Presenting the full list 2017 Roster Recaps, listed with the authors that wrote them. An asterisk denotes a player who has, as of March 13th, dearly departed the Red Sox. We’ll miss them all terribly.

Catchers

• Sandy Leon (Cam Ellis)
• Blake Swihart (Jake Devereaux)
• Christian Vazquez (Brett Cowett)

Infielders

• Xander Bogaerts (Chris Teeter)
• Chase d’Arnaud* (Matt Kory)
• Rafael Devers (Kory)
• Marco Hernandez (Cowett)
• Brock Holt (Devereaux)
• Tzu-Wei Lin (Cowett)
• Deven Marrero (Cowett)
• Mitch Moreland (Cowett)
• Eduardo Nunez (Teeter)
• Dustin Pedroia (Kory)
• Hanley Ramirez (Devereaux)
• Josh Rutledge* (Cowett)
• Pablo Sandoval* (Cowett)
• Sam Travis (Teeter)

Outfielders

• Andrew Benintendi (Ellis)
• Mookie Betts (Kory)
• Jackie Bradley Jr. (Cowett)
• Rajai Davis* (Daniel Poarch)
• Steve Selsky (Ellis)
• Chris Young* (Cowett)

Pitchers

• Fernando Abad* (Ellis)
• Matt Barnes (Cowett)
• Blaine Boyer* (Cowett)
• Roenis Elias (Poarch)
• Doug Fister* (Kory)
• Heath Hembree (Kory)
• Brian Johnson (Teeter)
• Joe Kelly (Ellis)
• Kyle Kendrick* (Poarch)
• Craig Kimbrel (Cowett)
• Austin Maddox (Ellis)
• Kyle Martin (Poarch)
• Drew Pomeranz (Ellis)
• Rick Porcello (Teeter)
• David Price (Ellis)
• Noe Ramirez* (Poarch)
• Addison Reed* (Ellis)
• Eduardo Rodriguez (Cowett)
• Robbie Ross* (Cowett)
• Chris Sale (Cowett)
• Robby Scott (Cowett)
• Carson Smith (Teeter)
• Ben Taylor (Cowett)
• Hector Velazquez (Devereaux)
• Brandon Workman (Ellis)
• Steven Wright (Kory)

Header photo by Winslow Townson — USA TODAY Sports

We had Robbie Ross and Robby Scott, two guys who both threw left handed, sported solid facial hair, and were ticketed for at least some LOOGY work in 2017, if not more than that. “The Robbys are warming up in the bullpen,” would be a good line. “Double-bearded action for the twin southpaws” would be another one. You’d know who they are the moment the line was said. Endless joke possibilities for a solid reliever who we’d supposedly see pitching often.

The Double Robby Funtime Era didn’t even last two months into the season. Fighting such maladies like the flu, ineffectiveness, elbow inflammation, and back issues, Ross cobbled together nine altogether bad innings in 2017. The Red Sox weren’t exactly prolific in deploying their left-handed relievers last year, but this was essentially a lost year for Ross.

What Went Right

Sometimes it’s really, really hard to find something good, especially when your total playing time is essentially the length of a single game. He didn’t give up a home run, that’s a good thing. More strikeouts than walks, also good. But by now you know I’m scraping the bottom of the barrel for good things to say, so here’s the only 2017 highlight MLB uploaded focusing on Robbie Ross. It’s not even a strikeout, but he did field his position well!

What Went Wrong

Where do we even begin? How about when he was used so sparingly that he got optioned to Pawtucket on April 28th for the bus riding expertise of Ben Taylor? Or do we open with the fact that the Rays scored five runs off of him in 4.2 innings combined? Maybe we can start with him having about two lengthy stints on the disabled list for three different things. Granted, we can’t really look into the actual performance too much, but there isn’t a lot to go on unless you want to lament on a year lost for him. Would he have made a major impact on this team’s performance? Probably not, but a good pitcher is useful nonetheless, and Ross was very solid in 2016. Even with a bullpen unit as good as the one the Red Sox had in 2017, you can never have too much pitching.

What To Expect

Ross is all but gone. He was released in early November, and we’ve heard very little since. The only notable nugget of news regarding him has been that the Blue Jays had some interest in him in early December. He’ll probably struggle to find anything lucrative on the free agent market, seeing as he’s coming off of back surgery, and that the free agent market is moving at a glacial pace right now. But Ross does indeed throw left handed and he has a heartbeat. Teams have taken chances on far less than that, but the Red Sox might not be the ones to gamble on him.

