SoxFanForsyth

Middlebrooks kind of stopped around the SS position there, and would have been safe had he kept running. Guess he didn't want to run into the tag but ARod was clearly going to touch the base if he was going to try to get WMB out. Bad baserunning.

Get in line.

Yeah yeah. It's infuriating watching this team play like blowhards sometimes, so I get pissed. But it always blows over.

#PositiveThoughts

Chill out fellas - WMB comes through here.

Salty has 1 speed: Swing hard. He's got a 2-0 swing, and he uses it 100% of the time.

sigh....

Exploit these breaks!!!!!!

wow Tim McCarver is just so so dumb.

That was precisely what this team needed.

They'll score here. Drew is going to hit a double.

Vs LHP? He should be up hitting 6th right now.

Lets go. Bust out of this freaking slump in a big way. Start now.

Lackey is NOT sharp.

Took me a second, but now I see what you're referring to.

And put 2 on with nobody out vs Kuroda??

Ok, positive vibes this game. Only positive vibes. Let's see how it works.

I certainly hope it normalizes. Ross should be a good boost, because Salty is OPS'ing .590 vs LHP this year. Even with Salty's .730 OPS, that's a 140 point boost. Like you said, the biggest boost this team could get would be from Bogaerts replacing Drew vs LHP. Not sure what the hold up is on bringing him up. I guess roster slots are hard to come by, although with Bogaerts and Middlebrooks, do you really need Brock Holt? Bogaerts can be your util guy on the left side and Drew can spell Pedroia if need be at 2B with Bogaerts sliding to SS (and in the case that Pedroia hits the DL, you can replace him with Holt). Just don't understand the thinking really, particularly with the exaggerated struggles vs LHP in the 2nd half.

I don't think Carp can be the everyday 1B. I think, considering the lack of FA market and the complete lack of depth in the minors at 1B, the Red Sox need to do whatever it takes to land Jose Abreu. The kid is 26, he hit 33 HR in 66 G in 2010, and is just an absolute monster. I know those numbers don't translate 100% to MLB, but he's got insane raw power. He's precisely the kind of guy the Red Sox need to acquire for the future of 1B.

For me at least, it's not just the 8 game slide, it's the complete and utter incompetence at the plate when facing any left handed pitcher. I thought "ok, they faced Price and Moore. Fine, I understand struggling against them" But then it's Chen, Buehrle, Pettite, Oborholtzer, guys you've never heard of in your life. It's Ortiz OPS'ing .727 vs LHP when he OPS'd .985 against them last year. Johnny Gomes OPS'ing .730 vs LHP. Victorino OPS'ing .756. Napoli OPS'ing .761. Even Ross, who is supposed to spell Salty vs LHP is only OPS'ing .728. Hell, we've had 3 hitters OPS over .800 vs LHP this year, and 2 of them aren't on the team anymore (Iglesias .842, Snyder .964). Pedroia (.890) is the other. That's a massive, massive concern. As soon as the SP goes out, this team just gets absolutely pummeled by LH relief pitchers. And why not?? They have nobody who can even sniff a mediocre line against them outside of Pedroia. It's funny, when the season began and we had Pedroia, Ortiz, Napoli, Middlebrooks, Gomes, Ross, and then the bullpen of Uehara, Taz, Bailey, Hanrahan, etc, all anyone said was "There are two things this team will do well, hit LHP and close out games late". And those are the two biggest struggles (though Uehara has been MVP worthy).

The complacency of this front office in bringing up Bogaerts while Stephen Drew hits .198/.254/.351 vs LHP is mind boggling. Bring up Bogaerts, give him every start at SS vs LHP, and let him start 1-2 games at 3B a week. This team has been nothing short of atrocious vs LHP in the 2nd half. They've also been absolutely flat as s***. They need energy, and they need it now. Every year we see it. Teams bring up these young kids to bring energy to the teams during the dog days of summer (August), and it gives them the huge boost they need to push them through. And every year, it seems like the Red Sox over-develop their players in AAA. When you've got a player with the skills of Bogaerts in AAA and you've got the need on the left side of the infield and vs LHP in general, bring the damn kid up and see if he can help. What's the worst that could happen? He struggles vs LHP? I'm pretty sure it's not going to be any worse than the .600 OPS that Stephen Drew is providing vs LHP.

I've been saying this for a couple weeks now. This team is lifeless, stagnant, low-energy, and complacent right now. They need some youth to come up and energize the club. They're playing extremely unfocused and sloppy baseball. 7 errors in the past 3 games, 3 last night, an inside-the-ballpark-homer for Rajai Davis on a grounder to the pitcher?!? I mean honestly. This is a completely different team than we watched in the first half. We're 14-13 in the 2nd half right now. Considering we've had to come from behind in nearly every win in the 2nd half, including a 6 run 9th inning against Seattle, that record is not a good indication at all of how this team has been playing. Not only that, but we've been shut down by some of the most mediocre left handed pitchers in the game. Pettitte, Buehrle, Chen, & Oborholtzer have all completely shut down this offense. It's embarrassing. The time is now for Bogaerts to come up. He 100% needs to platoon with Drew at SS vs LHP, and play 1-2 times a week at 3B. Get him in 3-4 games a week and that's enough playing time for him to continue to develop without being over exposed. Also, you're putting him in the best spots to succeed, considering he's got an OPS over 1.000 vs LHP in AAA right now. Stephen Drew is hitting .198/.254/.351 vs LHP on the season. Yet, we keep him in there?? What the hell Cherrington. That's atrocious. I don't see how the FO isn't making some kind of a move here. Something drastic needs to happen because otherwise teams are going to just completely shut this team down night in and night out by throwing LHP. It's disgusting how bad this team is right now against lefties, and it's even more disgusting that we have a fantastic internal option in AAA dying to get his chance to help and the FO would rather watch Stephen Drew flail at sliders away from LHP.

They've lost 3 straight and 6 of 8, and they've blown a 4 game lead to the Rays while playing the likes of the Astros, Royals, Blue Jays, and Yankees. Yeah, I'd say there's more than a little cause for concern.

And yes, I've removed my sig.

Wild card?? Right now, this team is getting nice and set up to miss the post season entirely, and probably by more than a couple games. Whatever. Screw this team. Not worth watching at this point. Wake me up when they start playing like a team. I've seen this movie before and it sucked. Not going to be surprised by the ending again.