The Boston Red Sox were swept yesterday in their just completed series against the hard-charging Tampa Bay Rays by a score of 9-1 in a game that was never that close. They’ve now lost five in a row, seven of eight, and nine of 11, and they are playing as poor a brand of fundamental baseball as you’ll ever see by a bunch of men who do it for a living.
So this committed Voice of Reason has but two words to contribute to the discourse: uh oh!
The Rays are 23-10 since August 8, and they have closed the gap in the wild card chase to just 3.5 games. While they have pitched out of their minds – to name just two, James Shields has 11 complete games for the season and has allowed a measly three runs in his last four starts, and David Price has posted a 2.44 ERA in his last eight starts – the Red Sox have lost Josh Beckett to an ankle sprain, watched as John Lackey topped out at merely mediocre before falling back again, and hoped against hope that Andrew Miller would find home plate for more than a few batters at a time. (He didn’t.)
At the same time, the Sox bats also stopped thundering, and the combination has been deadly. And now they have taken to overthrowing cutoff men and throwing to the wrong bases – a sign, perhaps, of players trying to do too much, but a futile gesture nonetheless as long as the moundsmen continue to struggle so mightily.
Is there still time to right this particular ship? Sure – but barely. The Sox have only 16 games left to play, including three against their challenger. So they’d better start getting it together now if they’re going to pull this out.
If you’re from another city or planet, this is actually pretty exciting: two teams that started 0-6, one that subsequently streaked its way to a 99-win pace, and now a virtual tie-in-the-making. But if you live in Red Sox Nation, surely it’s time to worry.
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