The Sox are a team in transition this year and frankly it was a mistake for them to try and compete for another title so quickly. The pitching is old and broken down, too many starting players are in the early to mid 30's and they simply don't have enough young emerging stars to energize the team.
Beckett did himself no favors with the dirtballs he threw last night and Papelbon wasn't sharp Too many pitches outside the zone that allowed the Royals to wait for a pitch to hit.
Overall look at this team:
Youk--First year playing full time and doing well
Loretta--Solid D but basically a singles hitter who hits 260 foot fly balls
Manny/Ortiz--Remarkable
Nixon--No power, thinks that his job is to draw walks or pop up off third base
Tek--Offense not there this year, low .OBP and while people make a big deal about what he does behind the plate, I noticed that of Beckett's last few starts with other catchers, in two of them he threw a lot more curves and off speed pitches in counts the other team was expecting a fastball. What does that tell you????
Lowell has been great in the field but he swings at a lot of bad pitches (leads the team in GDPs) and since the All Star break he's hitting .205.
Wily Mo--Tape measure home runs but he looks lost at the plate. This man needs to be in the minors learning how to hit but he has no options.
Crisp: Wild swinger, no plate discipline and no power. He should be trying to just get on base and create problems on the bases for other teams. Simply won't accept his role.
Gonzo--Stellar D!! Bat is a plus but too many times he will simply just go up there and hack.
Cora and Kapler: Good back ups
Mirabelli--Often times overmatched at the plate
On the whole this team does not hit well or with any consistancy.
The pitching, outside of Schilling and Papelbon has been a disappointment.
Beckett is not smart enough to look at Schilling and learn how to pitch.
Lester was in AA ball last year. Has potential but in over his head.
Clement--Is anyone really buying his hurt arm story? Something really stinks in this story
Wells: Should have retired last year
Wake; Solid, steady but a #4/5 guy at best
Tavarez and Seanez have failed to perform this year
Foulke fell apart last year and simply never came back
Timlin is 40....
Hansen belongs in the minors (College last year)
........
Did you see this article: Red Sox won't make it to the postseason?
Pretty glum forecast...