 multi-hit games in his last 7 starts and has played at every infield position on the season. The Red Sox limped out of the gate, but Lowrie has provided a spark, leading the team to a 6-11 record, just 4.5 games out of 1st place. They have a long way to go to get back to .500 and into the AL East divisional race, but the team is beginning to click thanks to his energy and effort. He has played his way into the starting lineup every day, regardless of the position he is playing. You can’t keep a near .500 hitter out of the lineup, so Francona is going to have to continue to sit Marco Scutaro and give other infielders the day off in order to keep the 27-year old in the lineup.
The ‘Mostly Likely to Have a Great Outing Every 5th Time He Takes the Mound’ Award
The saga of the infamous Daisuke Matsuzaka continues. After looking like the worst AA pitcher you have ever seen in his 1st 2 starts of the season, Dice-K pulled a Dice-K. Just when fans are calling for his head and begging for the #5 starter to be waived or traded (myself included), he throws an absolute gem. Dice-K loves to stink it up, then just when everyone has given up on him, show fans and the front office what they expected to see when they signed the Japanese righty. In 7 innings on Monday against the powerful Toronto Blue Jays lineup, Dice-K allowed 1 hit, 1 BB, and struck out 3. Yes, that’s right, he allowed 0 earned runs and only 2 base-runners in the game, cutting his ERA exactly in half (now 6.43). He faced just 1 batter above the minimum (22) and was nibbling the corners like a rabbit taking on a carrot. Granted he had an umpire that called pitches on the black, but still, 1 hit though 7 shutout innings? Is it time to sell high?
Red Sox Starting Rotation
The ‘Most Likely to Carry the Team on Their Backs’ Award
The recent turnaround for the Red Sox has seen some players emerge as key role players, but the biggest difference from the 1st several games of the season? Starting pitching. In the last 5 games (1 time through the rotation), no Red Sox starter allowed more than 1 earned run. As a matter of fact, every starter allowed exactly 1 earned run, except Dice-K on Monday when he allowed 0. The Red Sox won 4 of those 5 games, only falling to the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday night, when Brett Anderson threw an absolute gem and shutout the offense for 8 innings. This is an incredible sign for the Red Sox, because with the offensive power the lineup has, they will win most nights their starter only allows 1 run (hell, most teams would win most days with a rotation pitching like that). There are signs the Red Sox offense is beginning to click, with Carl Crawford’s now 3-game hit streak and Kevin Youkilis’ recent turnaround, but the pitching staff needs to lead the way. For the most part, the bullpen has been solid for the Red Sox over the past few games as well, with the exception of a rough outing for Hideki Okajima in his return to the Red Sox. If this string of top-notch pitching performances continues, I expect the Red Sox to reach .500 in the not-so-distant future, but that’s a big if.
For all the latest news and analysis from BoSox Injection, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or with our RSS feed.
Add us as a preferred source on Google