The Jekyll and Hyde season continues for the Sox tonight against the backdrop of the new Yankee Stadium. The Sox have, at times, looked like a legitimate contender for the AL East, highlighted in their sweep of the Yanks at Fenway. They have also looked like an injury-plagued team with over-paid, under-achieving talent. Look no further than the past four games against the Rays for evidence – the Sox dropped three of the four and were outscored 30-15 in the series.
Everything that had been a strength – defense and the bullpen in particular – became suspect. Jason Bay misplayed a couple of balls, Lugo dropped a double-play ball, and Jason Varitek let the Rays run wild. The pen gave up nine runs in 11-and-a-third in the series. Granted, six of them came in Thursday’s disaster, but the runs still count.
The offense continues to be inconsistent, unable to come through with the coveted “big hit.” While Youk powers on- his beard contains six D-batteries, and they are Energizers – Papi continues to conjure images of Carlos Quintana after some Venezuelan doctor sewed his ass shut to treat a broken toe.
Personally, I blame Lugo for everything. The Sox were cruising until Tito was hypnotized by aliens and started Lugo at short.
Tonight, we get Lester vs. Hughes. Our home-grown talent against theirs. I think the Sox bring the pain, same as they did against Hughes last year.
