Entering last week, things looked good for the Red Sox. Just 2 1/2 games behind the Yankees and awaiting a weekend series at Yankee Stadium, the Sox had a chance to close in on the Yankees, and perhaps even take the lead on them. The team was 8-0 against the Yankees in 2009, so things were encouraging.
Boston came in hoping for the best and got the worst. Swept by the Yankees, shut out twice, and more pitching woes for the Sox.
It seems clear to me that New York is the favorite to win the AL East at this point. With strong pitching and even stronger hitting, they clearly look like the stronger team this season. Boston is 6.5 games back now, and tied with Texas in the Wild Card chase. Behind Texas in this race is Tampa Bay, just 1.5 games back.
Boston did nothing that it needed to do during its weekend series in New York. Twice, the team failed to score a run in a game. The hitting, however, is less of a concern than the team's pitching may be.
The Red Sox have a decimated pitching staff, with both Tim Wakefield and Matsuzaka on the disabled list. Clay Buchholz and John Smoltz have been far from effective, and Boston's starting pitching situation is a mess right now.
In another interesting twist, the Washington Nationals have never looked better than they do now. With an 8-game winning streak and 12 wins out of 16 since July 25th, the Nats have a better record than any other baseball team in that period.
Their relievers have been great for them too. With a 2.98 ERA since the All-Star break, their bullpen is allowing nearly half the runs it allowed during the first half of the season. Closer Mike MacDougal has stepped it up this past month, averting many of the blown saves the team saw through the All-Star break.
My final MLB news of the day is centered around Arizona Diamondbacks' Mark Reynolds. Reynolds has been the hottest player in baseball lately. In the past ten days, he's raised his BA from .275 to .290, and he has 8 HR's, 12 RBI's, and 2 SB's. This kind of stat line is exceptional. Of course, he did singlehandedly beat me in fantasy baseball this week, which somewhat dampens his performance in my eyes.
Boston came in hoping for the best and got the worst. Swept by the Yankees, shut out twice, and more pitching woes for the Sox.
It seems clear to me that New York is the favorite to win the AL East at this point. With strong pitching and even stronger hitting, they clearly look like the stronger team this season. Boston is 6.5 games back now, and tied with Texas in the Wild Card chase. Behind Texas in this race is Tampa Bay, just 1.5 games back.
Boston did nothing that it needed to do during its weekend series in New York. Twice, the team failed to score a run in a game. The hitting, however, is less of a concern than the team's pitching may be.
The Red Sox have a decimated pitching staff, with both Tim Wakefield and Matsuzaka on the disabled list. Clay Buchholz and John Smoltz have been far from effective, and Boston's starting pitching situation is a mess right now.
In another interesting twist, the Washington Nationals have never looked better than they do now. With an 8-game winning streak and 12 wins out of 16 since July 25th, the Nats have a better record than any other baseball team in that period.
Their relievers have been great for them too. With a 2.98 ERA since the All-Star break, their bullpen is allowing nearly half the runs it allowed during the first half of the season. Closer Mike MacDougal has stepped it up this past month, averting many of the blown saves the team saw through the All-Star break.
My final MLB news of the day is centered around Arizona Diamondbacks' Mark Reynolds. Reynolds has been the hottest player in baseball lately. In the past ten days, he's raised his BA from .275 to .290, and he has 8 HR's, 12 RBI's, and 2 SB's. This kind of stat line is exceptional. Of course, he did singlehandedly beat me in fantasy baseball this week, which somewhat dampens his performance in my eyes.
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