6-27 to 7-4: Sox Report Card (Boston Globe)

[Fishercat]

Overall: D-


The Red Sox bullpen hit bottom last week, turning what could have been a 4-3 stretch into a 2-5 disaster. Keith Foulke and his bullpen cohorts surrendered 19 runs in 16.2 innings, which translates to an ERA of 10.55. Sox starters fared a little better, though not much, and the lineup didn't bust out the way it usually does at Fenway Park. The Red Sox have a 2½-game lead in the AL East, but that edge might be five if the Sox had taken care of business at home last week. Grade: D-


Hitting:

The Sox plated two or fewer runs in three of the six games at Fenway Park this week, an unusual hiccup for a lineup that's built to dominate in the Fens. However, it's important to note they were aced by Roy Halladay (having a Cy Young season), Kevin Millwood (starting to look like the old Millwood), and Ted Lilly (has a history of success vs. Boston). David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez once again carried the load, combining to drive in 10 runs over the last seven games. Jason Varitek hit below .200 for the week, while Johnny Damon, Trot Nixon and Kevin Millar all hit over .300. Mark Bellhorn's struggles continued; he has hit .200 over his last six games with nine strikeouts. Grade: C-

Fielding:
The Sox suffered another week of defensive miscues all over the diamond. In seven games against Cleveland, Toronto, and Texas, the Sox were charged with six errors. Edgar Renteria, who remains in contention for the major league lead in errors with 15 on the season, made two errors on the same play against Cleveland, and Sox pitchers made two errors this week as well. Mark Bellhorn's inability to convert a potential double play (leading to two unearned runs and a four-run inning), Ramon Vazquez's fourth error of the season in 60 chances, and Trot Nixon's deflection of a fly ball into the bullpen for a home run contributed to the 7-0 loss against Cleveland last Monday. Grade: D+

Bronson Arroyo (6-5, 4.15 ERA): Back-to-back losses for Arroyo against Cleveland and Toronto marred what could have been one of the final weeks in the rotation for the right-hander, with the return of Curt Schilling on the way. Arroyo deserved a better fate in Sunday's loss, when he allowed three runs over seven innings, but was hit hard earlier in the week, allowing the Indians seven runs (five earned) over 6 2/3 innings.

Wade Miller (2-2, 4.94): Miller still has not won since May 31, a span of six starts during which he has pitched only adequately. Last night, things started out rough as the Rangers grabbed three runs in the first inning, but Miller settled in with five shutout innings from there on out in another no-decision. Last week against Cleveland, Miller surrendered five earned runs over 5 2/3 innings. In both cases, Boston's offense made a late-inning comeback only to ultimately watch things be given away by Keith Foulke.

Tim Wakefield (7-6, 3.94): One of the game's most dominant pitchers the last month, Wakefield won his third straight decision with a seven-inning, two-run affair that salvaged the final game against Cleveland. In his last four starts in the month of June, Wakefield allowed a total of four runs over 29 innings.

Matt Clement (9-2, 3.82): Despite his sparkling first-half, Clement was not selected for the AL All-Star squad, and his start Friday night did nothing to help him for sure. In his worst start since a month earlier in St. Louis, Clement allowed eight runs on eight hits over 5 2/3 innings against Toronto, forcing his ERA to jump a half-run. Clement walked three in the contest, the most he has issued since a June 2 no-decision against the Orioles.

David Wells (6-4, 5.04): Wells' mouth got him in more trouble than his pitch selection Saturday night against Toronto, when an expletive or two got him ejected from a contest in which he allowed four runs over 6 2/3 innings, a no-decision in a game the Red Sox eventually pulled out.


Grade: C

Bullpen:
The Sox bullpen maintained its reputation as the most unreliable facet of the team. In three of the seven games last week, the bullpen allowed zero runs; in the other four games, relievers gave up nineteen earned runs. Mike Timlin continued his steady performance (though he was snubbed from the All-Star team), and John Halama had one of his best outings of the year, pitching 2.1 innings of scoreless relief in a game against Cleveland. Although the performances of Alan Embree and Matt Mantei (now on the DL) were hardly inspiring, the main problem continued to be the man at the end: Keith Foulke. Foulke blew two saves in the ninth inning, giving up a combined seven earned runs, allowing 12 base runners, and making one ill-advised comment ("Johnny from Burger King"). His season ERA in save situations -- over 12.00 -- makes you wonder if the Sox might be forced to make a change. Grade: F

Coaching:

Although it would be convenient to fault the Sox manager for the team's 2-5 record last week, Francona's performance cannot be blamed for the poor showing. Foulke was inserted to preserve the Sox lead three times, and he proceeded to allow game-winning rallies in the ninth inning twice. With many members of the Sox pen -- Foulke, Alan Embree, Halama, and Mantei -- woefully underperforming, Francona has the unenviable task of deciding when to use Timlin. Should he shuffle the entire pen to have Timlin pitch the ninth? With the call-ups of Lenny DiNardo and Jeremi Gonzalez, Francona may have more options in the middle innings that could allow him to save Timlin. Francona made a good call inserting Doug Mirabelli into the DH hole on Saturday against Ted Lilly, against whom he was 5 for 12, while resting David Ortiz, who is 2 for 19 against Lilly. One of his more questionable moves was bringing in left-handed specialist Mike Myers to face Reed Johnson, a right-handed batter, with the bases loaded in Friday's loss against Toronto; Johnson proceeded to hit a grand slam, making a 5-1 game a 9-1 romp. On the whole, Francona had a fine week at the helm; his loyalty to Foulke and management of the unreliable bullpen bear watching in the near future. Grade: B

[Fishercat]

I'd tend to agree. I don't think the offense has been that bad. A couple bad performances but Damon has a 20 game hit streak, a number of players have been over .300, and Ortiz/Manny are still rolling. The SP isn't at fault for the 2-5 nor is the coaching. The pen has been hideous and I'm starting to feel bad for Foulke in spite of his comments. Nevertheless, with a surging Yankee squad, the Sox cannot afford weeks like this and they have responded with a grand slam by Manny and a big lead over Texas.

[Providence A's]

They're still in 1st place right? A little harsh to me, though I only really skimmed it...seems like something I'd write as far as how negative they are being about a team in 1st place

[Hammer]

"and making one ill-advised comment ("Johnny from Burger King")."

Hmm... anybody got the full comment off hand, and who or what he was referring to?

[Providence A's]

http://strike3forums.com/forums/show...1&postcount=30

[icemonkeypro]

Jeez, that's kind of harsh. The hitting hasn't been THAT bad, and guys like Damon and Varitek should have bumped that grade up a bit.

[icemonkeypro]

*Ramirez

Just woke up...

[Fishercat]

I agree. The hitting certainly has not been the problem in the last week.

Last night, Ramirez's Grand Slam was amazing, it was weak but it got over. He has a knack for it.

BTW, welcome to the forums, we can use all the Sox fans we can get.