Photo by Patrick McDermott — USA TODAY Sports

Ben Taylor, however, looked like he’d avoid having a permanent seat on that bus. At the beginning of the year, Taylor made the Opening Day roster after a solid run in the Grapefruit League. He avoided having to stay in Portland and went straight to the majors. That’s pretty good!

That stint on the roster lasted until April 13th, when Robbie Ross recovered from having the flu. Then he was recalled on April 17th — and subsequently sent back down that same day. Taylor was again recalled on the 28th, and lasted a whole m0nth until being sent back to Pawtucket on May 28th. On July 19th, Taylor saw the majors yet again, but went down with an oblique strain and be placed on the 10-day disabled list on the 26th. The Red Sox activated him from that list on August 30th and immediately sent him to Pawtucket, only to be added when the rosters expanded the next day. That’s less a roller coaster and more a sine graph.

Now back to that hypothetical bus. There’s a seat on it, probably in the first few rows, right next to a window. It’s a little worn down, and the seat cushion is probably a little compressed. The seat next to it is relatively cleaner, as it mostly had a sport bag on it. Both have that generic grey-with-random-shapes pattern on it that you see in nearly every bus. At this point, you may be wondering, “why is this hack author describing a damn seat on a imaginary bus?”

Because that was Ben Taylor’s seat. And it very well still could be in 2018.

What Went Right

Taylor and his 95 mph heater joined the reliever corps on Opening Day, which nearly made the whole unit alike in that everyone in that group seemingly had a fastball that touched 95+ consistently. If anything, a fastball with that velocity is going to do some work for you, even if the rest of your repertoire is a work in progress. He did end up striking out 22.5 percent of the batters he faced in the majors, and even notched his first career save when a game in St. Louis lasted until the 13th inning.

Taylor got a save and struck out a fair few batters along the way. Can’t ask for much more from a guy who just made the majors.

What Went Wrong

His control wasn’t all there. Granted, it’s not something we should’ve expected considering his stats in the minors, but a 11.2 percent walk rate is pretty awful. Taylor’s slider and changeup still need work, but only one really needs to pan out for him to be an effective reliever. That’s not too high of an expectation, and it’s certainly possible he can be helpful — the issue is his control might not be good enough to make that matter. His 7.9 percent whiff rate is also concerning for a guy with a strikeout rate like the one he has, since it’s below average and means that he’s getting help from called strikes instead of getting more of the swinging variety. He did only throw 17.1 innings in the majors, so sound the small sample size klaxon, but it’s a bit of a red flag.

But the more obvious mark on his 2017 is that Taylor got lit up. Three homers in that 17.1-inning span sure makes your rates look terrible, and a 5.19 ERA with a 4.89 FIP qualify as such. He induced very little soft contact — only on 7.5 percent of all contact made — and nearly half his batted balls were fly balls. Combine that with the highest contact rate of all Red Sox relievers with 10 or more innings pitched (83.2 percent), and we’ve got batting practice. Fenway Park isn’t the place to be if that’s your thing.

What To Expect

Keep that bus seat warm. Taylor will need it.

Photo by Kirby Lee — USA TODAY Sports

Top Play (WPA)

Big moment, big hit, Big Papi.

That round-tripper was worth .225 WPA, and brought the Red Sox back into the game early on. Ortiz took a Mike Pelfrey sinker that floated over the outer edge of the plate and deposited it into the visitor’s bullpen. That blast was one of the few bright spots the Red Sox had in this game, and it was probably the loudest play as well. No one excites – especially against Detroit – quite like David Ortiz.

Bottom Play (WPA)

Leading off the 9th inning, Dustin Pedroia grounded out to Miguel Cabrera for the first out of the inning. That play, while seemingly small, was the worst of the game, with a -.092 WPA. Considering that two of the best hitters in the American League were coming up after him, it makes a little more sense in context, and Bogaerts’ subsequent single would’ve had a much bigger impact. Sometimes, it’s the little things that get you.

Key Moment

When Robbie Ross ran out of gas. In the top of the 7th, Ross struck out Victor Martinez and got Nick Castellanos to ground out. With two big bats down, the inning seemed like a cake walk for the southpaw. Then he hit Justin Upton with a pitch. Mike Aviles singled after that. Ross lost all control, walked Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and then walked Tyler Collins, bringing in the go-ahead run. Joe Kelly had mop-up duty after that and got the final out, but the damage was done.

