"Robinson Cano is the only base runner who’s been thrown out by the Sox this year. Hang your head, Mr. Cano. You’re like the one guy in 500 who gets a citation for jaywalking." -Dan Shaughnessy
This is a problem. For all of the Sox' talk of run prevention, the inability of either backstop to stop the running game is a glaring discrepancy. Counting last night's partial game, the Red Sox have allowed 16 stolen bases in seventeen attempts. This is not okay.
I don't know what the answer is: there aren't many legitimate catchers out there, and those who are good are decidedly unavailable, while the in-system catchers are at least 2 years away. Maybe the pitchers need to do more work holding runners on... Throwing over to first once in a while, maybe? (I'm NOT talking to you, Clay Buchholz!)
One thing is for sure: pitching and defense only works when ALL NINE POSITIONS can make things work, and right now there's a glaring hole in the plan.
However, according to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe, the steals haven't been too costly:
"I checked it out this morning. Of those 16 steals, nine have led to runs scoring. But only once so far did a stolen base helped lead directly to a loss."
Okay. But what if the Sox end up one win short of a playoff berth? I know there's a tendency to dismiss early struggles, and in some cases that is an appropriate course of action. Now? I think its time to at least consider the possibility that this is the weakness to focus on, and fix. Please, Theo?
This has been a problem for a while with the Sox. Ever since Tek reached his mid-thirties he's a had a bit of trouble with throwing out base-runners. It was less of a problem back when Tek was still hitting .270 and knocking out around 20 home runs a season. But now that that aspect of his game is fading, it's a much more noticable problem. The Sox need to draft a young catcher in the next draft, but in the meantime, V-Mart needs to step it up.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that any catcher decent enough to throw out runners - like the Molinas - typically suck too much to play every day. The exception is a player like Ivan Rogriguez or Yadier Molina, and they're both pretty rare. I'd much rather have a catcher who can hit.
ReplyDelete