When the Yankees won 4 out of 5 World Series Championships, there was something of an aura around them that they could do no wrong. Many felt as if they were the organization that always made the right moves and, no matter what they did, each transaction was hailed as another savvy deal and one more reason why they are the best organization in baseball. Looking back, they certainly made a lot of good moves, but once that core of winning players was gone, so were the rings.
The Red Sox are now the team that most pundits gush at their every twitch. Each step by Theo Epstein is greeted by many commentators as if he were the Jonas Brothers and they were 12-year-old girls. These two posts here, and here hail the Red Sox’ promotion of Daniel Bard as just one more notch in good, old Theo’s Hall of Fame belt. The Red Sox don’t need to bring up Bard the way the Yanks need to bring up Hughes, Don Amore of the Hartford Courant writes. They’ve done things the right way with their rotation.
The Yankees rotation has certainly struggled this season. With an expectedly slow start from Sabathia and Wang awful return from injury, the Yanks rotation currently sits at second to last in ERA for starting pitchers in the A.L. Do you know who’s last? That’s right, those same Boston Red Sox, who can do no wrong.
You know, the Red Sox 2004 core of Manny, Ortiz, Damon, Schilling, Varitek, Lowe, Nixon, Foulke, Millar, and Pedro are all either gone or have ceased being plus players. This is a completely different team, now, with a completely different core. Do I like some of the young guys the Sox have developed, sure. Do I think they make some pretty good moves, yes. But let’s face it. The Red Sox won two Championships mainly because Schilling pitched out of his mind while Manny and Papi were the best clutch middle of the order tandem in recent memory.
I think the Sox will probably get their starting pitching under control, but so will the Yankees. Let’s not go around thinking that the Red Sox’ awful starting pitching is somehow fine while the Yankees are just collapsing before our eyes. In fact, looking at recent track records, I feel a lot more confident about the Yanks rotation than I do Boston’s.
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7 Responses to A Little Perspective
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TIQ IQ
Nice piece. I’m beginning to think the Red Sox and Obama are related. I had no idea Boston’s starting pitching ERA was dead last, it’s one of those pesky little facts that get in the way of reporters obsessing over teams (or people) they like.
exactly my point, Joe
I can honestly say that is one of the best blog pieces I’ve read in awhile. Factual and too the point, nice job Tom.
Thanks, Standing O’. It will be interesting to see how the Sox new core performs, but they are, for the most part, unproven. I sometimes feel as if the pundits are hailing the current team as an undiluted successor to the 2004 team when they are really, pretty much starting over, here
I must concur with “StandingO’Neill”…you guys are on the ball today!
*Golf clap*
Well done, Tom.
Isn’t it facinating that each year we have to relearn the lesson that the baseball season is long and cannot be judged on April results? That is what makes this such a great sport to follow. We are guilty too. We were ready to give Gardner the CF job and predict greatness based upon a few weeks of Spring Training. We wrote off Melky at 24. We though Hughes turned it around a couple of week ago when he had one good MLB start and now we are wondering whether Rivera forgot how to pitch, and Tex how to hit.
As to your point about the Sox, what is particularly amazing is that the Sox are last and they had the advantage of pitching against the Yankees.