Massarotti: Red Sox Opening Day Likes And Dislikes
BOSTON (CBS) - Three things I liked from Opening Day… and three things I didn't.
The likes:
1. David Price's second inning.
After a dominating first inning, Price came out and got himself in his very first Red Sox jam. Cleveland put runners at first and second with nobody out. Yan Gomes, Marlon Byrd and Juan Uribe were due up. After a Gomes flyout, the Indians ended up with one out and runners at first and third.
Know what Price did next? He struck out Marlon Byrd with a high fastball – getting Byrd to chase – and then whiffed Uribe on a changeup. Of course, that's precisely what an ace does, but it's been so long since the Red Sox actually had one … well, we kinda forgot. And to think: the 2015 Red Sox tried to sell us on the nonsense that they had five aces.
2. Hanley Ramirez' sixth inning.
With the game tied at 2, Ramirez led off the sixth and got ahead in the count, 2-0. He then produced a leadoff single, which might not seem like much for one small fact: it's exactly what any leadoff man is supposed to do. Be patient. Get ahead in the count. Get on base. Especially in a tie game.
What Ramirez did next may have been foolish, scampering to third on a single to right field by Travis Shaw that probably warranted him staying at second. Nonetheless, however it happened, Ramirez safely got to third and put Brock Holt in a situation where Holt had to hit the ball in the air, resulting in a bloop single to left field that gave the Red Sox a 3-2 lead. They never trailed again.
In these parts, we like to poke fun at Ramirez for foolish mistakes and, especially, for general apathy. In going from first to third, Hanley looked anything but apathetic. We'll take that Hanley all day.
3. The power pitching.
When the Red Sox began last season, the absence of "stuff" on the pitching staff was striking. Save for a couple of pitchers, the Red Sox lacked strikeout power and, quite simply, velocity. That changed a little when Eduardo Rodriguez joined the roster, but the general fact remained true for much of the year. A shortage of pitching is one thing. A shortage of power pitching is another.
Yesterday, between Price, Junichi Tazawa, Koji Uehara and Craig Kimbrel, the Red Sox finished with 15 strikeouts. Every pitcher had at least one. Uehara obviously doesn't throw as hard as the others, but his split-fingered fastball is one of the better swing-and-miss pitches on the staff.
The dislikes:
1. David Price's fourth inning:
Two innings after stranding a pair of runners, Price essentially faced the same situation again – and against the same part of the lineup. This time, with runners on first and second, Price allowed a single to Gomes and a sacrifice fly to Byrd, tying the game at 2. Uribe followed with another hit before Price struck out Collin Cowgill to end the rally.
The good news? Price did not allow the go-ahead run to score. The bad news? He gave up the lead – and against a part of the lineup he should dominate. One of the real advantages the Red Sox' payroll gives them is a deeper lineup than most teams, including the Indians. Price vs. Cleveland's No. 6-9 hitters should be a mismatch.
2. John Farrell's seventh inning.
Already holding a 4-2 lead, the Red Sox had a chance to blow the game open in the seventh – and blew it. With one out and the bases loaded, the Sox had the left-handed-hitting Travis Shaw and Brock Holt due up. Indians manager Terry Francona went to lefty reliever Ross Detwiler. The result was a strikeout and lineout – on the latter, the Indians had Holt played perfectly – and the Red Sox left the bases loaded.
After the game, Farrell said Shaw and Holt had "earned" the at-bats – but had they? (When? It's Opening Day!) And while Holt and Shaw both hit left-handed pitching last season, left field has been effectively identified as a platoon – Chris Young was signed for a reason – and even Pablo Sandoval (or Rusney Castillo) could have been an option for Shaw. Admittedly, Holt was the more curious decision. The situation screamed for Young.
3. John Farrell's eighth inning.
At this point, remember, the game was still in doubt. The score was still 4-2. Blake Swihart drew a leadoff walk in the eighth, then broke for second as Jackie Bradley started to square. With the pitch high and out of the strike zone, Bradley pulled the bat back. Swihart was promptly thrown out stealing, letting another potential insurance run go by the boards.
Um, what the heck happened there? The Sox ended up getting a pair of insurance runs on a homer by David Ortiz in the ninth, but that's not the point. They had chances to blow the game open in the seventh and eighth – and failed. Farrell got away with it in Game 1, but these are the kinds of things that could hurt them when they have lesser pitching on the mound.
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