The Red Sox offense – the very same one that came back from a four-run and a three-run deficit in the same game – couldn’t muster another run. Hell, they couldn’t even get a guy to second base after Ross’ meltdown.

Trend to Watch

I’m not one to harp on Farrell, since managing is a tough job and you seldom get praise when you’re good, but he was terrible at managing pitchers in this one. Steven Wright was being knocked around in the fifth inning and Farrell ended his suffering only after four runs had scored. When Ross lost all control, he waited until a run scored to yank him for Joe Kelly, of all people. I know the bullpen’s taxed, and it’s missing key members, but there’s no excuse to let situations like those unfold. Farrell’s got to be proactive about bringing in relievers.

Coming Next

An afternoon game, featuring the really good Michael Fulmer against the not-as-good Eduardo Rodriguez. The Red Sox need this one, as they go on a dreaded West Coast road trip after that. Here’s hoping they flip the script.

Photo by Tyler Collins/USA Today Sports Images

Boston’s pen currently features seven relievers: Craig Kimbrel, Koji Uehara, Junichi Tazawa, Robbie Ross, Heath Hembree, Tommy Layne and Matt Barnes. We’ll organize them into three tiers. The top tier includes the first three guys on the list. Say what you will about Kimbrel’s increased home run and walk rate, he’s still an elite option. Koji is visibly aging but for now he’s in this class. Beyond the thought of Tazawa facing anyone who has ever been a part of the Blue Jays organization, he’s a rock in Boston’s pen.

Then there’s the next group. That’s Ross and Hembree. Ross has been susceptible to the home run and he still walks more than you’d like, but he’s been effective. Hembree has been, if anything, even better, but he’s such a fly-ball pitcher that the fear of homers raining from the sky is still there. All in all though, two effective if not elite relievers.

Then there’s the back end of Layne and Barnes. Some might put Barnes in the middle tier, but I don’t because he simply walks too many guys. He’s not immune to homers either, though it’s not a huge problem for him. Mostly he’s a competent reliever, but not an option for the back end of pen because he simply doesn’t throw enough quality strikes or, really, enough strikes. Layne is, I’m sure a nice fellow, but he’s really just a guy. The walks are high, the strikeouts league average or a touch below from the pen, and he doesn’t dominate lefties like you’d think a guy with his arm angle would.

When looking to upgrade the pen, it’s this last tier of guys that I’d look to improve upon. You never like to lose talent for nothing, but this team is all in on winning this season and frankly Layne isn’t doing much to help. Barnes could someday move into the second tier if his command improves, but stashing him back in Pawtucket shouldn’t be any kind of impediment to improving the bullpen in Boston right now.

There are two groups from where to draw that improvement. The first is starting pitchers who have flamed out at the major league level. That would be Roenis Elias and Joe Kelly. Kelly is currently hurt, and his groin injury is coming along slowly. If he returns this season, it should be as a reliever in Pawtucket. See if his stuff plays up in a bullpen role and go from there. In the meantime, Roenis Elias represents an intriguing replacement for Tommy Layne, assuming the team needs a lefty-on-lefty only reliever. Elias has been successful against left handers in his career, holding them to a .658 OPS with a 2.67 K/BB ratio. He has some speed on his fastball and deception from the left side, both of which could play up a bit in the pen. It must be acknowledged that taking a starter and making him a situational lefty isn’t exactly squeezing out all the marrow out of the bone, but in this season of Going All In, maybe it merits a shot.

In his last 10 appearances, Light has thrown 12 innings, struck out 13, walked four, and given up six hits and no runs.

The second group is composed of minor league relievers Pat Light and Kyle Martin. Light is likely the better known of the two, having already made his major league debut earlier this season. His fastball sits in the upper 90s and he’s reported to have reached 100 mph at times. He keeps hitters off that heat with a splitter and slider. The overall package can be downright dominating when the command is there, and after an initial bump in the road at Pawtucket after his call up, Light has been dominant. In his last 10 appearances he’s thrown 12 innings, struck out 13, walked four, and given up six hits and no runs. Overall he has 32 strikeouts and 13 walks in 26.1 innings in Triple-A and all with only one homer allowed. He’s spent time in Triple-A and made an appearance in Boston, so it’s unlikely the 25-year-old would be wowed by the lights (sorry not sorry). (Editor’s note: it is indeed Light who got the call to the majors to replace Eduardo Rodriguez on the roster.)

