With Tom Brady and the New England Patriots stealing headlines in Boston, very little has been made about the Boston Red Sox’ slow start to the 2015 season. Boston is currently sitting two games under 500. at 19-21, 2.5 games back of New York and Tampa Bay. Many people are surprised by this slow start after the Red Sox bolstered their lineup in the offseason and were a popular preseason pick to win the AL East. However, there is reason for optimism and no need to panic in Red Sox Nation, even with the team’s slow start; they could be a lot worse at the moment.
Red Sox Slow Start
With an offense featuring Dustin Pedroia, David Ortiz, Hanley Ramirez, Pablo Sandoval, and Mike Napoli, the Sox are ranked 19th in runs scored, 28th in batting average, and 26th in slugging percentage. With the players listed above in your lineup every day, those lowly ranks in hitting are bound to turn around. Ramirez hasn’t hit a home run since April, and Napoli and Ortiz are hitting .174 with 4 HRs and .244 with 6 HRs respectively. The three headed monster of Ramirez, Ortiz, and Napoli is going to begin to hit more HRs and more RBIs, especially as Napoli and Ortiz raise their averages. With the weather warming up on the east coast and the aforementioned players hitting closer to their career averages, the Red Sox will inevitably score more runs and start to become one of the better lineups in baseball. There were always questions about the Red Sox’ pitching, but no one expected the offense to be this bad.
The 19-20 start is even more surprising given the Red Sox pitching staff is ranked 28th in ERA, 18th in Quality Starts and 24th in WHIP. Even with a starting staff missing an ace and a middle of the road bullpen, again the Red Sox are only 2.5 games back of leading their division and the staff is beginning to turn it around. Over their last ten games, Red Sox pitchers have only given up 3.6 runs per game, more than a run fewer than their season average. If they can maintain this pace, it would put them in the top six in runs allowed per game, up nineteen spots from their current ranking of 26th. While I doubt they can maintain their current pace – considering the pitching numbers have improved against the Athletics, Mariners, and Rangers – the Red Sox’ rotation still isn’t as bad they were performing in the beginning of the season. In reality, their rotation is somewhere in between.
If the Red Sox’ rotation can continue to make strides under their new pitching coach, Carl Willis, or they trade for an ace at the trade deadline and their lineup rounds into predictable form, the Sox should take over first in the AL East soon. At the very least, they should soon get above .500 for good and compete for the division crown for the remainder of the season. No, the Red Sox aren’t a juggernaut by any means, especially their pitching, but they are much better than they have played so far this season and I believe they will begin to flex their muscles in the AL East as their roster performs closer to their abilities.
