Boston Sports Then and Now

David Ortiz and Terry Francona reunited prior to the Red Sox-Indians series opener.

With the new MLB season now almost two months old, both the baseball and the betting action are beginning to heat up.

The next series for the Boston Red Sox, whose early start has many giving them a real shot of winning the American League this season, is against the surprising Cleveland Indians – and given the apparent talent edge for the Red Sox and the difference in betting odds, you would expect a Boston win. Though the first game in the series, a 12-3 Indians victory, certainly didn’t turn out that way.

The Red Sox have American League odds of around 10/1, compared to the 30/1 odds for the Indians, suggesting the game should go in favor of the Red Sox, the bookies odds for this particular series actually go with this view point as well. A great deal of this is due to the fact that they have home advantage – and recent match-ups between these two sides do tend to support this, as the home team has invariably come out on top. This is certainly something that should be kept in mind by anyone considering gambling on the match, and it means that some Red Sox fans may prefer to sit it out and play at an online casino instead.

After all there are plenty of baseball games available at those sites for those who want to mix their casino games with something baseball related – but if you aren’t worried about that there are plenty of other Mobile Casino games to choose from. Indeed, given that downloadable mobile casino apps have ensured that you can play these games wherever you are located, it isn’t only Red Sox fans fearing for their side’s chances who might fancy a shot at them – as those Indians fans confident (even overconfident) of victory might want to give them a shot during the breaks in the game.

Jon Lester is 4-0 after Red Sox losses this season

Clay Buchholz has been the early story for the Red Sox rotation so far this year with his dominating start but the #1 man in the rotation, Jon Lester, has settled into an important role as the Sox’ resident “stopper”.  The Sox have been plagued with inconsistency in the back end of their rotation with the injuries and otherwise ineffectiveness of John Lackey and Felix Doubront.  The Sox are a combined 7-7 in starts by Doubront and Lester.  They are also 2-6 in games the day before Jon Lester pitches.  They’ve relied heavily on counting on Lester to stop skids and break up losing streaks before they get out of hand.

For Lester’s part he’s been holding his own in the role.  He’s 4-0 coming off Red Sox losses this season and has stopped losing streaks of 3 games in each of his last two starts including a 1-hit shutout of the Blue Jays in which he only faced 28 batters in a 5-0 win at Fenway.  He’s pitched well and he’s pitched confident, something that you could not say about him a year ago.  It’s an interesting question to ask whether or not the 2012 version of Jon Lester would be this effective pitching after a Sox loss.  His confidence wasn’t there and neither were his pitches.  This year he’s dug in and looked much more poised on the mound and the Red Sox have reaped the benefits.

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Pawtucket, RI -

The Pawtucket Red Sox Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox certainly provide the entertainment of big league ball games at minor league prices.  The PawSox were 2012 International League Champions and now with many players back from that team and continuing to develop, this years team could be playing well into September as well.  Of course every minor league players focus is to make it to the big leagues and not ever have to come back to the minor leagues.

Jackie Bradley Jr. is on the disabled list due to a right bicep injury.

The Pawtucket Red Sox roster boasts talent like Alfredo Aceves and Jose Iglesias as well as young guns Allen Webster and Rubby De La Rosa.  Jackie Bradley Jr. is on the disabled list after a short sample with Pawtucket that has been good.  Often times we know the names of the hot prospects and fringe players who spend almost the same amount of time on Interstate 95, back and forth, as they do on the field.  Players who are not household names sometimes can provide a spark to a big league club with a brief stint should an injury occur.  Last year Red Sox fans became familiar with Pedro Ciriaco after he mashed against the Yankees.  Now Ciriaco is on the big league club as a utility infielder.  I’m here to tell you about the players who may not be household names.

This year the PawSox have some impressive outfielders and corner infielders.  Late spring training signing Brandon Snyder, who has major league experience with the Rangers and Orioles, has been impressive in 33 games.  Snyder has 7 home runs and 26 RBI’s to go along with a .299 average.  Snyder who plays mostly first base has gotten some time at third base since Will Middlebrooks crashed into David Ross.  Third base is the thinnest depth wise in the organization but, the team should not sleep on Snyder.  The only problem is, Snyder does not have a spot on the 40 man roster should an occasion arise where he is needed.  Putting a player on the 60 day disabled list could create a spot like Alex Hassan who has not played in a game all season.