Pat Light isn’t the only one in Triple-A to pitch well out of the pen. Kyle Martin, the Red Sox 9th round pick in 2013 out of Texas A&M University has been putting up numbers that surpass Light’s. His strikeouts are up (11.3 K/9), his walks down (2.3. BB/9), and his ground ball tendencies help keep the homers down as well with just one given up in 35 innings so far this season. Martin does carry a 4.11 ERA, but his K and BB numbers are quite good and he keeps the ball in the park well so his potential as a fifth or sixth bullpen arm isn’t diminished.

None of these guys are the next Kimbrel, but deployed properly they can be upgrades on the current cast. Send Barnes down and see what Light brings you. See if Elias can help get lefties out better than Layne has been able to, or don’t, just bring up Martin instead. There are, believe it or not, options. And options are good, especially if they represent hope and if they don’t cost the team top prospects like Rafael Devers or Anderson Espinoza. If Andrew Miller is available at reasonable cost, consider making the move, but short of that, there are enough problems elsewhere on this roster that it makes sense to use the team’s resources on a position with fewer internal solutions, which, at least for now, rules out the bullpen.

Photo by Kelly O’Connor/www.sittingstill.smugmug.com

Top Play (WPA)

As if there was any doubt: Xander Bogaerts’ go-ahead single in the 10th inning slots in here.

That ducksnort was worth .228 WPA, by far the highest of the game. The Red Sox, thanks to an improbable series of events that started with a Sandy Leon lead-off double (!!!) and then a Marco Hernandez four-pitch walk (!!), ended up with a great opportunity to take the lead late, and Bogaerts made it happen with what might be the softest hit he’s ever gotten. Mookie Betts should also be lauded here, as he was off on contact and saw that it would fall for a hit, giving the team an extra run.

Bottom Play (WPA)

Weirdly enough, this was the play right before Bogaerts’ single. Dustin Pedroia had grounded out to Matt Duffy with the bases loaded, who took the easy out at home, but could not get Pedroia out at first. The fielder’s choice was worth a -.146 WPA, a surprisingly high mark, but when put into the context of extra innings, it starts to make much more sense. It’s not often that Pedroia reduces the team’s chances of winning by nearly 15%, but we all can’t be perfect every day.

Key Moment

Chris Young somehow got himself out of a double play in the 7th inning and was able to keep the play alive so a run would score. Words don’t really do it justice.

That’s an incredible feat by Young to make sure this game ends up tied. Crawford felt rushed and half-heartedly made a tag that Young was able to get away from. Didn’t leave the basepath, just fell under the tag and scrambled to second base. Young played limbo and won.

Not only was Young incredible on the basepaths, he kicked in on defense and offense in this one. Baseball is weird.

Trend to Watch

Robbie Ross deserves some love. He threw a perfect inning today, lowering his ERA and FIP to 3.00 and 2.64 on the year. In comparison, Craig Kimbrel has a 2.70 ERA and a 2.52 FIP, and induces grounders at half the rate that Ross does. He’s also destroying left-handed batters to the tune of a .083/.241/.125 line, which makes you wonder why Tommy Layne comes out of the ‘pen first against LHH when they hit .267/.400/.414 line against him. It’s nice to see Farrell going to him more often now, as he’s starting to show that he demands higher-leverage appearances than what he’s seeing now.

Also, this was a nice bounceback outing for Rick Porcello, who threw six innings of three-run ball.

Coming Next

In the premier matchup this week, David Price will face off against fellow southpaw Madison Bumgarner, who the Red Sox will try to keep from spraying homers all over the park.

Photo by John Hefti/USA Today Sports Images

Top Play (WPA)

Despite the Red Sox coming out on top on Thursday, the White Sox were actually the owners of the biggest play of the game. This came in the fifth inning, when Heath Hembree was on the mound and struggling. Chicago loaded the bases with three straight singles, and backup catcher Hector Sanchez was at the plate. He worked a fantastic ten-pitch at bat that eventually led to a bases-loaded walk (+.131) that brought the White Sox within one. Luckily….well, we’ll get to what happened next in a second.

