Why the Red Sox shouldn't scare the Jays

Steve Phillips

TSN Baseball Insider

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After the 5-1 homestand, the Blue Jays have now won 10 of their last 13 games. The offence has come to life while the starting pitching continues to be exceptional. The bullpen, which has been a nemesis at times, seems to be coming together a little better. The acquisition of Jason Grilli and return of Aaron Loup add depth and options for manager John Gibbons while his confidence in Gavin Floyd, Jesse Chavez and Joe Biagini grows.

As a general manager, this is why we wait until Memorial Day to get a real read on the club. You are never as good as you are when you look your best and you are never as bad as you are when you look your worst. Fifty games or so allows for a clearer understanding of the ups and downs that are part of the game.  

If I were the Jays’ GM, I would be empowered by the better play and would be lining up my scouts to look for additions to the team. The Jays have a win-now roster, especially considering the reality that Bautista and Encarnacion may both be gone after this season.

Because it is a light free agent class this year, speculation is that it will be an aggressive trade market. It will be important to be prepared to pull the trigger early on deals because it is a very clearly defined marketplace. I can’t remember the last time that it has been this clear whom the buyers and sellers will be. There will not be nearly as many bubble teams this year.  

If I am the GM of a team already out of the race then I am going to want to sell for as much as I can, as early as I can. Cut my losses as soon as possible. If I am a buying team, I want the benefit of getting help as early as possible, plus I want to block others from doing the same.  

One of the other reasons I feel so confident in the Jays' playoff chances this year is my evaluation of the Boston Red Sox.  

The Sox are on pace to score 960 runs this season. That is even more than the Jays powerhouse a year ago. The Killer B’s, Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Xander Bogaerts, are crushing the baseball while the old standards of David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia are having excellent seasons as well. Add in the growth and development of Travis Shaw at third base, which has made Pablo Sandoval an afterthought. Throw in Hanley Ramirez and you have a circular lineup with no beginning or end. They are all the same. They can hit for average and power. They can drive in runs and score runs. They take base on balls and they can almost all run well.  

So you are now going back and rereading what I wrote, aren’t you?  

I did say that my evaluation of the Red Sox makes me feel better about the Jays.  

On Wednesday, Betts hit two home runs, which made it five dingers in two games for him. Pedroia had three hits as did Chris Young (Bradley had the day off). Ortiz, Shaw and Ryan Hannigan all had two hits. Oh by the way, two of the three hits from Young were homers. Ortiz hit one out as well.

So now you are totally confused, aren’t you?  How can I possibly feel better about the Jays after all of that?

I will explain...

The Red Sox lost that game with all of that offence. They scored nine but gave up thirteen. Joe Kelly started the game and was removed after 2.1 innings. By the time the game ended he was on his way to AAA Pawtucket. Clay Buchholz, one of the starters when the season began, ended up taking the loss. He gave up four runs in 3.1 innings pitched. His ERA rose to 6.34. That’s 40 per cent of the Red Sox starting rotation that has been demoted.

As good as the Red Sox offence is, it won’t be enough to sustain them over 162 games. Now they do have David Price, an improved Rick Porcello, knuckleballer Steven Wright and the return of Eduardo Rodriguez to offer hope. But I only truly trust Price.

The Jays can do this.

DECLINING FORCE

One guy who can’t do it anymore is Ryan Howard. Phillies manager Pete Mackanin announced that the slugger is getting benched for a few days to "clear his head".

That is manager-speak for “I hope I only have to play him to rest Tyler Joseph, the rookie first baseman, that we hope is part of our future.”  

Howard is hitting a meager .153 with eight homers and 19 RBI. His OBP is .214 and he is slugging a weak .340. It’s bad. And it’s sad.

We forget that Howard once hit 58 homers in a season and drove in 149 runs. He was a force to be reckoned. But no more. He never really bounced back after tearing his Achilles a few years back.

Usually it is difficult for a manager to remove a player with Howard’s past from the lineup but his poor production this year coupled with the growing frustration among fans because of his struggles makes it actually much easier.  

Honestly, the typical emotional reaction for managers and general managers, when it comes to significant struggles with high-priced players, is often the same as fans. We get angry. I am embarrassed to say it, but it is true. I thought, 'if I am paying you this kind of money I want production.' When I didn’t get it, I got angry and resentful. Now, I never showed it to any player. I always tried to lift them up and pat them on the back because I believed it was the best way to evoke better performance. I took it personally. My job depended upon their playing well. If they stunk I got fired.

When players have big money attached to them like Howard, they tend to get ample opportunity to fail. Clubs have to try to maximize the return on the investment. The Phillies big first baseman can’t complain that he hasn’t been given a chance to turn things around. He can’t complain about playing on a rebuilding club either. Part of the reason they are rebuilding is because he has significantly underperformed. If he had played better the Phillies would have been glad to trade him. They found no takers.  

So instead we see a suffering Howard. He looks miserable. I know he has a $25 million salary this year and there is a $10 million buyout on an option year for next season. He will not be a Phillie in 2017 and he will not be traded this season.

The Phillies should release him. He was a major contributor back in the day. He is just in the way right now of the rebuilding process. He has handled himself with class and dignity but his struggles do give off an energy that can affect others. It is the humane thing to do. Put him out of his misery. He might be relieved.

RANDOM THOUGHTS

Matt Harvey pitched much better in his last start against the White Sox. He went seven scoreless innings in a 1-0 victory. I am just not sure if this told me more about Harvey or the White Sox offence. We will only know if Harvey is better when he has a bad inning and can bounce back from it and pitch well.  

The Giants have been playing great baseball but they lost one of their key players on Wednesday night when Hunter Pence went down with a severe hamstring injury. Pence is an ugly duckling as a player as he doesn’t do anything gracefully, but he is the guts and glue of this team. They have managed around his injuries in the past but at some point they won’t be able to do it.  

Dodgers phenom, 19-year-old LHP Julio Urias hasn’t found the big leagues as easy as the minors. He only lasted 2.2 innings against the Mets in his debut in which he gave up three runs on five hits and four walks. He backed that up in his second start against the Cubs going five innings, and giving up five earned runs. He is 0-2 with a 9.39 ERA. It’s just not as easy as it looks.

Red Sox youngsters Jackie Bradley Jr. had a 29-game hitting streak broken this week. His teammate SS Xander Bogaerts has a 25-game streak going now. No one will ever break Dimaggio’s 56-game streak.

What a surprise the Cubs have five of the nine NL leaders by position for the All-Star game. What a joke! I won’t argue Ben Zobrist and Kris Bryant leading at second base and third base respectively. But Addison Russell (.241/.333/.371) and Anthony Rizzo (.238/,377/.486) aren’t the best at their positions. I believe the players, managers and general managers should select the starters and the fan vote should fill out the remainder of the roster. If the game “means something” then the fans shouldn’t select players based upon popularity.

Marlon Byrd was suspended AGAIN for testing positive for a banned substance. Once AGAIN, he said he didn’t knowingly take the drug to cheat. His 162-game ban will effectively end the career of the 38-year-old outfielder. Byrd hit 72 of his 159 career homers once he turned 35. He never hit more than 20 homers prior to that. Hmmmm...sounds fishy to me. Oh yeah, he made $17 million after the age of 35 as well. Cheating does pay, I guess.