Results tagged ‘ Injuries ’
Hitting for the Cycle…
I have a lot on my mind. Which is why I’m going to put
all those random things about baseball here, in short little bursts of anger,
disbelief, and happiness. Or some other emotion I’m failing to mention. At the
very least, I hope to bring up some things to think about.
Leading
off, I want to mention how relieved I am after today’s performance by Jon
Lester. He threw seven innings, no runs on four hits, and nine strikeouts. He
said there was nothing wrong with him after his first two outings, and today proved
that he wasn’t lying. We just need to see this continue.
The Red Sox
released yesterday that Jed Lowrie might need season ending surgery. Surgery is
never something to wish for, so I will simply hope that Jed doesn’t play
another game for the Sox this year. Don’t get me wrong, I really pulled for him
last season, and I thought he would be a promising player in the very near
future. But in the past three months of playing time for Jed, he’s batted .189,
with 45 strikeouts in 127 at bats. That’s one strikeout for every 2.8 at bats.
He was 1 for 18 this year before getting injured. His range is below average,
and his fielding is not nearly good enough to make up for his poor hitting. He
either needs to start coming through with the bat the way he did when he first
broke into the league, or the Sox need to realize that shortstop is a major
problem for them.
With Lowrie
being out and Julio Lugo being an $18 million trainwreck still on the DL, the
Sox turned to Nick Green to fill in. People noticed because all of a sudden,
the Red Sox shortstop was fielding well and hitting the ball, something unheard
of in Boston since Orlando Cabrera. Nick Green has played very well since
filling in, coming through with some clutch hits and a sure glove. If it was up
to me, I would keep him in, even if Lowrie was healthy. The thing that worries
me is the fact that he has never been an everyday player, and his career
average is .241. But he wants to prove that he can play, and he’s worked hard
to make it to the Red Sox roster this year. And so far, he’s done better than
anyone’s expected.
Keeping
along the shortstop thread, one of the biggest mistakes the Sox have made in
terms of players is letting Orlando Cabrera slip away after 2004. Since then,
he’s batted .257, .282, .301, and .281, while hitting either 8 or 9 home runs
each season. Not only that, but he’s been healthy. Further, he’s made 50 errors
in the past four years, compared to 87 errors made by Red Sox shortstops in the
past four years. Keep in mind, that one of those years, 2006, Alex Gonzalez
played short, and he is one of the best defensive players in the game. He made
only 7 errors in 110 games that season. My point is that the Red Sox have had a
void at the position since 2004, and it’s a bigger problem than people realize.
Why did the
Angels change their location? The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim is just
ridiculous. Why not keep them simply in Anaheim? Nobody has been able to
explain this to me. And I refuse to call them the aforementioned name. They are
located in Anaheim, they are the Angels from Anaheim.
Speaking of
changing names, I didn’t notice that the Rays had dropped the Devil in their
name last year until halfway through the season. I had noticed that they had
changed their uniform to simply say “Rays,” but I just figured the
team was just changing their uniform. I’m still getting used to it. I do like
how they simply dropped one word, and came out with a completely different
mascot. I’ve been thinking about it, and I can’t figure out another team that has
done that. It’s an interesting concept.
Many people
said that the Rays played well last year because they dropped the
“Devil” from their name. While I’m still not sold on curses in
sports, I love that fact that someone thought of this. And I love when people
attribute supernatural causes to performance. Being a Red Sox fan, I’m very
familiar with the Curse of the Bambino. Cubs fans are no doubt privy to the
Curse of the Billy Goat. I’ve noticed that whether a team plays well or a team
plays poorly, there’s always a supernatural reason for it. And it makes sense.
Fans need something to blame when things don’t go their team’s way. It’s just
one more way baseball fans are the most superstitious beings in the world. I
wanted to kick the crap out of a friend of mine the other day during
Wakefield’s no hit bid. Of course, he had to mention that fact that Wake was in
the middle of a no-hitter. And right on cue, the next batter ripped a line
drive to left, breaking it up. I still blame him. What else can you do?
I will end
with Beckett’s suspension. It’s crap. And ESPN agrees, joking about it when
there was similar play in another game. Time was called very late in Beckett’s
windup, and he had been keeping a close eye at Chone Figgins at second. He was
going through his windup, which was thrown off when he realized time was
called. There is no way that Major League Baseball can ascertain beyond a
shadow of a doubt that there was an intent to throw at Abreu’s head. The umpire
crew saw the play as non-intentional, and it’s strange to see the League simply
overrule them in this type of situation. After the threat of appealing, the
sentence was reduced to 5 games, which is confusing, as it has minimal effect
on the Red Sox rotation. Which makes me wonder why suspend Beckett at all? The
whole thing seems to have blown out of proportion, and I think the League has
realized that. Beckett had this to say in response to the altercation:
“I don’t really feel
like I’ve done anything…I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do. Am I supposed
to give him a hug? I wasn’t really in a hugging mood right then. I really don’t
know what he wanted me to do.”
Abreu probably didn’t want a hug either
Did Someone Really Say That?
