Red Sox Starters Coming In Hot This April
Yes, it’s April. Yes, we’re only a few times through the rotation. But the glaring problem that won’t seem to go away is that the Red Sox rotation can’t be depended on.
After Rick Porcello got tagged for eight earned runs over five innings, Red Sox starting pitchers’ ERA ballooned to 6.24, which as you can probably guess, is the worst in all of baseball by almost a full run. Of the 12 hits that Porcello allowed on Sunday (tying a career high), two of them left the yard, making that five long balls that he’s allowed through his first three starts, which is tied for the most given up by any starter in baseball this year. This was only the first time that Porcello didn’t throw a quality start in 2015, but it certainly doesn’t feel like it with all the home runs he’s served up.
Even with how bad the starting pitching has been overall, this was only the first time that the Red Sox have lost back-to-back games this season. That seems miraculous, given how unreliable these starters have been, but that’s a direct result of this lineup being able to bail out poor pitching performances. And for as much criticism as the Red Sox bullpen has gotten before a game had even been played, they’ve been pretty good so far. The bullpen turned in four innings of shutout relief on Sunday, lowering their ERA to 2.74.
And the lineup that we’ve been bragging about so much really hasn’t even gotten going yet. You look down that lineup, and there are plenty of names that are either in danger of approaching or below the Mendoza Line. Mookie Betts (.191), David Ortiz (.231), Mike Napoli (.143), Ryan Hanigan (.125), and Shane Victorino (.148) are all everyday players who have greatly underachieved so far.
Speaking of Ortiz, he was ejected on Sunday after 3B umpire Jerry Meals said he went around, when he really didn’t. Meals actually did that twice, and the replay showed that Ortiz held up both times. After blowing up in the face of home plate umpire Paul Emmel, Ortiz was ejected from the game, and then proceeded to bump Emmel, so expect a suspension/fine announcement relatively soon (probably a game or two max). That was the eleventh time that Ortiz has been ejected in his career, and it’s worth noting that his last three ejections have all been in games against the Baltimore Orioles.
On the bright side, Hanley Ramirez went deep again on Sunday — his fifth — which is the fastest that he’s reached five homers in his entire career. Actually, the only Red Sox player to hit more than five bombs through the first 12 games was Fred Lynn, who hit seven through the first 12 games in 1979. To call Hanley’s defense “shaky at best” at this point would probably be a compliment, but if he keeps mashing baseballs then I guess it’s something we’ll have to live with.
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