4/13/03 - We're Not In Kansas (City) Anymore

Second Place - AL East
6-5 ~ .545 Percentage ~ 3.5 Games Back

In this strange season so far, the Royals are still unbeaten. Meanwhile, back east, the Red Sox are barely above .500 after playing against the lesser teams in their division. The good news is they lead all of baseball in runs scored (78). The bad news is that they can't hold a lead. They have a 6.81 bullpen ERA and only the Yankees have a worse relief corps. Things have to improve for the pen before the whole of Red Sox Nation has an uprising over the "Committee".

No Relief In Sight

Let's get the bad news out of the way first. The Red Sox best starter is John Burkett. Their team ERA of 6.12 ranks the Sox 12th in the American League. They can't hold a lead or close out a ballgame. That's about the gist of it right now.

You know it's getting bad when Pedro Martinez has an ERA over 2.00. Well, that's a bit of a stretch, but his last start was a little rough vs. Baltimore. He entered the game with a 0.60 ERA and left with a 5.12 mark. So far, he's 0-1 with a 1.09 WHIP and 3.4 K/BB ratio. He was sharp in his first two starts but got no help for the Sox relievers. He'll be fine.

There is some slight concern about Derek Lowe here in the Hub. He left his last start in Toronto with a blister on his thumb. He had to get help from Martinez in his first start when his mechanics were faulty. He's a bit of a mess right now, but he will look to right the ship with two starts this week. Overall, he is 1-1 with a 7.94 ERA, 1.85 WHIP, and a 1.5 K/BB ratio.

Tim Wakefield has been hot and cold so far this year. He's sporting a 1-0 record with a 5.73 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, and a 1.5 K/BB ratio. Youngster Casey Fossum has been the same as Wakefield. He's 1-1 with a 7.45 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, and a 3.0 K/BB ratio. As mentioned before, Burkett has been the best Sox hurler with a 1-0 record and 3.18 ERA. Of concern is his 1.76 WHIP and 0.75 K/BB ratio.

The bright spot in the bullpen has been the guy considered to be a longshot before the season, Brandon Lyon. He's got a 1.29 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP and a healthy dose of confidence. He's about the only Sox reliever aside from fellow bullpen fodder Steve Woodard to be consistently effective. The big names the team brought in have done little. Chad Fox has basically imploded along with Ramiro Mendoza. Mike Timlin has been effective at times, but not on a consistent basis. Fellow holdovers Alan Embree and Bobby Howry have actually been worse. Embree has been placed on the Disabled List with a shoulder injury. He'll be eligible to come back April 24. Until then, lefty Kevin Tolar has been called up from AAA. There is still no permanent closer on the horizon, but Robert Person will be called from extended Spring Training soon and may step into that role.

Well, At Least They Can Hit

The Red Sox have been exciting offensively. The team's new approach to offense has been refreshing and it sure looks like it works. If the team could pitch this well, they'd be undefeated.

Kevin Millar is showing why he was so sought after by Boston. He leads the team with a .384 average, 1.288 OPS, 10 runs, 3 homers, and 11 RBI. He's been great in the clubhouse, as well. Trot Nixon has been a surprise so far. He's hitting .379 with a 1.086 OPS, 7 runs, 1 homer, and 4 ribbies. He also is tied for the team lead in steals with 2. Unfortunately, all of his damage has come, typically, against right handed pitching. Another guy who's had a hot start is Jason Varitek. He's batting .286 with a 1.037 OPS, 7 runs, 2 homers, and 5 RBI. He's probably the best #9 hitter in the league.

The usual suspects are also delivering offense for the team. Nomar Garciaparra is hitting .304 with a .918 OPS. He's also scored 10 runs, hit two dingers, and knocked in 8 runs. He's driving the ball much better than last year when he came back from a wrist injury in 2001. The team's best offensive force, Manny Ramirez has yet to bust out. That only means he's been better than average. He's hitting .302 with a .806 OPS, 8 runs scored, a homer, and 8 RBI. He'll heat up soon enough. Johnny Damon has been a terror on the bases. The only problem is he hasn't been on them enough. He's hitting .256 with a .815 OPS, 10 runs, 2 homers, 5 ribbies, and 2 steals. The guy everyone wanted to get rid of, Shea Hillenbrand, has supplied some offense himself. He's hitting .282 with a .805 OPS, 4 runs, one homer, and 16 RBI to lead the team. He also has chipped in with a steal.

Some of the new guys aren't pulling their weight so far. Jeremy Giambi is close to getting the 2003 Tony (Clark) Award for Worst Impression of a Giambi. He's hitting just .091 with a .538 OPS. His average is approaching Craig Grebeck level. Ouch. His pal at first base, David Ortiz hasn't been much better. He's only hitting .100 with a .430 OPS. At least Todd Walker is showing some signs of life. He's hitting at a .256 clip with a .653 OPS, 8 runs, one homer, and 4 RBI.

This is just the start of the year, so things will inevitably turns around. The Royals will start to slide towards the bottom of their division and the Red Sox will win more games. Remember, Cleveland started last year at 11-0. What happens in April stays in April.

Finally, on behalf of the Red Sox staff here at F.I.C., we'd like to pass along best wishes to Sox pitching coach Tony Cloninger. He's missed the start of the year due to cancer treatments. We all hope for a speedy and healthy recovery. The Sox sure could use him right now.

If you have any comments, feel free to email me at redsox@fantasyinfocentral.com or you can post at our Red Sox Fan Forum on our message board. You can also leave comments/questions/suggestions below this story.