Humiliation

I hate to be a pessimist, but what in the world has happened. I was willing to be optimistic and say that it was a momentary slump, but after a break for the Al stars I expected significantly better and that has not been the case. Friday night's game was incredibly embarrassing. Durran losing a ball in the sun when there is no sun is absolutely mortifying, made worse by the fact that he made no attempt to find the ball, leading to an in-the-park grand slam. They get paid to catch a ball and to hit and their lack of capability to do either at present is unbelievable. We were sitting in 2nd place just a few weeks ago and now we are in dead last. There wasn’t room for any error and yet here we are in the second half of the season, making error after error. Having gotten two starters back there was a glimmer of hope for a second, but with Sale on the IL again and Eovaldi barely making it 3 innings in Friday's game it is not looking good.

The pitching is bad, but at this point so is everything else. The hitting is inconsistent and the fielding is an absolute train wreck. We can compensate when we are struggling in one area, but to be struggling across the board is unacceptable.

Let’s talk about first base. That has got to be one of the easiest positions to play. No one really notices if you are a great first baseman, but they sure do notice if you are terrible. If you are costing us the game, then it’s time to start asking questions. Don’t get me wrong, I like Bobby. H has had a few key hits, but is it worth keeping him? I don’t like changing it up in the middle of the season, but something has to be done. Do we let Bobby or Franchy stay at first or do we make some deals? You decided, are they worth it? The fact that on Friday we had Vazquez at first makes me believe I’m not the only one reconsidering our lineup and positions. Although I definitely don’t think that Vazquez is the answer because we need him as a catcher, the first base issue has to be solved now. For the Red Sox to have a shot at the playoffs there needs to be a legitimate first baseman. It is time to turn the page. We don’t need luck. We have the depth to make it a fun second half. We need to put in the work and make the plays.

The Sox are starting to set records and not the kind that anyone wants them to be setting. To lose a game 28-5 was unthinkable before it happened on Friday night. The pitching was horrific to be sure, but the fielding and errors added an additional level of pain to Friday's game. The lack of effort, talent, and capability was hard to watch.

It is time to get back to the basics. Make simple and easy plays. It is not helpful or worthwhile to make fancy plays if you can't make a simple double play or throw someone out at first. Perhaps the players should pay a fine for each error that they make. Maybe that will motivate them to play better and be an enjoyable team to watch.

Another Rough Night for the Bullpen - Google Images