We have seen this act before, when the Boston Red Sox tried to get by with a certified ace and a bunch of question marks.
Watching a 2016 Red Sox rotation of David Price and those-who-cannot-be-trusted brings back the days of Pedro Martinez and … well, who else was there?
Pedro was the king, of course, the must-see attraction that under-appreciated general manager Dan Duquette brought to Boston in 1998. From there, Duquette piecemealed the rotation.
There was the ever-present knuckleball of Tim Wakefield, who sometimes shined despite a career ERA of 4.41.
There were onetime-standouts who showed flashes of brilliance (Bret Saberhagen, Steve Avery, Ramon Martinez, Hideo Nomo, David Cone and John Burkett), and other veterans (Pete Schourek, Kent Mercker and Mark Portugal).
And there were young arms that showed potential (Brian Rose, Derek Lowe and Casey Fossum).
I know I left off some names but you get the point. The Red Sox had Pedro Martinez, then crossed their fingers.
It almost worked. From 1998 to 2003, Boston made the playoffs three times. The Red Sox lost to Cleveland in the ’98 division series 3-1 (with Pedro Martinez getting the win). They lost the 1999 league championship series to the Yankees 4-1 (only win from Pedro Martinez).
In 2003, with Lowe, Wakefield and Burkett combining for 40 wins, Boston reached Game 7 of the league championship series. The Red Sox lost when a gassed Martinez gave up the tying run in the eighth inning, and the Yankees won in the 11th.
It wasn’t until the Red Sox deepened their rotation that they took off. Martinez was complemented by Curt Schilling. Martinez left and Josh Beckett entered, with a developing Jon Lester coming up. In 2013 it was Lester with John Lackey, and the oft-injured Clay Buchholz chipping in.
The scenario was not always perfect – the good and bad of Daisuke Matsuzaka – but it produced three World Series titles.
While Lester and Lackey could not prop up a bad 2014 Boston team, an ace-less 2015 rotation did not do any better.
Enter Price in 2016. Boston has its proven ace (3.09 career ERA), and returnees Clay Buchholz, Joe Kelly, Rick Porcello and Eduardo Rodriguez (the most promising of the bunch, but out with a knee injury).
Price started the season Tuesday with a tidy six-inning, two-run, 10-strikeout performance on a frigid afternoon in Cleveland.
As the weather warms, he should go longer into games.
Then came starts from Buchholz and Kelly – and the bullpen was busy by the fourth inning. Buchholz gave up five runs in four innings Wednesday in Cleveland, Kelly seven runs in three innings in Toronto on Friday.
Porcello followed Saturday by giving up four runs in three innings, but he at least re-grouped to go six innings. Still, he doesn’t project confidence, not after last year.
Can the Red Sox contend with pitching like this? And will the bullpen hold up if it has to continue to bail out Boston in the early to middle innings?
This rotation has potential – we constantly hear about the “stuff” of Buchholz and Kelly. But we also hear about a couple of misplaced pitches or something off in their mechanics.
Will that ever change? If everything is not working just right with Buchholz, Kelly and Porcello, can they be effective?
Back in 2006, Lester went through his first major league spring training. He told me the most valuable lesson he learned – from Beckett and Schilling – was a pitcher has to find a way to win even without every pitch working.
It’s called competing.
We’re not saying Boston’s starters 2 through 5 don’t want to win. Do they have enough will to win? It’s a tangible that Boston needs.
Otherwise, fans are in for a season of watching Price, then crossing their fingers.
HENRY OWENS might have been in Boston’s rotation with the injury to Rodriguez. But Owens looked shaky in spring training (5.40 ERA, allowing 12 hits and nine walks in 131/3 inning).
Owens appeared back on track Friday night, albeit in Triple-A, pitching six shutout innings for Pawtucket (allowing one hit and three walks, striking out eight).
If Owens continues to dominate over a stretch of games, he might force a promotion (maybe finally sending Kelly to the bullpen, where his fastball-slider would play better in short stretches).
ANOTHER PITCHING prospect shined Friday, but Boston needs to be patient with Anderson Espinoza, who turned 18 last month.
Pitching in low Class A Greenville, Espinoza went a career-long five innings (two hits, no runs, no walks and four strikeouts; 63 pitches, 43 strikes). The high 90s fastball was apparently working.
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