Middlebrooks destroys Colorado

Photo courtesy of the Globe
Conor Frederick
Contributing Writer

Will Middlebrooks drove in almost half of the Red Sox runs last night with 2 swings of his bat. A 3-run shot to the opposite field and grand slam just inside the left field foul pole. It may have been Todd Helton's farewell in the Mile High City, but Middlebrooks ruined it by turning last night's game by turning it into the "Will Middlebrooks Show."

Will Middlebrooks showed that he may have a role to play in the Red Sox playoff run. He certainly has been hitting at a much better clip than he was at the beginning of the season. Since being recalled on August 10th, he's been hitting .298 (39 - 131) with 8 home runs and 24 RBI's in 38 games, according to NESN. He needs to prove that he can do this on a consistent basis before he wins me over completely, but he's only got one more series to do that. He's been relatively consistent at the plate since being recalled from Pawtucket, but what concerns me is that he followed up a big game in the beginning of the season with a long slump and I'm a little worried about a repeat of that happening. A lot more is at stake now if he starts slumping now, and no one can take their foot of the gas.

The other side of this is that the sophomore slump is over and behind him. The Boston Globe fingers his injury last season as the reason for his bad start this year. According to the Globe, Middlebrooks said that the stint in the minor leagues actually helped him and it looks like he's right. Will Middlebrooks admitted he may have come back to soon from the injury and that was about him being competitive more than anything. This might be no more than a blip on a great career, according to the Globe, but who can really say right now?

What do you guys think? Tweet me (@ConorJF1016) or leave a comment.