By The Jersey Hitman
League 6
League 17
The Rays just swept the Red Sox in Tropicana Field … again. There’s half a season to go, but the Rays look to be for real, and they still have an ace up their sleeve.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox have been losing plenty on the road, not just in Tampa Bay. And to make matters worse, their captain can’t buy a hit. Looks to me like he is done.
The Good: David Price
The surprising Rays are in first place in the tough AL East. If you think they will fade in the second half of the season, there is one thing you need to remember: they have a genuine ace up their sleeve. He is young left-handed starting pitcher David Price - the number 1 overall draft pick last June.
Price has been nearly unhittable in the minor leagues this season. He started out in A-Ball and went 4-0 before being moved up to AA where he is now 2-0. He has a combined 6-0 record, a 1.74 ERA and 49 Ks and just 13 BBs and 27 hits in 46.2 innings pitched.
Scott Kazmir, James Shields, and Matt Garza form a very good, young, top of the rotation for the Rays. I look for Price to join them sometime in late July, or early August, and to have an immediate impact.
If you have room on your roster, and like to make speculative moves, pick him up now and stash him on your bench. I have done so already in every league in which he is available.
The Bad: The Red Sox away from Fenway
The Rays sweep of the Red Sox in Tampa Bay this week gave them a 3.5 game lead over those same Sox in the AL East. But the Rays are not the only team beating up on the travelling Sox this season - just about everyone is.
Boston’s record at Fenway Park is currently 31-10 while their road record, as of Thursday morning, is 19-28. They have now lost 5 in a row, all on the road. So what gives here? How can a team have such a disparity in its home and road records? It’s just hard to figure out.
We know the Red Sox are a good team - they are the defending World Champs, after all. They have had their share of big name injuries this season, but the injured players are out of the lineup at home as well as on the road.
They are in New York, now, playing the Yankees. Always a big series, but this is one that both teams really need to win - the Yankees to stay close in the AL East and the Red Sox to right their ship.
If the Sox continue to play this poorly on the road, it will be very difficult for them to win the division or even the Wild Card.
The Ugly: Jason Varitek
The Red Sox captain and the heart and soul of the team has been awful this year. The 36-year old catcher is hitting just .216 for the season and looks much older than 36 while doing so.
Over his past 15 games, Varitek has struck out 16 times while getting just 3 hits in 48 at bats. That comes out to a batting average of .060 … with just 2 RBI and 1 run scored. Very ugly indeed.
Red Sox pitchers love throwing to him, but how much longer can management keep him in there as the everyday catcher? Back-up Kevin Cash hasn’t been much better, so the outlook seems somewhat bleak. Could there be a trade on the horizon?
Varitek has become useless in fantasy baseball, even as a number two catcher. The Red Sox may be stuck with him, but you do not have to be. If he is on your team, waive him and then ask yourself why you didn’t do it before now. What are you waiting for? His average to dip below .200?