7/25 @ Texas

[SemperFi Sox]

Win, lose, win, lose,

 

getting real old.

[MANNYHOF24]

This team has no chance IMO to make the playoffs.. They now sit 5 GB of the second wild card behind a handfull of teams, mainly the Angels, Whitesox and Tigers.

[Station 13]

The Red Sox has the 4th worst record in AL since 7.28.2011

 

Keep this up and they could get a top 5-10 draft pick!

[jung]

The fact is that the offense gave him a lead-- a small lead a 2 run lead, but he couldn't hold it. That's his fault. Look at the stats. When the Sox score less than 5 run, the winning percentage is about .150. Every other team has winning percentages from .340-.370. That's a huge difference. It basically accounts for the entire gap in the standings between us and the Yankees. Offenses tend to be inconsistent, but the fact is that we have been #1 or 2 in runs all season. The pitching has not done its job in low scoring games. The stats couldn't be more stark in that regard.

 

That is a great stat and very telling 700. As I have often commented here these "stats" that are quoted as if players play in a vacuum are not nearly as telling as comparative measures between players and especially between teams. Clearly we do poorly in close, tight pitchers duals....more importantly as 700 points out, not only do we do poorly against teams like Oakland, a team designed to win close, tight pitchers duals but we can't win them against teams that play ball more akin to Red Sox baseball.

 

That was a decent showing for Beckett considering how poorly he has pitched of late but when the big moment came in the 7th inning, he failed.....again.

 

The conclusion has been what some of us said it would be way back in spring training. We had a team that would win its share of slugfests but looked very vulnerable and incapable of winning close, tight pitchers duals. It would make some combination of mental mistakes, defensive errors, either scored as errors or simply giving the opponent more outs to work with in the form of missed DP opportunities or its pitching would simply not hold up leaving it to win some number of 10-8 slugfests and essentially that is exactly what has happened. For many of us, our best hope was in 1,2 and 3 in the rotation pitching well enough to gain us a few 6-4 victories....games played in the middle ground between the true slugfest and the tight pitchers dual but that has not happened.

 

and.....Nobody totally slugs their way to the top. It simply can't be done, certainly not now and for most of baseball's history with the exception of the drug induced stupor of steroids. This team was doomed from the start and we have just been watching this slow motion train wreck play itself out.

[SoxSport]

Part of the problem is the team is full of retreads who don't get on base. Not enough walks.

This has been Ellsbury's problem all along as leadoff batter. Now they've added Aviles, Crawford, Salty, etc. Plus AdGon has forgotten how to walk. And Youks is gone.

 

They don't walk anymore. And they don't take pitches. Not much discipline there on more than one front.

[Bellhorn04]

Part of the problem is the team is full of retreads who don't get on base. Not enough walks.

This has been Ellsbury's problem all along as leadoff batter. Now they've added Aviles, Crawford, Salty, etc. Plus AdGon has forgotten how to walk. And Youks is gone.

 

They don't walk anymore. And they don't take pitches. Not much discipline there on more than one front.

 

Really good point, SoxSport. The Sox are 11th in the league in walks this year after being in the top 3 for years.

[jung]

As if often the case, it takes till mid season or so for everybody to have a good book on everybody else. You think some of the Sox hitters have looked vulnerable up to now? Wait till you see what they look like facing pitchers that simply will not let them up off the canvas for a minute. Aviles numbers are likely to fall like a stone...they already have....Ross will be looking outside at pitch after outside pitch as well Crawford and Agons will be getting pounded inside. The most complete hitters the Sox have are Ortiz, Ells and Pedey. After that it is really a matter of the foolishness of the opposing pitcher.

[SoxFanForsyth]

As if often the case' date=' it takes till mid season or so for everybody to have a good book on everybody else. You think some of the Sox hitters have looked vulnerable up to now? Wait till you see what they look like facing pitchers that simply will not let them up off the canvas for a minute. Aviles numbers are likely to fall like a stone...they already have....Ross will be looking outside at pitch after outside pitch as well Crawford and Agons will be getting pounded inside. The most complete hitters the Sox have are Ortiz, Ells and Pedey. After that it is really a matter of the foolishness of the opposing pitcher.[/quote']

 

Man this isn't true in the least. It's not like these are rookies who have just come up and the book is just getting out on them. These are veteran hitters who have been around for a long time. It's not the same at all. And it shows in their numbers. Crawford and Gonzalez both have higher a career OPS post ASB than pre ASB. Not to mention that Crawford will destroy inside pitches, his vulnerability is against the outside corner. But regardless, these aren't rookies who will have the book released. That's not how it works.

[mvp 78]

No loss tonight!

[jung]

I had identified Crawford as being vulnerable outside. It is Agons I said would get pounded inside.

 

As for being veterans...some of them have crossed leagues and ir really does not matter anyway. Teams work under the assumption that hitters make changes in the off season and build a new book each year on hitters. They may rely on past history to some extent but really use the stuff they have gathered in season to inform their decisions about hitters. By mid season the books on these guys are pretty extensive.

 

As I have said many times, players change over time. I doubt AGons has ever been as vulnerable inside as he appears to be today and I seriously doubt Crawford has been as vulnerable outside as he was last year and appears to be today. In other words, there past year post and pre ASB numbers may not be at all relevant because they very likely did not have major vulnerabilities that were exposed early in he season that could be picked at late. Crawford has so quickly slipped into missing the low outside sliders from LH pitchers that they will likely catch up to him faster this year than they did last year.

 

Do you honestly think pitchers would have fed Ross so many inside FB's if they already built a book telling them not to go in there? The last bunch of numbskulls that did that were the WS who tried to come inside to set him up better for the low and outside out pitch. Stupid...Ross can't really handle anything outside so you really are wasting your time setting him up for that pitch and risking catching to much plate going in there. WS continued to get burned time and again as their book on Ross was obviously faulty. I don't think you will see teams making that mistake again.