A Busy Week

It has been a week of ups and downs for the Boston Red Sox. After an encouraging 17-1 drubbing of the Yankees on Friday, the team proceeded to drop the last two games of the series in disappointing fashion.

It was the Sunday night loss that was the most crushing. After rallying to a 1 run deficit and loading the bases against Mariano Rivera with no outs, Francona allowed Alex Cora (career .650 OPS, lowest on the Red Sox for any non-rookie player) to hit instead of allowing Olerud to pinch hit. Bellhorn had been removed earlier in the game with injury. Cora, allowed to take his first career at-bat against the Yankees closer, predictably grounded into a double play. Johnny Damon grounded out on the first pitch he saw to end the game.

Francona defended his decision by saying that he would no longer play Bill Mueller at second because of his health. I understand the value of keeping players healthy and not playing them out of position, but the manager’s job in that situation is to give the team the best opportunity to win or tie the game. Defense after the possible tie should be a distant second priority. If the team did, in fact, tie the game, the likely scenario would have been Olerud at 1st, Mueller at 2nd, and Millar at 3rd. Both Mueller and Millar have played these positions during their big league careers.

Ok, Millar’s not exactly Brooks Robinson, but I’d be more inclined to let the game hang on one or two innings of Kevin Millar 3rd base defense than the weak stick of Alex Cora facing Mariano Rivera for his first time. This scenario exposed one of this team’s major problems going into the midsummer stretch, namely the lack of versatility on the bench. It was almost poetic justice that Kevin Youkilis (career .788 MLB OPS), capable of playing 1st, 3rd, and probably 2nd base in a pinch was optioned to AAA Pawtucket just days before.

Fortunately, these needs have been addressed by a couple of recent trades. On Tuesday the Red Sox acquired utility infielder Tony Graffanino from the Kansas City Royals and outfielder Adam Hyzdu from the Padres. Hyzdu, considered by most to be a “career AAAA” player, offers a decent platoon partner for Trot Nixon against left handed starters, though his numbers (.200/.292/.448 career vs LHP) are nothing special.

Graffanino, on the other hand, could play a potentially vital role on this team. With prospect Dustin Pedroia recovering from injury and Mark Bellhorn on the DL and struggling this year, Graffanino (.263/.335/.389 career) might eventually usurp the starting position even after Bellhorn returns. The journeyman’s walk rate has increased this year, and he is slugging .393 as opposed to Bellhorn’s .360 mark. If Graffanino can demonstrate decent on-base abilities while Bellhorn is injured, management may have to make some tough decisions at the end of the 15 days.

Now, if we could just solve that little problem of production at 1st base… I say “Free Youkilis and Petagine!”. But more on that later.

Sox vs. Yankees - July 14th

Brief thoughts on tonight’s game:

It was unexpected to see the Sox take such an early lead over Mussina, who usually pitches against the Red Sox like he did in innings 2 through 6 tonight. Arroyo was lucky not to take the loss. His breaking pitches were not crisp and, as usual, ineffective against left=handed hitters.

In his first outing in a Red Sox uniform, Chad Bradford gave up a ground ball out that rolled 10 feet from the plate and walked A-Rod on 4 pitches. Having not pitched in the big leagues this year after major surgery, the control problems are to be expected. At least we saw some of the upside that Bradford can present against right-handed batters.

Getting to see Schilling walk in from the bullpen was a real treat, but the fun ended there. Schilling looked terrible on the mound, throwing mostly split fingered fastballs that didn’t break and the occasional 89-mph fastball. I’m beginning to wonder if he will ever be the dominating pitcher he once was. I still think he’ll be somewhat successful in the bullpen role, but an implosion like this couldn’t have happened at a worse time.

Hopefully the team will have more success against spot starter Tim Redding (0-5, 9.10) tomorrow.

Introducing…your new look Boston Red Sox

It was a busy day yesterday for the Olde Town Team. Ramon Vazquez was traded to the Indians for Alex Cora, a .650 OPS slick-fielding middle infielder. Cora figures to fill the same utility roll as the departed Ramon, and by most accounts is a defensive upgrade and an offensive wash with Vazquez.

The team also activated Adam Stern from the 60 day DL and called him up to their 25-man roster. Stern, who came from the Braves organization in the 2004 Rule 5 draft, figures to be our 4th outfielder and pinch runner, at least until Gabe Kapler clears waivers and unpacks his bags. Stern brings contact hitting, great speed, and outfield defense to the Red Sox bench. If he is taken off of the 40-man roster later in the season he will have to be released back to the Braves, so look for him to stick around at least until the bench player situation is completely cleared up.

Finally, winning the Keith Foulke award for “most obviously necessary personnel move,” Jay Payton was designated for assignment after a shouting match with Francona and other Sox staffmembers in Texas. Supposedly, a trade is already in place with the Oakland A’s for RHP Chad Bradford, but can’t be officially announced until Bradford is off the DL and the All Star break is over.

You may remember Bradford’s name from “Moneyball,” in which he is profiled as one of Billy Beane’s obscure scrapheap acquisitions that turned into gold in the big leagues. If memory serves, Beane was intrigued by the unknown Bradford’s statistics, especially his exceedingly low homerun allowed totals. Bradford is a submarine style pitcher that relies on his sinker and strange motion to throw off hitters. Unfortunately, his unorthodox and jarring delivery has led him to develop chronic back problems. He has missed all of this season with major back surgery but will return to the majors soon.

