The seven-game homestand for the Boston Red Sox got off to a great start but ended like that start to it had never happened.
They welcomed back Kevin Youkilis to Fenway Park and took three-of-four from the Chicago White Sox. And after the Toronto Blue Jays came and took out their brooms, the Red Sox found themselves finishing the stanza at 3-4 and back at a .500 record at 48-48.
A big problem this homestand and especially yesterday was the starting pitching. Josh Beckett stunk, Aaron Cook made one too many mistakes and of course there’s Jon Lester.
By the time Lester got off the mound yesterday, he had set some new career-highs and folks, these weren’t good career-highs. He went just four innings, allowing 11 runs on nine hits and two walks while striking out two. He also gave up four home runs.
He gave up five runs in the 1st inning but saw Adrian Gonzalez get three of those back on one swing of the bat in the bottom half of the inning. After the home run, Dustin Pedroia was seen sitting in the dugout giving a pep talk to Lester.
It obviously didn’t work as Lester came back out in the top half of the 2nd and gave up four more runs putting the Red Sox in a hole they would ultimately be unable to recover from.
I’ll be honest, I was just as surprised as you probably were to see Lester back on the mound in the 3rd inning. With his confidence shaken, there probably wouldn’t any good to come of it. Whatever Bobby Valentine’s thinking was, it definitely wasn’t the right thing to do. But that’s why we sit here and Valentine makes those decisions.
We all know Lester is a better pitcher than he’s shown this season. Is he hurt? He says no. Is it mechanical? He doesn’t think so. Lester basically says its lack of execution. But whatever the case may be, he’s actually more of a liability than an asset right now.
You used to know what you were going to get when Lester and Beckett would toe the rubber. Now, you probably have a better chance at getting blackjack (I am not condoning gambling, just using that as an example to make point).
Fortunately for the Red Sox, the New York Yankees were swept in Oakland over the last four games so the Red Sox didn’t lose any ground in the AL East standings to them. But by being swept the Blue Jays, they now find themselves back in the basement and just a game out of third place. They are 3.5 games behind second place Baltimore.
That deficit is the same in the wild card standings behind the Orioles and surging Athletics.
With the trade deadline coming up in just eight days, GM Ben Cherington has some serious thinking to do. With the second wild card in play, the Red Sox are by no means out of the postseason. But if he doesn’t think Lester or Beckett are going to turn things around, Cherington really has to explore the market for a starting pitcher and a good one at that. That may end up costing them a few prospects but if the mentality is to win now, it might be worth it.
If he decides to go the other way and sell off some pieces, there’ll probably be an uproar. Of course there’s also the possibility that the Red Sox do a little of both.
Either way, it’s not going to be an easy thing to decide for Cherington. As fans of the team, we have to back him up with whatever he decides to do going forward.
We’ll be back later with today’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day. So for now, let’s take a look at the overnight links from the media.
To open the links up in a new tab or window, use Control+click
Heartbreak hill [boston globe]
Ortiz not part of travel plans [boston globe]
Clean innings in mop-up duty [boston globe]
Futility, thy name is Jon Lester [boston herald]
Jon Lester’s new low [boston herald]
Junichi Tazawa saves bullpen [boston herald]
Ex-coach John Farrell finds Jon Lester’s weak points [boston herald]
Week ahead might break sagging Sox [boston herald]
Jon Lester, Josh Beckett have left Red Sox with their make-or-break moment [rob bradford – weei.com]
Blue Jays crush Lester, Red Sox in 15-7 romp [csn new england]
It may be time for Sox to admit what they are [csn new england]
Lester: ‘It’s embarrassing. I let my team down’ [csn new england]
Ellsbury a rare bright spot with first home run of season [csn new england]
Potentially season-altering road trip awaits Red Sox [csn new england]
Look no further than Lester, Beckett for Sox struggles [csn new england]
Lester at an all-time low after Blue Jays beating [csn new england]
Pedroia gives Lester pep talk but to no avail [csn new england]
Ortiz: ‘Can’t wait to be back’ [espn boston]
Rapid Reaction: Blue Jays 15, Red Sox 7 [espn boston]
Sox hit road searching for answers [espn boston]
Pedroia to Lester: We have your back [espn boston]
Boston Red Sox left-hander Jon Lester hits new low with drubbing by Toronto Blue Jays [espn boston]
Bobby Valentine: Red Sox batters right now ‘just aren’t getting that hit’ [full count]
Closing Time: Jon Lester left still looking for answers as Blue Jays sweep Red Sox [full count]
Jon Lester: ‘Hard for me to walk around clubhouse and look guys in the eye right now’ [full count]
Dustin Pedroia on Jon Lester: ‘We love him and I’ll play behind him any day of the week’ [full count]
Mark Prior Could Be a September Call-Up That Helps Red Sox Earn Playoff Spot [nesn.com]
Jon Lester Embarrassed by Recent Starts, Claims He Can’t ‘Look Guys in the Eye’ in the Clubhouse [nesn.com]
Red Sox Reach Critical Point in Season, Recognize Tough Schedule Ahead [nesn.com]
Jon Lester Not Making Excuses for Career-Worst Performance (Video) [nesn.com]
Cody Ross Among Red Sox Who Still Have Faith in Jon Lester Despite Recent Struggles (Video) [nesn.com]
Jon Lester Faces Music After Latest Rough Outing, Owns Up Despite Obvious Frustration [nesn.com]
Lester’s recent woes continue in lopsided loss [redsox.com]
Valentine opts to rest Middlebrooks, Crawford [redsox.com]
Bailey about week away from rehab assignment [redsox.com]
For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSN New England, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal, RedSox.com and WEEI websites.
And if you must check out the enemy news, head over to the Toronto Star and Toronto Sun websites.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
photo credit: reuters pictures
