Reason why the Red Sox are not as good as last year

[Triboy16]

Its not like we are doing bad lately and the dumb loos like yesterday to the yanks can happen to any team but compared to last year we seem like a weaker team.

Tek and Ortiz are having horrible years.(Ortiz has gone from mr clutch to mr twins ortiz)

Pitching also has struggled , especially the bullpen. Declaremen is very inconsistant and seems to be only good when there is no one on base and same goes for okajima.(who is pulling off a rich garces impersonation(one year amazing next year not)).

Injuries have also killed us and i feel becketts injury has affected us immensely

With beckett , lowell and drew back for the playoffs we have a great chance to repeat. However with all three of them uncertain when they will be back from now till the playoffs not sure if we will even make wildcard.

very stressfull year

[Redz]

I'm actually getting a little excited about the Sox.  I think they've battled nicely through some tough spots and they're going to be playing their best ball at the right time.  Francona and company have developed a great knack for "figuring it out" on the fly.  Come playoff time they'll have the best team they've had all season ready to go.  Last year that meant resting some guys down the stretch, this year it means getting guys healthy and having players earn their keep in a variety of roles.  When all the pieces are back they'll have a deep, deep team.

[nickagneta]

Its not like we are doing bad lately and the dumb loos like yesterday to the yanks can happen to any team but compared to last year we seem like a weaker team.

Tek and Ortiz are having horrible years.(Ortiz has gone from mr clutch to mr twins ortiz)

Pitching also has struggled , especially the bullpen. Declaremen is very inconsistant and seems to be only good when there is no one on base and same goes for okajima.(who is pulling off a rich garces impersonation(one year amazing next year not)).

Injuries have also killed us and i feel becketts injury has affected us immensely

With beckett , lowell and drew back for the playoffs we have a great chance to repeat. However with all three of them uncertain when they will be back from now till the playoffs not sure if we will even make wildcard.

very stressfull year

I think you aren't giving this team the credit they deserve, actually.

First, if they go 18-10 the rest of the year, which given their schedule and the way they are playing is beyond the realm of probability, they will finish just 1 game off last years record. One game. Also, that they are where they are is a testament to just how good a manager and just how good a GM Tito and Theo are. This team has overcome the drama that was Manny and injuries to Lowell(twice), Ortiz(2 months), Beckett, Wakefield, Lugo(probably a good thing), Drew, and Schilling. Also, Theo being able to get rid of Manny and add the invaluable Jason Bay and also pick up Paul Byrd and Mark Kotsay was brilliant.

Second I don't think you are doing the players you mentioned justice. Papi is trying to come back from an injury that usually takes 6-8 months to fully heal from in only 2 months. He also has been pitched around in just about every clutch opportunity he has been in.

And as for the bullpen, they may not be the best but they are among the best in the league. While you call Delcarmen and Okajima inconsistent the percentage of games in which they have let up runs is comparable or better than such save leaders as George Sherrill, Trevor Hoffman, Brian Wilson, Jose Velarde, and Kevin Gregg. Those six pitcher are all ranked in the top 14 saves leaders in MLB.

Okajima had an unreal year last year, but if you take a look at his Japanese career he is still pitching better than he has averaged over his total career. And as much as Delcarmen hasn't been as good as last year, if you remove just 4 of his worst games from the 60 games he has pitched in his numbers are almost identical to last year. Either one would be a top flight closer in 70% of the teams in MLB.

The Sox are starting to play some of their best ball and seemingly have a new hero every night. I think their chances of repeating are only slightly less this year because the good teams in the league are that much better.

[MattG12]

I'm actually getting a little excited about the Sox.  I think they've battled nicely through some tough spots and they're going to be playing their best ball at the right time.  Francona and company have developed a great knack for "figuring it out" on the fly.  Come playoff time they'll have the best team they've had all season ready to go.  Last year that meant resting some guys down the stretch, this year it means getting guys healthy and having players earn their keep in a variety of roles.  When all the pieces are back they'll have a deep, deep team.

I'm with you, they're only gonna get better when they get back Lowell, Beckett, Drew, who knows maybe even Colon... They should get into the playoffs by way of wildcard and when they get some people back anything can happen. I really like the Rays to go deep into the playoffs this year though, I'm scared of them and the Angels, other than those two teams I don't think any other teams have what it takes to beat the sox in a playoff series.