I like this deal. Bradford has shown great success in the past, though the progressive back problems have soured his numbers in recent years. Bradford is a sinkerball pitcher without a fastball that lights up the radar gun, but has the appearance of being much faster because of the angle of its delivery. He can go more than one inning, and can be trusted to face the occasional lefthanded batter. Jay Payton’s trade value was most likely at an all-time low because he clearly could not stay on this team, so it’s surprising that we could get a pitcher with as much upside as Bradford. If he can be more effective than our average bullpen performance (not a stretch by any means) this will have been a great trade. If not, we didn’t risk anything in the process.

The one thing that worries me besides the injury risk, however, is how he will adjust to the large media market. Bradford is a modest, quiet southern man. He has said in the past that he wishes to make himself “invisible,” a virtual impossibility in Boston. We’ll see how this situation pans out.

As for last night’s rain-shortened game, chalk it up to player fatigue. Nixon’s baserunning blunder was embarrassing, but I would like to have seen the lineup take more advantage of Cabrera’s wildness (5 BB, 2WP in 5 IP) and inexperience. Let’s get the regulars rested and ready to battle in the next 3 games.

Bullpen Rescue - What to do?

What a difference a week can make for the World Champions. Foulke is going under the knife for arthroscopic surgery on his knee, Matt Mantei is reportedly leaning toward season-ending ankle surgery, and injured ace Curt Schilling will supposedly begin closing out games for the Red Sox after the all star break.

I’m skeptical about Schilling in the closer role, though he was heavily in favor of the move. It has been written that Schilling takes upwards of 60 pitches to warm up, perfectly acceptable for a starter but far too lengthy to come out of the bullpen. One has to wonder how frequent appearances, complete with these lengthy warm-ups and possible multiple-inning outings, will enable his ankle to heal any more than it has already? With an eye to the longer-term, one must also ask if the different warm-up routines will decrease his effectiveness when he is finally ready to rejoin the rotation? Schilling would help the team most by pitching 6 or 7 quality innings, rather than 1 or 2-inning relief appearances. Bullpen arms, though in high demand this deadline, are still more easily acquired than ace starting pitchers.

In any case, we have lost 2 bullpen arms for the possible long-term. Rather than simply filling these spots with warm bodies from Pawtucket, you can bet that Theo is on the phone in attempt to bring in outside help. If I am Theo, I’m on the phone with other GMs about the following players:

Guillermo Mota, RHP, Fla: 31-year old righty flamethrower, used to be Gagne’s setup man before being traded to the Marlins. Has been shaky in closer roll and was injured for part of this year, but has since put together 11 straight appearances without giving up an earned run. Fish might be willing to deal because veteran Todd Jones has served them well in the stopper roll. Owns solid peripherals: career .229 BAA, 7.1 K/9. Major achilles heel: control (2.69 BB/9 since 2003)

Jeremy Affeldt, LHP, KC: 26 year old hard-throwing left hander, scheduled to come off of the DL any day. Has been plagued injuries this year and in the past. KC might deal him because they are nearly always looking to deal their larger contracts for prospects. Has started in the past, but DIPS statistics are significantly better in relief.

Bob Howry, RHP, Cle: Bring him back to Boston! Howry is healthy and throwing heat. He’s cut down on his walk rate, and has struck out 63 batters in 77 innings since joining the Tribe in ’04, while walking only 21. Howry has helped the Indians become one of the best bullpens in baseball, but with the presence of Rhodes/Riske and Rafael Betancourt’s upcoming return they might be willing to deal him for help in other areas. Having a 7th/8th inning RHP like Howry to share Timlin’s workload would be ideal.

David Riske, RHP, Cle: An even better option than Howry. Though he’d certainly come at a higher price than Riske, he would merit giving up a B-level prospect if we could keep him for more than the rest of the year. Riske, a hard-throwing 28 year old, owns sterling career peripherals (.224 BAA, 2.38 K/BB, 9.47 K/9) other than his shaky walk rate. The high number of free passes (3.97 bb/9 career) probably does not represent his true skill set, as he has pitched in the majors since age 23 and is now entering his prime. His control has been much better this year. (only 7 walks in 43 IP), and he could certainly benefit from Varitek and Wallace’s tutelage.

Foulke placed on DL; Questions remain about the bullpen

The Red Sox announced today that they will be placing Keith Foulke on the disabled list. After an ending to last night’s game in Texas that Forrest Gump could have predicted, Foulke was flown back to Boston to have his knee examined. There are rumblings that surgery may be necessary, though its type and complexity are unknown. It’s unfortunate that management allowed Foulke to pitch while injured and obviously ineffective, but at least they have finally acknowledged that there is a problem. Let’s get him healthy and ready for the stretch run/postseason. If this is not feasible we must trade for an effective bullpen arm, but not mortgage the farm system in the process.

Until Foulke can right the ship, the Sox bullpen will have to make do with the dreaded “Closer By Committee.” Though Embree could probably benefit from a vacation similar to Foulke’s, he and Timlin will likely share the 8th and 9th inning duties. The Red Sox have a host of options in the minor leagues that could be auditioned, including Papelbon, Alvarez, Lester, Delcarmen, and possibly even 1st round closer phenom Hansen.

Blown out in Boston

Ugly loss last night. Some quick opinions: Mantei needs to go on the DL until he figures out his mechanical issues, or be released outright if he can't correct his problems. If he could cut his walks down by 2 bb/9 he could be one of the most dominant relievers in the AL, but as it is he is not helping the team at all. News of Wells's plantar fasciitis is disturbing, and I think I'll be physically ill if he makes ineffective starts while injured just to meet his contract incentives (see: 18 May, 2005). At least we'll be able to see if some minor leaguers can compete at the major league level. Hopefully this will help showcase talent for upcoming trade negotiations. Looks like Arroyo won't be headed to the pen after all.

Later I'll post the first installment of some trade deadline possibilities.