* Will Middlebrooks hamstring tightened up during yesterday’s game- in the second inning specifically as he was rounding the bases. But, Valentine kept him in to finish the inning, then substituted Nick Punto to take over third base. If Middlebrooks was hurt, why did Valentine wait until he finished running to sub in for him?
* While I’m talking about Valentine, I have to ask what happened in the eighth inning. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m not able to watch the games when the Sox are playing the Royals (they’re considered regional and blacked out, even though Kansas City is 7 hours away). I understand Bard was only in the mid-80s range for pitch count, but why leave him in when his command was obviously down and it was a one-run game? The bullpen’s done well the past few weeks, the pitchers were rested up after Sunday’s game, and the Sox needed to win this game. Valentine doesn’t seem to worry about pitch count too much (see Lester and Beckett’s 120+ pitch games from a week and a half ago), so why leave Bard in?
* Bard had two balks last night- two balks in the same inning for that matter. Because of those balks, the Red Sox lost their lead. The Sox eventually gained it back (only to lose it at the end of the game), but the balks hurt them. I think Bard’s been the Sox’s best starting pitcher this season, but something was definitely off last night.
* Ryan Sweeney needs to play more. He didn’t start last night, and he didn’t start Monday. I understand that Valentine’s trying to match up his players based on which arm the opposing pitcher uses, but it shouldn’t always work like that. Sweeney’s still hitting .360 for the season and is tied with Ortiz with 13 doubles. I’m tired of the politics. I want the best players on the team playing. That’s the end of it.
* Speaking of Sweeney, I was asked if I was going to by a Sweeney shirt this season. I’d like to, but I know he’s one of the first to go for a trade. If Sweeney’s still on the team after the trade deadline, I will more than likely buy the shirt. I was also asked about Middlebrooks. Again, I’m going to wait a bit and see what happens. While I don’t think Middlebrooks will be traded (can’t say the same thing about Youkilis though), I don’t want to buy into the rookie-dream. Middlebroooks might become an elite baseball player of the years, but he’s still young. Now, if Yawkey Way ever has their 30% off sales, like they use to, I might reconsider.
* I think people need to lay off Adrian Gonzalez. There was a lot of fan chatter against him happening on The Boston Globe comment sections. The guy’s still hitting .280 for the season and went 2-3 last night. He’s admitted his swing is a tick off, and he took blame for a game when he struck out in the 9th with the bases loaded. His defense is still impeccable. Just because he’s not in your face and has a lot of quotable saying, doesn’t mean he’s not as invested in the game. He’s a quiet leader, and we, as fans, should embrace that.
* The Red Sox PA announcer at Fenway Park, Carl Beane, was killed in a single car accident today.
* Beckett reportedly played golf on Thursday, an off day for the Red Sox, while having his start skipped on Saturday because of a lat strain. I’m not sure how I feel about this. On the one hand, Beckett was not on the DL and was playing catch on the field on Friday. He was skipped for precautionary reasons, not because he physically could not pitch. On the other hand, obviously his lat was bothering him while he pitched. Like I said, I’m not sure how I feel about this. It was an off day, and he didn’t have any limitations. Maybe golf was a good way to work through the strain (I don’t play golf nor have every played golf, so I’m not sure on that one). I guess we’ll find out tomorrow
how the golfing affected his pitching.
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