Mark Hamilton who plays first base and the corner outfield positions also has major league experience with the Cardinals.  He signed a minor league contract during the offseason with the Sox and has looked good as well.  He was recently named the International League Player of the Week.  Last week he hit 4 home runs and had 10 RBI to lead the league.  In 31 games he is hitting .275 with 6 home runs and 27 RBI.  Hamilton could surely provide some insurance behind Mike Napoli and Mike Carp, who has looked good in a small sample size.  Daniel Nava has appeared in a few games at first base but now seems to have unseated Jonny Gomes as the everyday left fielder.

Jeremy Hazelbaker who was drafted by the Red Sox in the fourth round of the 2009 draft has rotated between the corner outfielder positions.  He spent the later part of last season with the PawSox after being with Double A Portland for most of the season.  Hazelbaker has also provided some pop down the order for the PawSox hitting .283 with 5 home runs and 19 RBI.  Hazelbaker is also not on the 40 man roster but could potentially be a piece they trade for some help near the trade deadline.  He seems to me like a Brandon Moss type player.  Provide some pop off the bench and maybe be a average starter for a mid market team.

The PawSox leadoff hitter last night was Justin Henry who was acquired from the Tigers by trade early this past off season.  Henry is a utility player who last night played center field but opening night played third base.  He is a valuable piece of the bench and I think he could potentially replace Ciriaco is he continues to struggle on the field.  Henry has no major league experience.  Henry this season is hitting .315 with 1 home run, 13 RBI and 6 steals.  Henry has speed and as I said can play many positions defensively and play them well.  Last year the Red Sox forced Ciriaco into the outfield and he did not really excel.

Bryce Brentz is ranked as the 7th best Red Sox prospect according to MLB.com.

Bryce Brentz who fits in as a right fielder with a cannon of an arm is ranked as the Red Sox number 7 prospect according to MLB.com.  Brentz missed most of spring training due to a handgun accident which may have set him back with the big league club in terms of path of the majors.  He could have potentially played in more games for the big league club to prove who he is as a player playing against major league talent.  He along with Hazelbaker came up to the PawSox late last season and started this year with the club.  Brentz is hitting .275 with 6 home runs and 26 RBI.  He has a heck of a swing and hits line drives with the best of them.

Those five players could potentially become household names to Red Sox fans.  As I stated all of them are not on the 40 man roster, which makes it harder for them to be called up to Boston.  Should they continue to perform in Pawtucked the Red Sox will have a decision to make.   These players could even come up in September when the rosters expand and more injuries are almost certain.  One thing is for certain the PawSox roster is certainly talented and the players are looking for their chance to prove they can help the big league club.

After a DL stint and a slow start Drew has settled in nicely

When the Red Sox signed Stephen Drew in the off-season on a one-year deal it drew quite a bit on skepticism from Red Sox Nation.  The Sox remembered his older brother J.D. who made $14 million over 5 slightly above average seasons in Boston.  Drew was not the type of player that the Red Sox fans generally embrace, particularly since he was replacing resident dirt dog and fan favorite Trot Nixon.  As a result he was a much-maligned player in his time here despite being productive over most of his contract.  When the younger Drew signed in Boston it brought back memories, especially since he is making a robust $9.5 million salary in his one year here.

The comparisons to the elder Drew escalated for Stephen in spring training when he suffered a concussion that sent him to the disabled list for the beginning of the season.  Stephen was coming off of a serious ankle injury last season and a second injury started to look like a trend.  Fans remembered J.D. Drew pulling up lame while running the bases or gliding carelessly in the outfield to catch a fly ball and end up on the 15-day DL the next day.  While that perception may have been unfair for Stephen, who was a durable player before his ankle injury last year, it’s hard to blame Red Sox fans for having a feeling of deja vu.

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Allen Webster will be making his second major league start tonight against the Twins.

Injuries are a part of sports.  Expecting every player in the opening day lineup to play 162 games is a dream.  The Red Sox now have seen four players go down in the past week and not many qualified players to fill such positions.  After Tuesday’s collision between David Ross and Will Middlebrooks the Red Sox might not have a qualified third baseman for the time being.  Middlebrooks after having a good first two weeks of the season has been struggling and has become a strike out per game player.  Some time off might help him. Middlebrooks and Ross are both listed as day to day so a disabled list stint might not happen but the bench will be running thin for a few days, which is never good.

