Week in Review: The good, the bad & the ugly
The Guru
Contributing Writer
It was a tough week in Red Sox Nation and baseball in general. MLB dropped the hammer on the cheaters, the Sox had a royal meltdown in KC, Stephen Drew went to walk-off city, Mike Napoli went missing, Will Middlebrooks got the call, and Big Papi kept bashing and did some babysitting.
For the week the Red Sox went 3-4. The Sox dropped Monday’s game to the last place Astros, but were able to escape Houston with wins the next two nights. The Red Sox then got steamrolled by a red hot Royals team, losing 3-of-4 in Kansas City. Boston still leads the American League in wins at 71-49 and, despite the tough week, actually picked up 1.5 games on the second place Rays. The Red Sox now lead the AL East by 2.5 games.
There’s never a shortage of drama when it comes to the Olde Towne Team. Let’s take a look at the good, the bad and the ugly for the week.
The Good: Jacoby Ellsbury is red hot at the right time. Not only are the Sox in a pennant race, Ellsbury is in a contract chase. For the week Ells hit .345 with two homers, seven RBI, four runs scored and two stolen bases. Somewhere in Castle Greyskull, Scott Boras is putting together his Jacoby scrapbook and pricing Gulfstreams.
David Ortiz is simply having a great season. He's hitting, he's entertaining, he's available to watch your kids if needed. For the week, Big Papi hit .440 with a home run and three RBI.
Stephen Drew is in the midst of a 12-game hitting streak, had five RBI on the week and hit a walk-off winner in Houston. For those of you that follow me on Twitter you know I have been rough on the Drew. I would like to formally apologize for saying Stephen has bones made of Kit-kats, has the emotional range of a coconut and any other disparaging remark that involved Stephen Drew and falling tree fruits. Say hello to your brother for me.
The Bad: Mike Napoli struck out another 11 times this week raising his league leading total to 152 on the year. The back of his uniform now reads "Knapoli".
The Brock Holt/Brandon Snyder third base combo did not work. The undynamic duo went 4-40 before Snyder was placed on the DL with an "injury" and Will Middlebrooks made his return to the Sox lineup. The "we want Xander" fans will have to wait a few weeks longer.
Jake Peavey had a rough second start. Peavey went just five innings, giving up 10 hits, six runs, two homers and recorded zero strikeouts. Maybe we should have thrown Peavey into the ugly pile.
The Ugly: Red Sox pitching was the problem this week and it's been the problem this month. The Sox are in the bottom five in pitching for August with a 5.38 ERA. If this team is going to make any noise in October the pitching will be the key. What this team needs is a topnotch arm that went 9-0 with a 1.71 ERA the first two months of the season. Not sure where the Sox can find him. Clay who?
The Biogenesis mess seems over. Sort of. It was an ugly week for MLB in the sense that most of the attention wasn't so much paid to what was happening on the field, but off it. Selig's minions suspended 12 players for 50 games. The worst of it all was Alex Rodriguez. A-Roid was suspended 211 games, but immediately appealed. This mess will drag on until probably December. Meanwhile, A-Fraud gets to play in games and possibly affect outcomes of pennant races.
Steven Wright and Ryan Lavarnway had a disastrous inning in Houston as they tied the major league record for most passed balls in a game with 3. Lavarnways's glove will not be on display in Cooperstown, but it can found here.
Follow The Guru on Twitter @TheGuruGS
More musings from The Guru.
Contributing Writer
For the week the Red Sox went 3-4. The Sox dropped Monday’s game to the last place Astros, but were able to escape Houston with wins the next two nights. The Red Sox then got steamrolled by a red hot Royals team, losing 3-of-4 in Kansas City. Boston still leads the American League in wins at 71-49 and, despite the tough week, actually picked up 1.5 games on the second place Rays. The Red Sox now lead the AL East by 2.5 games.
There’s never a shortage of drama when it comes to the Olde Towne Team. Let’s take a look at the good, the bad and the ugly for the week.
The Good: Jacoby Ellsbury is red hot at the right time. Not only are the Sox in a pennant race, Ellsbury is in a contract chase. For the week Ells hit .345 with two homers, seven RBI, four runs scored and two stolen bases. Somewhere in Castle Greyskull, Scott Boras is putting together his Jacoby scrapbook and pricing Gulfstreams.
David Ortiz is simply having a great season. He's hitting, he's entertaining, he's available to watch your kids if needed. For the week, Big Papi hit .440 with a home run and three RBI.
Stephen Drew is in the midst of a 12-game hitting streak, had five RBI on the week and hit a walk-off winner in Houston. For those of you that follow me on Twitter you know I have been rough on the Drew. I would like to formally apologize for saying Stephen has bones made of Kit-kats, has the emotional range of a coconut and any other disparaging remark that involved Stephen Drew and falling tree fruits. Say hello to your brother for me.
The Bad: Mike Napoli struck out another 11 times this week raising his league leading total to 152 on the year. The back of his uniform now reads "Knapoli".
The Brock Holt/Brandon Snyder third base combo did not work. The undynamic duo went 4-40 before Snyder was placed on the DL with an "injury" and Will Middlebrooks made his return to the Sox lineup. The "we want Xander" fans will have to wait a few weeks longer.
Jake Peavey had a rough second start. Peavey went just five innings, giving up 10 hits, six runs, two homers and recorded zero strikeouts. Maybe we should have thrown Peavey into the ugly pile.
The Ugly: Red Sox pitching was the problem this week and it's been the problem this month. The Sox are in the bottom five in pitching for August with a 5.38 ERA. If this team is going to make any noise in October the pitching will be the key. What this team needs is a topnotch arm that went 9-0 with a 1.71 ERA the first two months of the season. Not sure where the Sox can find him. Clay who?
The Biogenesis mess seems over. Sort of. It was an ugly week for MLB in the sense that most of the attention wasn't so much paid to what was happening on the field, but off it. Selig's minions suspended 12 players for 50 games. The worst of it all was Alex Rodriguez. A-Roid was suspended 211 games, but immediately appealed. This mess will drag on until probably December. Meanwhile, A-Fraud gets to play in games and possibly affect outcomes of pennant races.
Steven Wright and Ryan Lavarnway had a disastrous inning in Houston as they tied the major league record for most passed balls in a game with 3. Lavarnways's glove will not be on display in Cooperstown, but it can found here.
Follow The Guru on Twitter @TheGuruGS
More musings from The Guru.
