Red Sox are suffering due to Dombrowski’s lack of urgency for pitching

The Boston Red Sox have been handcuffed all season due to their pitching, but lack of urgency from the front office should be receiving some of the blame.

It’s no secret that the pitching has been one of the biggest issues facing the Red Sox this season. Yeah, we can talk about the run support for Chris Sale and the overall lack of offense on some nights, but that is a weak argument. The Sox rank in the top-5 for RS (347) behind the Twins (382), Rangers (364), Mariners (355), and Dodgers (349).

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The problem here is that even with the high number of runs scored, the pitching is allowing nearly as many runs across the plate at 313 RA. Yeah, they have a +34 RD but that is seriously lacking the top-2 teams in the AL East with the Rays at +96 and Yankees at +69. That run differential can be deceiving though as some nights they can barely get a run and on others, they’re in the double digits.

So the offense is there, it may not always be the prettiest on any given night but it’s there. Once again the problem is that the pitching is giving up damn near just as many runs as they’re getting in support. And thus we’re back to the issue at hand, the lack of urgency from the Red Sox front office to plug the holes in the pitching.

We saw all season as the bullpen would crumble with leads that should guarantee victory. We saw all season as the starting rotation struggled and were unable to make it past mid-game. We also saw guys like Dallas Keuchel and Craig Kimbrel just sitting on the sidelines biding their time. Kimbrel always seemed far fetched as he wanted a big-time deal, but as we saw with Keuchel he seemed more than happy taking a short-term deal just to get back on the field.

Why has Dave Dombrowski seemingly been so inactive with this roster and trying to better it? The team sure doesn’t seem to be getting over the hurdle any time soon so why is he not trying to improve it? Both are tough questions and he very well may be doing just that behind the scenes, but there hasn’t been a single whisper of any transactions for the Red Sox this season.

With a little under two months until the trade deadline something needs to happen and fast. The free agent pool isn’t very deep at this point in the season especially now that Keuchel and Kimbrel are off the board.

Yovani Gallardo is still available, a career 4.06 ERA and only 33 years old, he could be a decent spot start option or even a long reliever at this point. AJ Ramos is an option at closer, 32 years old and a career 3.07 ERA with 99 saves. Neither is the best option but at this point, any and every option needs to be addressed.

It isn’t all doom and gloom as there are some arms in the pen that I can honestly say I trust even if they aren’t lights-out 100% of the time. Marcus Walden and Heath Hembree have been beyond reliable when they’re called upon and Matt Barnes still tends to be the go-to when things are getting dicey. Three pitchers just aren’t enough to get the Sox back to the Fall Classic though.

So what exactly are the Red Sox going to do with this pitching staff? I think we can all look at the depth chart and see where the fat can be trimmed, I’m lookin’ at you, Tyler Thornburg. Something needs to be done though, as each game goes by and more losses pile up it just feels like the Red Sox are giving away the season.

The starting rotation has been strong as of late even with some rough starts here and there. Luckily it looks like both Nathan Eovaldi and Brian Johnson are both working their way back to the lineup. Red Sox Nation deserves much better from Dombrowski and the front office though. We don’t need to know everything that’s going on behind closed doors leaked but it’d be nice to know if ANYTHING is happening.

It’s clear that with the current roster things just aren’t going to change. I’m not saying they can’t as we know how easy it is for a team to go on a hot streak. But as I watch this team each and every night I just don’t see that spark. They’ll play a stellar game and then come out the next night like they’re a deer in the headlights. Something needs to be done and done ASAP if Boston wants to have a chance at a repeat.

Boston is currently 34-32 and is stuck in third place as they consistently take one step forward and two steps back. I don’t think that it would be weighing as heavy on Red Sox Nation if it felt like the office was trying to do something to right the ship. Sadly, it doesn’t appear that any moves are in the works to bring the Sox back to their championship form. With the season whittling away each day it feels as if October is slipping away as well.