Struggling Red Sox RP Hideki Okajima
During their current West Coast road trip, the Boston Red Sox need for bullpen help has never been more present than it is right now. While the offense has been silent lately, help is on the way as Victor Martinez will be back this week, Jacoby Ellsbury is on a rehab assignment, and Dustin Pedroia isn’t far from coming back. There are no such reinforcements in sight internally for the Red sox.
Following Hideki Okajima’s horrendous performance yesterday – 2/3 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 1 inherited runner scored, and a blown save – one would think that a move would be coming very soon. Okajima’s outing, combined with Manny Delcarmen’s brutal outing on Thursday – 4 batters faced, 0 outs recorded, 2 H, 4R, 1 BB – against the Seattle Mariners, the worst hitting lineup in the American League at a .233 batting average -has made the bullpen a priority at the trade deadline.
It is June 26, and hope for a playoff berth is slipping away with by the day as the team continues to blow leads late, make crippling errors (see: Bill Hall and Eric Patterson), and get next to no production from their outfield. The Yankees and Rays are taking full advantage as they continue to win easily against the dregs of the American League, which is something that this Red Sox team seems to have a hard time with between Oakland and the Mariners on this trip.
The road will not get any easier. The Red Sox begin a 3 game set at Anaheim vs. the Angels tonight. Tonight, they will have to face the newly acquired former Cy Young winner Dan Haren, who was absolutely thieved from Arizona for a struggling Joe Saunders and a pupu platter of questionable minor league prospects in a trade yesterday afternoon. If they do not take 2 out of 3 from the Angels to salvage a .500 record for this trip, it may be panic time.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Keep up the good work, I like your writing.
This is such a great resource that you are providing and you give it away for free. I enjoy seeing websites that understand the value of providing a prime resource for free. I truly loved reading your post. Thanks!
A+ would read again