Apparently Boston Red Sox starting pitcher John Lackey is a magician and had us all fooled. He had been 7-2 in his last 10 starts of which only three were quality starts. So after another shellacking of Lackey on Sunday, this time by the Texas Rangers in their 11-4 win, are the curtains slowly but surely closing on his act?
If you had to choose right now between Lackey, Erik Bedard, Tim Wakefield and Andrew Miller for a third starter behind Josh Beckett and Jon Lester, who are you going to choose? With Lackey, Wake and Miller you really don’t know what you’re going to get. While the same goes for Bedard, he’s been pretty consistent on the mound for the Red Sox since coming over in a trade with the Seattle Mariners.
Without a good third starter, the Red Sox will have a tough time getting out of the division series. And you have to hope the can win the division as I’m pretty sure they don’t want to play the Texas Rangers or face any of their lefty pitchers.
Speaking of the playoffs, the Red Sox loss coupled with a win by the New York Yankees increases their lead to 1.5 games in the AL East. The lead in the AL Wild Card is down to eight games over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Yesterday, I talked about Felix Doubront and how he had a chance to be the go-to lefty in the Red Sox pen. Given a high leverage situation when Lackey left the game with the bases loaded, Doubront failed miserably.
He allowed a single, walk, sacrifice fly, walk and a triple and by the end of the 6th inning, the local nine went from being down 2-0 to losing 9-0. Matt Albers came in and bailed out Doubront and actually pitched better in his 1.2 innings of work. Hopefully this outing turns things around for Albers. Lord knows the Red Sox need any help they can in the bullpen from players not named Alfredo Aceves, Daniel Bard and Jonathan Papelbon.
Kevin Youkilis looks to be getting out of the slump since returning from the DL as he had two hits. David Ortiz added two hits and an RBI while Marco Scutaro had a hit and two RBIs. Darnell McDonald knocked in the other Red Sox run.
While the Red Sox got two of those runs off of Rangers starter, lefty Matt Harrison, it was a little too late. They’ve had a really tough time getting anything going against the Rangers lefties lately so something needs to change. Hopefully seeing two lefties in the upcoming four game series with the Toronto Blue Jays can help exercise future demons.
Since the Red Sox are playing an afternoon game (1:07 p.m.) this afternoon in Toronto, we’ll be back in a short while with this afternoon’s lineups, batter/pitcher matchups and links from the day. But for now, enjoy the overnight links below by clicking on the read more button below if you’re on the home page.
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Texas-sized trouble? Rangers a major October obstacle for Red Sox [Alex Speier – WEEI.com]
Tough sixth inning dooms this Lackey mission [Boston Globe]
Jackson involved in run-in in right field [Boston Globe]
Sox are messed with by Texas [Boston Globe]
John Lackey without answers as Rangers rout Red Sox [Boston Herald]
Dubious effort for Felix Doubront [Boston Herald]
Kevin Youkilis stops post-DL drought [Boston Herald]
John Lackey bends, breaks [Boston Herald]
Red Sox rocked by Rangers, 11-4 [CSN New England]
Lackey, Doubront dominated by Rangers bats [CSN New England]
Napoli’s blast one of Fenway’s longest [CSN New England]
Notes: Jackson (knee) leaves after collision [CSN New England]
Rapid reaction: Rangers 11, Red Sox 4 [ESPN Boston]
Bullpen wall 1, Conor Jackson 0 [ESPN Boston]
Napoli HR travels to rare climes [ESPN Boston]
Red Sox giving fans cause for concern [ESPN Boston]
Red Sox notes: John Lackey and Alfredo Aceves effectively wild and Josh Reddick ‘pretty sore’ [Full Count]
Closing Time: Rangers continue to batter Sox in win at Fenway [Full Count]
Familiarity brings futility? Lackey continues struggles vs. Rangers [Full Count]
Rangers make their biggest pitch against the Red Sox [Full Count]
Video: Conor Jackson Sore From Crashing Into Right-Field Wall, But ‘Checked Out Fine’ After Game [NESN.com]
Rangers Get to John Lackey in Series Finale, Potentially Clearing Up ‘Game 3’ Dilemma [NESN.com]
Red Sox-Rangers Playoff Encounter Would Lack Drama If Regular Season Is Any Indication [NESN.com]
Texas lays a smackdown on Lackey and Boston [Providence Journal]
Jackson left battered and bruised after collision with fence [Providence Journal]
Red Sox Journal: Minor league playoffs can be a major test [Providence Journal]
For more slices of Red Sox goodness, head over to the Boston Globe, Boston Herald, CSN New England, ESPN Boston, NESN, Providence Journal and WEEI websites.
And if you must check out the enemy news, head over to the Dallas Morning News, ESPN Dallas and Ft. Worth Star Telegram websites.
Follow Ian on Twitter @soxanddawgs. And be sure to like us on Facebook as well.
Photo credit: Getty Images
