Henry Remains Optimistic, But Red Sox Starters 'Have To Start Performing'
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Boston Red Sox have lost nine of their last 12 games, dropping them to 12-14 on the season.
But team owner John Henry remains confident the team will turn it around -- and soon.
How soon?
"Today," Henry told WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Jonny Miller on Tuesday.
Henry is just as disappointed as fans with Boston's lackluster start. They're a team who had World Series aspirations following an active offseason, adding sluggers Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval to provide some pop to the lineup, and Rick Porcello, Wade Miley and Justin Masterson to shore up their rotation.
But not much has gone according to plan over the first four weeks of the season. Though Ramirez and Sandoval have done their jobs at the plate, Boston's starting rotation is in shambles. The ace-less staff owns a 5.73 ERA, and on six different occasions they haven't been able to get to the fifth inning.
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To make matters worse, the Red Sox might be losing the best bat in their lineup. Ramirez left Monday's game with a shoulder sprain, and could be heading to the disabled list.
Still, Henry sees the glass as half full when it comes to his baseball team.
"We met today and I'm very optimistic about the rest of the season," said Henry. "I think we have the best team in the division. The Yankees have gotten away a little bit and we've gone through a bad period, but I think we'll turn it around."
That starts with the starting pitchers.
"They have to start performing," said Henry. "It's been disappointing, and the bullpen hasn't been great either. Our offense hasn't really gotten on track. We have to hope Hanley isn't badly hurt. It's been disappointing."
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The hot topic around town has been the team's need to acquire an ace for their pitching staff, but Henry said they aren't going to make any moves just for the sake of making moves.
"Oh, we'll be patient. We'll look to make moves that are appropriate," he said. "Overall, we feel this is the right team.
"This is a great group of guys," Henry continued. "We've gone through a bad period; we haven't hit with runners in scoring position, we've given up runs early. It's something we can't continue to do, and we won't."