For Red Sox
fans, the first week of the season has not gone as planned. They’ve started
2-6, and haven’t looked great. The offense has been flat, and four of their
starters have an ERA over 4.50. Is there reason to worry? Maybe. But still, the
disdain rippling through Red Sox nation shouldn’t be happening
I was reading
the write-up
on Monday (April 13th)
night’s game: Lester got shelled for the second time in as many outings,
and the Sox lost 8-2. I proceeded to look at the comments for this article, as
its interesting to read the opinions flying around, especially after the way
the Sox have started the season.
I was
appalled to read one comment. It was this:
“WAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!
The Yankees are #1 in the AL East and the Red Sox are last. Guess you all need
to go home and cry to your mommy’s. YANKS, YANKS, YANKS. Why are the Yankees
sitting on the best record in the MLB – BECAUSE THEY ARE THE YANKEES!!!!”
Hmmmm. These
kind of posts are annoying in themselves, and people responded appropriately,
calling the poster a moron and an idiot. I will say that I laughed a little bit
at the stupidity. But then, the same guy posted again:
“Okay, I
am responding to you guys trying to put me down. Yes, the standings do not say
the Yankees are #1, but we are not going by this, because it does not reflect
the greatness inherant in the organization. There is only one thing anyone has
to remember – BECAUSE THEY ARE THE YANKEES. Now, it is generally agreed across
all of baseball that the 2004 and 2007 rings should be on the fingers of Yankee
players, since they were willing to let Boston win, in order to make it look
more competitive in the AL East. Why do you think the Phillies won last year?
If you look long and hard, it will be obvious – the Yankees were allowing other
teams to boost their records so that MLB would benefit from having a more
competitive overall feel. The Yankees are laying low on purpose, to fool all
the other teams into a false sense of security. you know what I am saying makes
total sense.”
Now. I don’t
know whether or not this guy was being serious, or whether or not he’s just
trying to piss people off, or whether or not he’s truly the dumbest thing on
the face of this earth. But the next guy who posted sums it up well:
“[that comment] is one of the dumbest posts I have ever read on any
baseball message board.”
I would go
further. There are no words for that kind of stupidity. It’s probably the most
ridiculously idiotic collection of words ever to have formed sentences. Ever.
To people
like this asinine moron: Stop posting on discussion boards. You ruin the point
of these forums. Sports are so great because people aren’t expected to agree;
they’re supposed to argue and bicker and share their various opinions.
Intelligently. Yes, what is said can get heated, but that’s a byproduct of the
passion each person shares for their respective teams. By coming on and writing
something profoundly inane, you’re not adding to this sense of opinionated
editorial. Instead, you’re coming out and telling the world that you’re among
the stupidest of our race, and there’s probably a spot for you somewhere in the
Darwin awards. You are not fans of the game. You are ignorant children. Next
time you feel the need to express your absurdly imbecilic thoughts, do everyone
a favor and put your head through your computer screen. If you can find it.
That being said, I’ll turn my attention to
the struggling Red Sox
Having
started their season at 2-6, their worst since 1996, there are people
everywhere who are crying out in anguish and worry. Admittedly, I too am
wondering where the Sox are going to be in a couple weeks. Other than Kevin
Youkilis, who is batting .500 in 32 at bats, only Jason Bay is batting over
.300. And Jacoby Ellsbury, Mike Lowell, and David Ortiz are all batting under
.200, and Jed Lowrie has one hit in eighteen at bats. However, it is hard to
believe that this will continue. There are 154 games left in this season, and
they are just too talented to continue this poorly.
There’s not
much to say at the beginning of a season. You can throw blame around, to the
players for not coming to camp in shape or prepared, or to the management for
not doing enough during the offseason. But in either case, there is no reason
to seriously believe that a team will finish poorly until they are still
playing poorly by the end of May.
However, there
are some things that are bothering me. Shortstop is a weak position for the
Sox. Jed Lowrie, while showing promise last year, has not been impressive in
the last three months that he’s played. The position is a weak spot, and its
one more in a lineup that has too many question marks. Jacoby Ellsbury, while
also an extremely promising young player, has not yet proven himself as a
premiere leadoff man. Jason Varitek, although hitting the ball hard so far this
year, batted .220 last year. And it’s hard to forget that. David Ortiz is
coming off an injury, and Mike Lowell and JD Drew have perpetual health issues.
Some of these question marks are going to have to become exclamation points if
the Sox are to compete this year.
Speaking of
health issues, Daisuke Matsuzaka
was placed on the 15-day DL today with arm fatigue. And Josh Beckett’s 6 day
suspension means that the Red Sox depth is about to be tested. Hopefully, Clay
Buchholz can hold himself together and make some quality starts. He has better
stuff than Beckett, but needs to learn to keep his composure during games. If
he can do that, he’s going to be one of the best pitchers in the game.
Overall, the
Sox, while there are questions, will be fine. There’s too much depth and talent
for the team to simply fall off the face of the earth after the past few
seasons. Just wait. And have faith in the team that we love so much.
braican
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