As for the biggest play for the Red Sox, that came in the following frame. Jackie Bradley came to the plate with a one-run lead facing off against old friend Matt Albers, the owner of a 35-inning scoreless streak. Sure enough, Bradley continued his power surge by blasting a line drive the other way that landed in the seats (+.129) and gave the Red Sox a 5-3 advantage.

Bottom Play (WPA)

So, remember that bases loaded walk that ended up being the biggest play of the game? I sure hope you do considering you read it about 20 seconds ago. Anyway, things got a little worse for the White Sox after that. With the bases still loaded and Matt Barnes still in the game, Austin Jackson had a chance to give the White Sox their first lead of the night. Instead, he hit a line drive to Mookie Betts in right field. Betts relayed the throw home to gun down Brett Lawrie at the plate and end the inning (-.222) with the lead in tact. It was something of a controversial play, as Chicago challenged the play on the grounds that Ryan Hanigan blocked the plate prior to getting control of the ball. To be honest, it looked like the White Sox had a case, but the play was close and the umps opted to stick with the original call.

Henry Owens Enjoys Long Walks on the Basepaths

For as encouraging as the overall game was, it’s hard to get past just how poorly Henry Owens pitched. As is typically the case with him, the control was just nowhere to be found all night. Although he only allowed two hits in his three innings of work, he walked a whopping six batters. Owens still has the talent to make it as a back-end starter, but he won’t come close to realizing that potential until he gets these walks under wraps. It seems likely that his next start will be with Pawtucket rather than Boston. It’s unclear who would take his rotation spot, but it’s hard to imagine them being less productive than Owens.

Don’t Forget about Dustin Pedroia

On the positive side of things, I think we need to acknowledge what Dustin Pedroia is doing this year. He’s not usually who we think of in this lineup, but he’s been extremely productive to start off 2016. On Thursday, he started the scoring action for the Red Sox by hitting a solo home run in the first inning. With his three hits in the game, he’s now hitting .322/.364/.496 on the season to go along with his typical defense. The Red Sox have a scary lineup when Dustin Pedroia is swinging the bat like this.

Jackie Bradley’s Power Is Still Here

As I mentioned before, Bradley hit another home run in this one. Although it was only his second of the season, he’s been hitting for plenty of power with a .213 ISO through Thursday night’s game. It was jarring to see his power production last season, but he’s showing that he can keep up something in that neighborhood on a consistent basis. To make matters even better, it seems as if all of these extra-base hits are coming in high-leverage situations.

Another Strong Night for the Bullpen

Boston’s bullpen is no stranger to long nights, as the rotation has made a habit out of leaving games early. Luckily, they haven’t been fazed by that challenge. Although Hembree struggled a bit coming in after Owens, he still allowed just one run while recording four outs. Then, Barnes came in and came through with a huge performance. He was aided by that play at the plate, but he also deserves credit for recording five outs without allowing a hit or a walk. Junichi Tazawa did Junichi Tazawa things after that before Robbie Ross locked down the final two innings to close out the game. Eventually, starters need to go deeper in games, but the bullpen has been up the challenge thus far.

Coming Next

The Red Sox head to New York to face off against the Yankees once again. New York is coming off a series loss in Baltimore, and are reeling early in the year. A good series for Boston would not only keep them atop the AL East, but would bury their rivals even deeper in the standings. The series starts at 7:05 Friday night with the struggling Michael Pineda taking on the red-hot Rick Porcello.

Photo by Kamil Krzaczynski/USA Today Sports Images

Top Play (WPA)

The final score of this game was 1-0, so it shouldn’t come as any surprise that the most important play was the one that produced the lone run. Julio Teheran was in something of a groove all night, and was carrying a shutout into the seventh. Jackie Bradley ruined that with one out in the frame by ripping a solo shot (+0.222) into the right field seats. Just how much more important was this play than any other in this game, you ask? Well, the next highest rated play by WPA was a Jeff Francoeur double (+.093).

Bottom Play (WPA)

The Red Sox pitching was in control for most of this game, but there was one spot in which it looked like the Braves could get something going. In the bottom of the seventh, fresh off Bradley’s go-ahead home run, Atlanta managed to get a first-and-third situation with two outs. Rick Porcello had just been taken out of the game, which some idiot disagreed with, and Dustin Pedroia had just muffed a double play ball that could’ve ended the inning. Now, Aybar had runners on the corner with Robbie Ross on the mound. The lefty reliever came through in the clutch and froze Aybar with a curveball (-0.108) to end the threat. An added bonus was seeing Christian Vazquez fist pump and run off the field before the strike was even called.

