As the saying goes, the numbers don't lie. 65 games through the 2010 season, the Red Sox sat at 37-28, putting them third in the AL East, four games back of the Yankees. 65 games through this season, the Red Sox have the best record in the AL, and a two game lead over NY for first in the division. As we saw last year, Theo's "pitching and defense" strategy was anything but. The Red Sox struggled through the latter part of 2010 because of injuries, but also due to porous defense and struggles from the pen and starters. Their offense, however, was as potent as ever, thanks to a resurgence from Adrian Beltre. This season, baseball's best are firing on all cylinders, as both the offense and defense rank near the top of the league in all major statistical categories. The team overhaul that brought in Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, and Jarrod Saltalammachia has panned out thus far, and more importantly has boosted the performance of the likes of Jacoby, Ortiz, and the starting pitching. Take a look at Gonzo's, Ortiz's, and Jacoby's stats through 65 games in 2010 in comparison to this year, and you can easily see the difference in offensive production that this lineup has brought to the team. Also, the starting pitching has been much more consistent, led by Josh Beckett who was coming off three straight sub-par, injury plagued years. If the pitching and offense can continue on this path, this team could match or better the 2004 Red Sox, who won 98 games en route to their first World Series victory since 1918. All bets aside, this team is showing the collusion required to bring Boston its' third World Series title in eight years.
As the saying goes, the numbers don't lie. 65 games through the 2010 season, the Red Sox sat at 37-28, putting them third in the AL East, four games back of the Yankees. 65 games through this season, the Red Sox have the best record in the AL, and a two game lead over NY for first in the division. As we saw last year, Theo's "pitching and defense" strategy was anything but. The Red Sox struggled through the latter part of 2010 because of injuries, but also due to porous defense and struggles from the pen and starters. Their offense, however, was as potent as ever, thanks to a resurgence from Adrian Beltre. This season, baseball's best are firing on all cylinders, as both the offense and defense rank near the top of the league in all major statistical categories. The team overhaul that brought in Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, and Jarrod Saltalammachia has panned out thus far, and more importantly has boosted the performance of the likes of Jacoby, Ortiz, and the starting pitching. Take a look at Gonzo's, Ortiz's, and Jacoby's stats through 65 games in 2010 in comparison to this year, and you can easily see the difference in offensive production that this lineup has brought to the team. Also, the starting pitching has been much more consistent, led by Josh Beckett who was coming off three straight sub-par, injury plagued years. If the pitching and offense can continue on this path, this team could match or better the 2004 Red Sox, who won 98 games en route to their first World Series victory since 1918. All bets aside, this team is showing the collusion required to bring Boston its' third World Series title in eight years.
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