O’s Beat Sox, Buchholz: HE GONE!
Aug 21st 08
August 21, 2008
Here is the ESPN recap of the game ( w/ video ):
Read Below for the “AL East Teams: The Road Ahead”
Analysis:
Buchholz: NOOOOOOOO!!!
Clay Buchholz’s struggles could not continue into September if the Red Sox want a chance to catch up with the Rays. Now that there are questions lingering around Josh Beckett’s arm, and that there is no assurance of Bartolo Colon’s health or consistency once ( of if ) he returns, the Red Sox cannot afford to run through September with only three legitimate starters ( Wakefield, Lester, Dice-K).
Although Tim Wakefield is expected to hit the mound against the Yankees series next week, there is no absolute that he will be 100% down the road, either. Paul Byrd’s pickup is a godsend seeing how our pitching staff has been shaky lately. It only seems as though everything is OK because every starter ( save Buchholz ) has been really good up until this point, and our record indicates we are scoring the required runs to supplement it.
But another injury to our starting staff could mean ruin for our World Series hopes. Although Buchholz is a 5th starter, his issues are just too great to keep him around to work on his adjustments in the heat of a pennant race.
Alex Cora: What A Utility Guy!
In the 8th inning, cameras were focusing on a very unique sight in the bullpen.
Alex Cora was warming up to come into the game. One would think this was a little absurd, considering that they have two days off before they face the Yankees ( one is today ), and that they have 5-6 days off before the end of the season.
At the same time, their bullpen has been pushing a lot of innings, and the game was pretty much out of hand before the 5th. It would’ve been great to Cora come in there to show he is the ULTIMATE UTILITY MAN. It looked like he was zipping them down in the bullpen, so I’m guessing he isn’t half bad.
The Road Ahead
the Red Sox Nation pretty much thinks its a cakewalk since most of our games are going to be at home, and most of the Rays and Yankees games will be on the road. But none of any of the three big teams in the American League East has a piece-of-cake voyage ahead of them.
The Yankees have a lot of games on the road, and have only three days off until the end of the season. They are 24-23 against the AL East, and play the Seattle Mariners in September, for whom that have not lost to yet in six games this season.
The Devil Rays have the toughest schedule, playing a lot of games on the road, and finishing off their season with eight games at Baltimore and at Detroit. Their injuries have not seemed to slow them down, and whether they can get Crawford and Longoria back for the heavy stretch is their biggest wild card. One thing ( even though the injuries are big ) that one should think about during their September run: They are 36-23 against the teams they will be facing. And they don’t have the pitching staff injury woes like the Yankees or the Red Sox.
The Red Sox have some easy games with Texas, Cleveland, and the Orioles on the board for the Fall. But the teams has always had problems playing well at Arlington Stadium, and Cleveland is starting to get a “spoilers” groove and don’t seem like the pushover they were earlier in the season. Also, they don’t seem to have an advantage over teams like the Yankees, Toronto, and Tampa Bay, in terms of collecting a lot of wins to move far ahead ( of the Yankees and Toronto ) or close to ( Tampa Bay ) other contending teams.
Analyzing the schedule ahead for all three teams, I would have to call it a “push”. The Devil Rays, sorry to say, seem to actually have the best schedule. They have consistently beat their opponents within their division, and if they can keep that record just one or two games above .500 against the Sox, Yankees, and Blue Jays, they will pretty much hold onto their spot for the October Classic.
The Red Sox need to start stacking up wins, and get the staff ready for the intense Yankee battles. The war this year with the Bronx Bombers is now more important than ever, as both sides are now in need to scratch and claw mercilessly over the next 30 days, or risk a horrific witch-hunt over a missed playoff berth in the off-season ( Cashman’s job is at stake, but Epstein’s Manny trade will be intensely scrutinized. )
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