Rick Porcello Is: Good?

For most of last season, Rick Porcello looked like something close to a lost cause. He had changed up his repertoire to a detrimental degree, and was allowing hard contact on seemingly offering. Early this year, and late last year for that matter, he has looked like an entirely different pitcher. He continued that trend tonight. Now, it obviously has to be mentioned that he was facing a Braves lineup that left the field tonight with a .583 OPS, 30 points worse than the next worst offense. They also have no power — they have three (3!!!) home runs on the year — and dingers are still Porcello’s biggest weakness. With that being said, the Red Sox pitcher still looked great last night, and was getting plenty of whiffs on his sinker and changeup. Maybe the Red Sox do have their number two pitcher after all?

A Much-Needed Shutdown Night for the Bullpen

Boston’s relief corps was supposed to be a strength in 2016, but underperformance and a massive workload have prevented that from happening. They looked terrific on Monday, however. It started with Ross, who came in with two runners on and induced a ground ball and got a strikeout to escape the frame unscathed. Koji Uehara followed up and got out of the eighth with one strikeout and two pop outs. It should be mentioned, however, that he also walked another batter. His season rate is now up to an alarming 11.4 percent. Kimbrel took over in the ninth in his old home park and got a one-two-three inning with two strikeouts. It should be mentioned, however, that he was bailed out by an inexplicably missed call in which he got away with hitting Freddie Freeman in the foot. So, there were a couple blips, but overall it was a refreshing day for the pen.

The Bats Were Quiet

It was an almost-shockingly quiet performance from Boston’s lineup on Monday after carrying the team for much of the early season. Of course, they were missing David Ortiz and Hanley Ramirez. They also had Josh Rutledge hitting fifth. Still, it’s jarring to see just one run and six hits from this team. However, they did produce plenty of hard contact that found its way right at defenders, and Teheran had his good stuff going. There’s nothing to be concerned about in the long-term here.

Coming Next

The Red Sox end their quick two-day stint in Atlanta tomorrow before escaping the dumb NL rules for a little bit. They’ll look to continue their winning ways with David Price, who’s in desperate search for a bounce-back outing. You can’t ask for a better lineup to face with that goal in mind. Boston’s lineup will look to light up the scoreboard against Matt Wisler. First pitch is at 7:10 ET.

Photo by Dale Zanine/USA Today Sports Images

Top Play (WPA): Was there any doubt here about the top play being Kevin Kiermaier’s home run? Leave it to Matt Barnes to hang a curveball in the heart of the plate. Kiermaier jumped all over it and sent it deep into the right field corner. This was right after Robbie Ross, Junichi Tazawa and Craig Kimbrel combined for five scoreless innings while allowing only three baserunners. There was a lot of pressure on the bullpen in this one, and the 10th inning was the limit of what they could take.

Bottom Play (WPA): If Kiermaier’s dinger wasn’t the most disappointing moment of the night, this was: Dustin Pedroia grounded into an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the 3rd inning. The Red Sox had the bases loaded and no outs, yet still found a way to not score. Then they didn’t reach base for the next seven innings. That borders on hyperbole, so let’s get even more crazy – the last 22 batters for the Red Sox did not reach first base. And I thought watching a Joe Kelly-pitched game was gonna be the worst part about this.

Key Moment: I know I just made a dig at him, but Joe Kelly getting taken out in the first inning because of an injury was huge in this game. The early diagnosis is a shoulder impingement, which to me sounds like he’s gonna be a out a while, and that means the Sox are going to have their starting pitcher depth tested. Two outs in, and the Red Sox needed their bullpen to get going. To be fair, they did step up for nine whole innings. It’s a shame that the game went 10.

Trend to Watch: Relievers mopping up a potentially huge mess. Heath Hembree was the first man out of the ‘pen when Kelly went down, and despite just getting called up from Pawtucket, Hembree proceeded to hurl 3 1/3 scoreless innings. Robbie Ross then came in, and churned out three more innings of solid work. Those two deserve a lot of praise for 6 1/3 scoreless innings after the starter went down. With the Red Sox needing pitchers, they might send Hembree back down, which sucks for a guy who really kept them in it early on.

Coming Next: Rick Porcello faces off against Chris Archer in what looks like a really lopsided matchup. That means the underdog will win, right? Porcello will go the distance, correct? Let me dream a bit here.

