The spate of games since the All-Star break has been ... frustrating, to say the least. The offense at times looks like it will never score a run again. This has led to any number of calls for a trade, a middle of the order bat, a human sacrifice, whatever.
However, I think there's good reason not to be overly alarmed. Baseball is streaky. Hopefully, your lineup is balanced enough that when one player is cold, another is hot, and they even each other out. However, sometimes everyone gets cold at once, and it looks bloody awful.
That's where we are now. Consider that since the beginning of the Rays series:
Xander is: 154/267/154
Moreland is: 103/229/138
Jackie is: 156/206/281
Andrew is: 212/297/242
Hanley is: 242/306/424
Young (in 11 PA, but still) is: 000/000/000
Sandy (in 14 PA, but still) is: 091/286/091
Vaz is: 200/250/200
And Mookie is just at 250/302/425 even with a couple of big games for him.
Now Pedey is OPSing 934 in the same period, but he's the only one who's shown any kind of life. If we get even year-average production out of X, Moreland, Jackie, or Andrew (I'm going to say Hanley's production is basically what he is at this point), even a single fucking hit out of Chris Young, the Sox probably win two extra games since the break and maybe the Porcello game with TB.
There's just not a good reason to believe this level of ineptitude will continue. The ship is bound to right itself back to the mean at some point.
Rather than being overly discouraged by the hitting, I'm choosing to be very pleased with the pitching. I think the Sox are set up to make a big run, as ugly as the last week has been.
However, I think there's good reason not to be overly alarmed. Baseball is streaky. Hopefully, your lineup is balanced enough that when one player is cold, another is hot, and they even each other out. However, sometimes everyone gets cold at once, and it looks bloody awful.
That's where we are now. Consider that since the beginning of the Rays series:
Xander is: 154/267/154
Moreland is: 103/229/138
Jackie is: 156/206/281
Andrew is: 212/297/242
Hanley is: 242/306/424
Young (in 11 PA, but still) is: 000/000/000
Sandy (in 14 PA, but still) is: 091/286/091
Vaz is: 200/250/200
And Mookie is just at 250/302/425 even with a couple of big games for him.
Now Pedey is OPSing 934 in the same period, but he's the only one who's shown any kind of life. If we get even year-average production out of X, Moreland, Jackie, or Andrew (I'm going to say Hanley's production is basically what he is at this point), even a single fucking hit out of Chris Young, the Sox probably win two extra games since the break and maybe the Porcello game with TB.
There's just not a good reason to believe this level of ineptitude will continue. The ship is bound to right itself back to the mean at some point.
Rather than being overly discouraged by the hitting, I'm choosing to be very pleased with the pitching. I think the Sox are set up to make a big run, as ugly as the last week has been.