I don't know about you, but I'm tired of Brad Penny. Come to think of it, that applies to Daisuke Matsuzaka and Tim Wakefield, too. Though they are radically different pitchers, they are the same in one awful, rotten sense: They throw it and pray—pray they hit the strike zone.
As a matter of fact, there is much NOT to like about this year's Red Sox team. Although Nick Green would be a decent backup, he's no Alex Cora! Neither Green nor Julio Lugo can field or throw better than most high school shortstops.
That's a problem.
And, for all of the wonderful accomplishments of the bullpen—and they are a terrific group—they don't get into the game soon enough on most nights. And that's on Everybody's Most Wonderful Manager, "Tito" Francona. Sure, he's a steady hand, and yeah, he sticks with slumping players —come to think of it, that's the problem.
He stays too long with his starting pitchers. How about using that terrific bullpen, Terry? And, until David Ortiz relearns how to hit the ball to left field, he should be benched. He's hitting .185 for goodness sakes! All of a sudden, he's got warning-track power—and everyone seems to think that he's on the cusp of hitting .300 again! It's not happening until he starts hitting the ball to left field, which is where many of his hits used to go.
How about a little urgency, Tito? Games matter just as much now as they do in August and September.
And I like Jason Varitek. But, for a guy who is supposed to be the Supreme Intelligence behind the plate, he sure does call a funny game sometimes. With two strikes, he can't call for hard stuff just off the knob of the bat? It's only the most difficult pitch to hit. Jamming a hitter so that he can't extend his arms is one of basic tenets of the game.
And why would you ever ask your young pitcher (Jon Lester, in this case) to throw a ball down and in to a left-handed hitter (Joe Mauer, in this case, and one of the best hitters in the game), and not expect it to disappear over the right field fence?
That's just silly, Jason. Unless the pitch is going to be several inches off the plate and ankle-high, there is never a reason to throw a pitch where left-handed hitters like it best.
And there is never any reason to stand up behind the plate and put the glove at head-level. Stay down like a catcher and put the glove up. Do you think fans will applaud you for being clever when you stand up? How about giving the umpire a shot at calling the pitch without blocking his view?
And, finally, keep your helmet on after you hit a home run. Either that, or take it off when you hit into a double play. We appreciate it when you do something good—we don't need to see that crew-cut.
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