Massarotti: Allocating Blame For Red Sox' Offensive Struggles
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Red Sox just can't seem to get their pitching and their hitting going at the same time. In fact, they can hardly get their hitting going at all.
Despite an offseason that touted the additions of heavy hitters like Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval to an already-stacked lineup with David Ortiz, Mike Napoli and Dustin Pedroia, and despite the promise of the burgeoning Mookie Betts, the Red Sox offense has been below average.
The Red Sox rank 28th in MLB in team batting average (.229), and they rank 20th in runs scored. Through nearly a quarter of the season, the Red Sox bats just aren't performing nearly well enough to carry a club that had many obvious question marks in the pitching staff.
Tony Massarotti opened Monday's Felger & Massarotti Show by tearing through the problems in the lineup.
"They're still not hitting, and there are key guys in this lineup that aren't hitting," Mazz said.
1. Manager John Farrell
"I feel like there's just not quite enough accountability. There's not. And, you know what? Thirty-eight games in, and Mike Napoli is hitting a buck-sixty-two! Time to sit down! Time to sit, please! Sit! Take a seat! Sit down! Find someone else. I know they don't have a ton of options -- play Brock Holt there if you have to. Deliver some sort of message."
"This team needs buttons pushed. This team has to be kicked in the ass and guys have to be dialed in and prodded a little bit. And I don't know if Farrell's the right guy to do it. I'm really starting to wonder whether he's the right manager for this team."
WATCH: Is Farrell The Right Manager For Red Sox?
2. Mike Napoli
"Brutal. He's killing them! He's absolutely killing them. The strength of this lineup was supposed to be two through six. I don't look at the young guys ... I don't think that's the big thing. ... Napoli is freaking killing 'em."
"I'm not anti-Mike Napoli, but he's had plenty of chances. Get him out of there. Get him out of the spot of the lineup he's in at the least."
3. David Ortiz
"For the most part, he really hasn't done what he's supposed to do this year. We're now a quarter of the way through, and he's hitting .236. I look at Ortiz and say, 'Why is he hitting third on this team now?' Now, fine, you don't have many options at DH, especially with him on the roster, you're going to play him. But you know what? Get him out of the number three hole! Put Pablo Sandoval in there against right-handed pitching. Batting left-handed, Sandoval is hitting [.366], for crying out loud. Start moving these guys around. And I don't want to hear, 'David Ortiz has been a centerpiece of our lineup now for 10 years, or what have you. Too bad! He's now [almost] 40 years old and he's not producing."
"Move Ortiz to fifth. Move him to sixth. Move Napoli to seventh. I don't care -- figure it out! Because they're not producing in the roles they're [assigned], and it was supposed to be the strength of the team."
4. Dustin Pedroia
"With runners in scoring position, he's 6-for-37 for the year. And you look at it and say, is Pedroia so intent on proving that he can drive the ball again, that he has completely given up the idea of hitting the ball the other way with men on base? Is that what this is about? Proving everybody wrong? Get your head screwed on."
Listen to the full segment below:
