One of the biggest disappointments over the first half of the season has been without a doubt, Rick Porcello. Coming off of a Cy Young season, the expectations for Porcello were as high as they have ever been. Yet, instead of being a positive for the Sox, he has been a major disappointment. Porcello in the first half of the season is 4-9 with a 5.00 ERA. He also has a -0.2 WAR.
Even though he may have a winning record, it is not a very positive sign when your set up man has a very high ERA. Matt Barnes was not supposed to be in this role, but with the injuries to Tyler Thornburg and Carson Smith, he was pushed into a role I do not think he was prepared for. He may be 5-2 but when you have an ERA of 4.07 that is quite the problem for a man who is supposed to shut everything down before they put the closer in. Hopefully he can turn it around, and be the setup man the Sox need before our reinforcements come in.