Losers of four of five the Red Sox now have entered May which is a show me month.  I call it a show me month because any team could have a good April.  This month is where pretenders fade and contenders rise.  Will this Red Sox team be as good as their record indicates on Memorial Day?  We shall find out.  Other teams who had good April’s such as the Royals and Rockies will have the same responsibility as the Red Sox, prove April was no fluke.

It appears the Red Sox starting pitching will not be the issue.  Clay Buchholz, after the cheating accusations is ready to pitch and hopefully does not have to face Toronto anytime soon.  Jon Lester, needs to come out firing in the early innings where he seems to issue walks and need too take command of the strike zone. This year it appears he is being squeezed and this carries over from last year where he would often whine on the mound if he did not get a call.  Ryan Dempster has settled in nicely as a middle of the rotation innings eater and hopefully the workload doesn’t take a toll on him. John Lackey whose next start will only be his fourth of the season, remains to be seen as I need to see more out of him before I can really judge but has looked good in a small sample size. Felix Doubront, has been moved to the bullpen for the time being with hot prospect Allen Webster getting the ball tonight against the Twins.  This could be a combination of no good relievers to call up on the 40 man roster with Joel Hanrahan going down on Monday. After his one day as closer again with Andrew Bailey on the disabled list.  Also, Doubront hasn’t shown anything lately to prove he deserves to keep a spot in the rotation as he may look great for two innings and horrendous for three.

It is apparent Pedro Ciriaco is not exactly playing well right now.  After getting caught stealing third on Monday as a potential insurance run and two errors at third base on Tuesday, the Red Sox might look elsewhere for some infield help.  Brock Holt, who is on the 40 man roster is not exactly tearing up Triple A with Pawtucket as his average is below .200.  Jose Iglesias has been benched the last few games due to discipline reasons.  Third base is a rather thin position in the organization.  If Iglesias comes up again can Stephen Drew play third base? I hope we don’t have to find out.

With two more games against the Twins and a weekend series with the Blue Jays the Red Sox need to finish the home stand over .500 and go into Monday’s off day with confidence.  This team played really well in April and might have brought some fans back from after last years laugh of a season.  May, is time to prove they are the real deal.  Overcoming these injuries won’t be easy and John Farrell and Ben Cherington might have to get creative but, good starting pitching can cure most problems.

Buchholz and his nasty stuff has paced the Sox rotation

The Red Sox had the best record in baseball in April, going 18-8 in the first month of the season.  It was their best start since 2003 and the first time since 2009 that they had more than 11 wins in April.  The turn-around from the cumbersome starts of the last 3 years has been fueled by a resurgence of the Red Sox starting pitching, which had been rendered inept during the September collapse of 2011 and stagnated throughout all of last season.

Entering play on Saturday the Red Sox were 7th in the major league in ERA at 3.54.  Their starting staff was 5th in the majors with a 3.29 ERA.  They’ve been relatively healthy so far this season, only missing 2 starts from John Lackey from an injury that looked much worse than it ended up being in his first start of the season.  Alfredo Aceves had 1 solid start and one truly putrid one that landed him in Pawtucket and youngster Allen Webster even contributed a solid start in the night cap of a double header.  He was in line for a win before the Sox’ bullpen gave up the lead.

The Red Sox starting pitching success begins and ends with the dominance of a resurgent Clay Buchholz.  Setting aside the side show created by the hacks up in Toronto Buchholz has been, in a word, dominant.  He is 6-0 with a 1.01 ERA.  He’s struck out 47 and walked 16.  He’s thrown 44 2/3 innings so far this year, 7 innings more than Jon Lester who is #2 on the squad in innings thrown.  With Buchholz’s past durability issues there may be some worries about this workload but as long as it’s working you can’t complain.  Contrary to the conspiracy theories Buchholz has been absolutely pounding the strike zone, painting the corners and leaving opposing hitters with the bat on their shoulders.  His 37% strike looking  and 53% strikeout looking ratios are substantially higher than the major league average.  This is at odds with spitball pitchers who make a living throwing junk with late movement that hitters go out of the strike zone to chase.  Long story short, Buchholz is not cheating, he’s just pitching incredibly well.

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