The three stooges: Who's hurting the Sox
Sam Galanis
Contributing Writer
The Red Sox may be in first place in the AL East, but the team obviously still has its problems. Pitching is spotty, hitting is spotty, and there are definitely some players who aren’t playing like they’re on the best team in the division. Here are three Sox who really need to clean up their act:
Will Middlebrooks
Middlebrooks started out hot but fizzled out after about two weeks. For someone who was supposed to be a power hitter, the young stud to replace Kevin Youkilis, he’s bringing the team down right now. He has only 38 hits in 192 at-bats, which leaves him with a miserable .198 average. Middlebrooks has been slacking in the field lately as well. He has already has eight errors, just one less than his entire season total last year. It seemed as though Jose Iglesias was gunning for Stephen Drew’s starting spot for a while, but Middlebrooks better watch out if he doesn’t step up his game soon.
David Ross
Ross is another guy who hasn’t been performing at the plate. Not only is he carrying a .185 average, but he has 28 strikeouts in 65 at-bats, meaning he strikes out almost half of the time that he steps up to the plate. Ross’s performance is particularly unsettling for the Sox because Jarrod Saltalamacchia has a fair share of slip-ups behind the plate. With David Ross being arguably the better defensive player but unable to provide any offensive assistance, he adds a lot of insecurity to the Red Sox catching position.
Felix Doubront
Doubront may not be the only Red Sox pitcher who’s hurting the team right now, but he’s the one with the most potential that he has yet to live up to. He’s 4-3 in 11 starts with a 4.91 ERA, the worst ERA of all the regular starters. He throws a lot of strikes, and usually posts a decent amount of strikeouts, but he throws a ridiculous number of pitches. If he can get his pitch count down, he has the potential to be great. But everyone said the same thing last season, and it still hasn’t happened. With Buchholz possibly headed to the DL and Lester in a bit of a funk, Doubront could seriously help the Sox if he can sharpen his skills. If he doesn’t the Sox are only going to hurt more.
Comment or follow me @_SamMG
Contributing Writer
The Red Sox may be in first place in the AL East, but the team obviously still has its problems. Pitching is spotty, hitting is spotty, and there are definitely some players who aren’t playing like they’re on the best team in the division. Here are three Sox who really need to clean up their act:
Will Middlebrooks
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AP Photo/David Banks |
David Ross
Ross is another guy who hasn’t been performing at the plate. Not only is he carrying a .185 average, but he has 28 strikeouts in 65 at-bats, meaning he strikes out almost half of the time that he steps up to the plate. Ross’s performance is particularly unsettling for the Sox because Jarrod Saltalamacchia has a fair share of slip-ups behind the plate. With David Ross being arguably the better defensive player but unable to provide any offensive assistance, he adds a lot of insecurity to the Red Sox catching position.
Felix Doubront
Doubront may not be the only Red Sox pitcher who’s hurting the team right now, but he’s the one with the most potential that he has yet to live up to. He’s 4-3 in 11 starts with a 4.91 ERA, the worst ERA of all the regular starters. He throws a lot of strikes, and usually posts a decent amount of strikeouts, but he throws a ridiculous number of pitches. If he can get his pitch count down, he has the potential to be great. But everyone said the same thing last season, and it still hasn’t happened. With Buchholz possibly headed to the DL and Lester in a bit of a funk, Doubront could seriously help the Sox if he can sharpen his skills. If he doesn’t the Sox are only going to hurt more.
Comment or follow me @_SamMG
