Three outs away from being swept in Detroit, the Red Sox came to life in the 9th inning on Sunday night, thanks to David Ortiz. Papi hit a moonshot off Joba Chamberlain to give Boston a 5-3 victory. The win reportedly came on the heels of the first “team meeting” called by John Farrell. The three-city, nine-game road trip still wound up a disaster as the team finished with a 2-7 mark after losing lose two of three against the Orioles in Baltimore.
The Sox returned to Fenway Park last night and won, 5-2, behind another strong outing from Jon Lester and this insane throw from Jackie Bradley Jr.
To Sell or Not to Sell
With Boston tied with Houston and leading only Tampa Bay in the AL Wild Card standings going into last night, a healthy discussion has begun regarding a trade deadline that could involve the Red Sox as sellers rather than buyers. Boston has historically been a buyer around the end of July with only a few exceptions over the years. Most notably, the team was eventually a seller during the 2012 season. But that mega-deal with the LA Dodgers came in late August, nearly four weeks past the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline.
Cherington’s public stance as of Monday:
“Obviously we’re not happy with where we are,’’ said Cherington, who joined the team here Tuesday and spoke with reporters Tuesday afternoon. “That’s not up to our standard. We still believe it’s going to get better. We believe we have a very good team ahead of us this year. Most of that will come from within, guys here performing, getting back to a level they’re accustomed to.
“So look, we’re all in this together. We know collectively we have to get better. We’ve got to perform better. That starts with me. We have to make that happen. We’re not ready to proclaim this has to happen, or this has to happen. It won’t be any particular move.”
For what it’s worth, Boston inked outfielder Andres Torres earlier this week. He is unlikely to be ready before August and looks like nothing more than a right-handed platoon partner for Jackie Bradley Jr.
Debating John Lackey’s $500k option for 2015
Using a SoSH user poll as a proxy, it seems that the vast majority of Red Sox fans think John Lackey should be willing to play for $500,000 in 2015 since that’s what his original contract with the Red Sox calls for if he missed a season. Would he play for the league minimum is another question entirely, of course. Boston is in a precarious position with Jon Lester heading toward a likely nine-figure free agency contract and Clay Buchholz no longer looking like a reliable front-end starter. There is probably some angst on both sides of this business arrangement, even though neither has expressed it publicly. The best solution is probably one of those perfect compromises in which both sides give a little and walk away slightly unhappy. As of right now, if there were Vegas odds made for who would start Opening Day for the 2015 Red Sox, John Lackey would probably have the shortest odds given what we know right now.
Brandon Workman Takes No-Hitter into the 6th Inning
The lone Red Sox win in Baltimore came thanks in large part to Brandon Workman’s 6 ⅔ shutout innings against the formidable O’s offense. It was the team’s first 1-0 win of the season. Overall, Workman’s been fine as a fill-in starter. His K/BB rate (21:10) over 28 innings isn’t great, but he’s been solid enough to join Rubby De La Rosa as a guy who could be given an extended shot in the starting rotation this summer.
Fenway Pastoral 