Everything the Red Sox do for the rest of this season should be about next season
COMMENTARY
Geez, and we thought the Red Sox were lousy in the first half.
Turns out that was just their warm-up act for some truly special feats of ineptitude. It took less than a week into the post-All-Star break segment of their schedule for the Red Sox to look as hapless as they have all season, a hell of an achievement considering they haven’t been above .500 since May 1.
In the first five games, all losses, following the four-day break, the Sox scored seven runs, or as many as Eduardo Rodriguez allowed in 1.2 innings Monday. They had a run-differential in those five defeats of minus-23. Mookie Betts and Dustin Pedroia, the top two hitters in their lineup on most days, have combined to go 1 for 38.
Can you believe it was less than two weeks ago that there was talk of sweeping the Yankees in a pre-break series and pulling to within 2.5 games in the division? We entered that three-game matchup with a glimmer of hope for 2015, envisioning a possible revitalization of the rivalry. Instead, the last visible light of the season faded away with losses in two of three games.
Before the first pitch in Houston on Wednesday night, the 2015 Red Sox had 68 games remaining. The calendar has not yet flipped from July to August, and yet we can say with certainty that they have played their last one that matters.
The only October baseball that will be played at Fenway this year is a three-game set with the Indians to wrap up the regular season. It will matter — to Terry Francona’s Indians.
It’s over. Oh, yes, it is over. I know I don’t have to tell you that – you probably recognized it before I did, given that my refusal to play phony contrarian leads to the perception that I’m the incurable optimist around here. But I do feel like the acknowledgment of the season’s obituary is necessary so we can pack up and move on.
I’m not sure there’s a precise moment when the last shred of hope was lost, but I suspect if there was an official death knell it occurred before Albert Pujols’s third home run during the Angels’ suffocating doubleheader sweep of the Red Sox Monday.
What they should do for the remainder of the season is obvious: Anything and everything necessary to get this roster in proper working order for next year. That begins with a purge. Mike Napoli, who has hit two home runs since May 25, and Justin Masterson, who had a 5.88 ERA last year and is at 5.98 this season, should not return with the rest of the team from this road trip. They should be designated for assignment if they cannot be dealt. They are of no use now. They have been of no use all season.
Shane Victorino and Craig Breslow also need to move on, if not now then certainly before the July 31 deadline. Alejandro De Aza, who has been one of the Red Sox’ better players after being DFA’d by the rival Orioles, also should be sent to a contender in search of a decent fourth outfielder. He’s been fine in the present, but the present is lost. And he is not part of the future. The same applies to catcher Ryan Hanigan, who could be a nice depth pickup for a contender.
Joe Kelly needs to take his Nuke LaLoosh act to the bullpen, where perhaps his good stuff can be harnessed. Brian Johnson (love that Bruce Hurstian curveball) needs to pitch without absurd 15-day breaks in between appearances. Rodriguez either needs to cure his recurring tic that leads to him tipping his pitches or remove all pretense and deception altogether and simply yell, “HEY YOU, NUMBER 22 ON THE YANKEES! I’M THROWING A FASTBALL THIS TIME. GOOD LUCK HITTING IT.’’ At least that might mess with a hitter’s head.
What else? Jackie Bradley Jr. needs to come up and play, now, whether it’s in center field or right. He’s one of the best fly-chasing outfielders I’ve ever seen, maybe the best, and he’s raking in Triple-A, which he did not do when he was sent down last year. He’s done everything necessary to earn a second chance. John Farrell needs to get past whatever happened last season and provide him with one, even if he feels it’s necessary to make clear that it’s his last one.
Plus, if Bradley is in center, he also has the range to cover for Hanley Ramirez in left field. That way, Hanley can just stand in the corner and practice his swing without having to chase the occasional ricocheting baseball. It’s pretty much what he does already, and it’s a better alternative than moving him to first base.
Blake Swihart, whose promise was apparent during his initial recall even as it was also clear his arrival was premature, needs to play virtually every day. This is the time to get him reps in the batter’s box, but more important, with the pitchers he’ll be working with in the seasons to come.
I wouldn’t mind seeing Travis Shaw get some run at first base, though he’s 25 and has a .681 OPS at Pawtucket. This is his only chance – and chances are he is the modern version of Pat Dodson. But we might as well find out for sure.
This season has been a chronic mess, save for those fleeting days of inspired play leading up to that Yankees series. But the future is not as grim as it seems from the current view. ESPN’s Keith Law rated the farm system the best in baseball just this week, writing: “The Red Sox have as much potential ceiling — in terms of players who have at least a fighting chance to become well-above-average regulars or more — as any organization in baseball, as well as tremendous depth in both position players and pitchers. This sets them up well to make a trade for some major league impact now or this winter.’’
The Red Sox’ two best players (arguably) are recent farm system graduates: Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts. Both turn 23 in September, and while they’re not the Jim Rice/Fred Lynn Gold Dust Twins redux, their collective progress has been the best and most important development this season. I’ll consider the remainder of the season satisfying if Bogaerts and Betts stay healthy and productive.
I suspect I remain in the minority on this, but I’m not ready to abandon the John Farrell/Ben Cherington management tandem, either. The possibility of three last-place finishes in four years is embarrassing for a franchise with the Red Sox’ resources. But World Series championships are not flukes – it’s too long of a season to classify such success as luck – and the 2013 title buys more than a season’s worth of the benefit of the doubt. A little more. But not much more. The tipping point is coming around soon.
Farrell is wearing the frustrations of the season on his face now. He’s had obvious strategic shortcoming in the best of times, but there was always the sense that he was respected and fully in charge. Now, with his team’s repeated mental and fundamental errors and Hanley’s special brand of defensive indifference, it’s fair to wonder whether his voice isn’t being heard by those who should be listening.
On the surface, Cherington is on a brutal run. I have no idea why the front office extended Rick Porcello before he threw a pitch for the Red Sox. Rusney Castillo plays with the carefree cluelessness of an NFL star in a Rock ‘N’ Jock softball game. The John Lackey trade hasn’t even helped the PawSox much, let alone the big club. And on and on.
But I’m reluctant to drop the entire weight of the blame on Cherington, because I’m not sure what percentage of this is his doing. The more we consider Pablo Sandoval, the more he looks like a Tom Werner-driven, NESN-needs-characters signing. And I have no issue with signing Hanley, a near-elite power hitter in a time when they are scarce.
The problem is that he’s a DH, and the Red Sox already have a rather accomplished DH, and dammit, do any of the pieces here fit?
In that sense, it’s a good thing there are so many games left. They probably need that many to reconstruct this ill-fitting roster and make sure everything is in working order for next year.
This season is over. Next year begins now.
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