Photo by Bob DeChiara/USA Today Sports Images

Top Play (WPA): Clay Buchholz was actually looking pretty solid until the sixth inning. It wasn’t his best start, granted, but he flashed the changeup and curveball that he needs to be successful. Then the sixth inning happened. It started with Chris Davis effortlessly crushing a ball off the wall in left field, a noteworthy achievement given the wind blasting toward right field. Of course, that was nothing compared to Mark Trumbo, who followed that up with a blast over everything in left (+.223) that tied the game up at four. The Orioles have some stupid power, you guys.

Bottom Play (WPA): Let me start this by saying Mike Wright is not a good pitcher. I don’t think that’s a controversial statement. He was solid last night, but the Red Sox had a chance to put him away in the fourth. The score was tied at two, and after two quick outs the bases became loaded with a single and two hit batsmen. Blake Swihart came to the plate with a chance to give Buchholz a much-needed cushion early in this game. Instead, he hit a routine grounder to Jonathan Schoop at second (-.086) and the inning was over without a run being scored. It was a rough night for Swihart, but we’ll get to that in a second.

Key Moment: Remember that Trumbo home run that ended up being the most important play in the game? It probably never should’ve happened. Earlier in that at bat, he popped a ball in foul territory in front of the Red Sox dugout. It looked like a routine play. The wind messed things up for fielders all night, but if we’re being honest with ourselves it should’ve been caught. Instead, Swihart misread it and it fell past his outstretched glove. Maybe Hanley Ramirez should’ve called him off, as he had a better read on it. He probably should have. But either way, that’s a ball Swihart should’ve had. Buchholz still shares plenty of the blame for allowing Trumbo to hit a ball 1200 yards, but the whole situation could’ve been avoided.

More Swihart Sadness: That’s probably enough sadness for Swihart in one game, but there’s one more play that gets added to this list. Not only did he account for the worst play in the game by WPA, but he also was the proud owner of the third-worst play. After that mess of a sixth inning, the Red Sox still only trailed by one run in the bottom half. Once again, Boston’s catcher found himself at the plate in a big situation, this time with Travis Shaw on third and two outs. A single would’ve tied the game, but instead he hit yet another routine ground ball to second base. People on the twittersphere were already wondering when Christian Vazquez would take the starting role behind the plate, which is obviously insane. However, there’s no denying it was a rough night for Swihart. He’ll likely get a much needed night off tonight with Joe Kelly taking the hill.

The Most Clay Buchholz Start Ever: Well, that’s probably not true since he left the mound healthy, but everything else about it was quintessential Buchholz. He started the outing with some shaky control, walking two of his first six opponents. Then, he settled down and started looking like a near-ace with both his changeup and his curveball working. At one point, he struck out four of eight batters he faced while allowing just one to reach base. Then, he was hurt by a bit of dumb luck, with JJ Hardy hooking a ball around Pesky’s Pole with as short of a home run as humanly possible*. Then, of course, he imploded in the sixth. Buchholz is still the shrug emoji personified.

*He did that twice, by the way. Baseball is dumb.

Failure in Middle Relief: The Red Sox’s bullpen was supposed to be a strength for this team in 2016, and for the most part it has been. Tonight, though, they were really feeling the absence of Carson Smith. Noe Ramirez came in after Buchholz, and while he only allowed one inherited run, that was because of big defensive plays from Mookie Betts and Travis Shaw. After him, Robbie Ross entered and promptly allowed three runs (plus one inherited runner from Ramirez) to score. Things will look better once Smith comes back, but Boston really needs one more arm to step up at some point this year.

David Ortiz Still Rules, Though: No matter what else happens this season, never lose sight of the fact that we still get to watch David Ortiz. The man is incredible. He hit another home run last night, his third of the year. He also hit an RBI double in his last at bat of the game. The man is hitting .346/.393/.846 on the season. Are we sure he has to retire?

Coming Next: The Red Sox and Orioles will finish their series tonight, with Boston trying to avoid the sweep and trying to inexplicably give Baltimore their first loss of the season. On the mound, it’ll be a matchup of enigmatic pitchers with sometimes-electric stuff and generally poor results with Joe Kelly facing off against Ubaldo Jimenez. First pitch will be at 7:00 Eastern.

Photo by Mark L. Baer/USA Today Sports Images

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