It’s the All-Star Break, which means the Home Run Derby tonight, the All-Star Game is tomorrow, and no baseball on Wednesday (and Thursday for the Red Sox). It also marks the unofficial halfway point in the season, so I thought a glance at some “Red Sox Award Candidates” would do us well. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I could use a little break myself after a busy weekend.
The Red Sox currently sit at 59-39, first place in the division, and 2.5 games up on the surging Rays. They have the best record in the American League, third best record in the Majors (behind the Cardinals and Pirates), and the most wins in the game. They faltered a bit on the West Coast, but that seems to be a common problem from year to year. They’ll start the second half Friday with a series at Fenway Park against the Yankees.
Mid-Season MVP: Dustin Pedroia*
What doesn’t Pedroia do well? He’s batting .316 with 6 home runs, 1 Triple, 25 doubles, 56 RBIs, and 13 steals. He has walked 51 times while striking out 49. His defense is impeccable. While he more than likely won’t win the AL MVP this season, he should be in line to win the Red Sox MVP.
Mid-Season Cy Young: Clay Buchholz*
He hasn’t pitched since June 8th; but when he was pitching, Buchholz dominated. He has a 9-0 record in 12 starts, and the team is 11-1 in those starts. His ERA sits at 1.71, and his WHIP is 1.020. He has 81 strikeouts for the season, gave away 29 walks, and 2 home runs. If Buchholz can come back after the All-Star Break (sooner, rather than later we hope, since he has yet to make a rehab start) and dominate like he did before being injured, the rotation is looking mighty good.
Mid-Season Silver Slugger: David Ortiz**
David Ortiz has been ordinary Big Papi this season. After missing most of the first month with injuries, he hasn’t looked back. He’s hitting .317, has a .402 OBP, .and a .606 slugging percentage. He leads the team in home runs (19) and RBIs (65). Surprisingly, Ortiz has shown he has speed this season: he has 2 Triples (third highest on the team behind Ellsbury-7 and Drew-6), and he has 3 steals (fourth highest on the team behind Ellsbury-36, Pedroia-13, and Victorino-11).
Mid-Season Rookie of the Year: Jose Iglesias
Finally, we’re seeing the Jose Iglesias we were promised. His defense has always been there; he seems to float at times. But his bat! In 52 games, he’s batting .367 with 66 hits, 10 doubles, 2 triples, 1 home run, and 2 stolen bases. He seems to pull infield singles out of his hat. If this is the Iglesias we’ll get to watch for seasons to come, I can’t wait.
Mid-Season Comeback Player: John Lackey
I admit, I was very negative of Lackey for many years. Really, how could a critic/fan not be? 2010 his ERA was 4.40. 2011 his ERA was 6.41, the highest ERA in Red Sox history for a starter. 2011 also brought a lot of ill from fans because of his demeanor, his divorce from his wife, and his inclusion in the “beer and chick brigade.” In 2012, Lackey had Tommy John surgery and didn’t pitch, and I think some fans forgot he was even on the team. 2013 has been a wonderful season for Lackey though.
Lackey showed up to Spring Training looking noticeably trimmer, and the most athletic I’ve seen him look in… probably ever. This season he has a 7-6 record, but don’t let that fool you. His ERA is 2.78, and his WHIP is 1.136, the lowest of his career. He’s struck out 93 while walking 23. He appears to be a leader in the clubhouse, and we’ve even seen him smile at times. Honestly, I don’t know if Lackey ever smiled for the public to see prior to this season.
I also have to hand it to John Farrell. Not only has he managed this team to being the best in the American League, he has also repaired the Red Sox image. After September of 2011 and the 2012 season, many people (critics, fans, former fans, etc.) didn’t think the Red Sox would amount to much this season and were tired of the prima donna attitudes some of the players seemed to have.
Farrell fixed all that. He appears to be on his way to winning the AL Manager of the Year Award. This team is fun to watch again, they smile and joke with each other, and they are playing fantastic baseball. Let’s hope this team can keep it up!
* Indicates made the AL All-Star Team
** Indicates made the team AL All-Star Team as a starter
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