It's Time to Jump Back on the Bandwagon

Last September was one of the toughest months to watch for a Red Sox fan, and the beginning of this season was not much easier. Many fans jumped ship early in 2012 after getting quickly fed up with Bobby Valentine, Josh Beckett, the bullpen, Kevin Youkilis, injuries, etc. It is hard to blame those who have emigrated from Red Sox Nation when the production on the field has been underachieving and frustratingly inconsistent.

If you have not been following this Red Sox team, you have missed some bright spots; Ortiz playing like it’s 2004, the bullpen completing a 180 from the beginning of the year, Daniel Nava’s pretty swing and prettier smile, and the arrival of the 3^rd baseman of the future. Of course, these bright spots have been largely overshadowed by a host of problems, enough so that the season could be written off as a lost cause. For every fringe player that has played above his head, there seems to be two stars that have been a profound disappointment. The lack of results – and on occasion seemingly a lack of effort – from Beckett, Lester, and Buchholz have been difficult to explain. Injuries have also plagued the team, as Boston has sent more players to the disabled list than any other team in baseball.

The American League has as much parity as ever before, as yesterday marked the first time in the league’s history that 11 teams had a winning record. The Red Sox are two games over .500, and there are four teams that they need to surpass in order to earn a one game playoff bid. However, I’m here to tell you that everything is going to be alright.

Nava's smiling about the 2nd half, and so should you.

Yes, that’s right, I’m declaring that Red Sox Nation look past the bad April, May, June and even worse September and look forward to the second half of July, August, and September. It’s time to put away those long-expired chicken and beer jokes and stop complaining about Bobby’s apparent ineptitude. If you’ve jumped off the bandwagon, now is the time to get back on. The Boston Red Sox are an elite team that have been playing like an average team, but I believe that their true talent is about to shine.

After this current 7-game homestretch with the White Sox and Blue Jays, the Sox go on the road to face the two toughest teams in the American League in Texas and New York. Assuming that Ortiz only misses a handful of games with a hurting Achilles, the Sox could be rolling out the best lineup in baseball every night; they have gotten virtually zero production from Ellsbury and Crawford, yet no team has scored more runs than them in all of baseball.

Beckett, Lester, and Buchholz have a combined 4.79 ERA this season, but it is worth noting that they have faced some bad luck (high batting averages on balls in play, low left on base rate). Even if these three can pitch at a combined 4.00 ERA the rest of the way, the Red Sox should be able to make the playoffs with the offense that they have. And if they can’t do that, then they do not deserve to make the playoffs anyways.

The bullpen has been one of the best in the Majors despite getting no production from one of their best arms in Andrew Bailey, and negative production until late from Mark Melancon. Bard could also come back later in the season and solidify a truly dominant relief corps that is needed for all championship runs.

If you are still reading this, then you most likely have not given up on this team. However, on the off-chance that you lost interest long ago, I am warning you that the time to jump back on the bandwagon is now, because this team is about to leave its subpar performance in the past and will not look back. Jon Lester has a chance tonight to give the Sox their 3^rd straight victory, and show Red Sox Nation that this is a team to watch.