Jon Lester: Deserved Better

Beckett pitched well, Lester pitched brilliantly, and Dice-K even pitched impressively.

We walked away with one win.

After our amazing May and June, we've won 8 games in the month of July. The record for June is 8-12. We're wasting good pitching performances left and right. Perfect games, no hitters, doesn't matter. All wasted.

I'm looking at you, Eric Patterson. I don't care if you have to break both of your hands to make that play. A perfect game is on the line. You MAKE that catch, especially if you just ran all that way to get there. I know it was a mistake and you didn't intend to do it, but that one play made you look like a jackass. To me, it's inexcusable. There's always one play in a no-hitter... one defensive play that when the fielder makes it, you look at the pitcher and think 'that's it, he's got this,' but when Patterson botched that play, all I could think was 'damnit*... our momentum.' Sure enough, it was the turning point. Jon may have given up the home run, but Patterson allowed it to happen. Whatever, it's over. We lost. Against David freakin' Pauley.

*not even close to the actual word I used.

I'm not sitting here saying that the sky is falling or that the season is over, because it's not. We made up a 7 game deficit once already this season. I'm just wondering how many times we're going to have to battle back from the brink, just to watch our bullpen go nuclear over a potential win. Maybe it's time to drop the pirate bit. It's not bringing them luck any more. You don't believe me? Look at our record in extra-inning games. We're 4-8. Yes, it also reflects the lack of hitting, but it's not our starters pitching those extra innings.

Our pen has a cumulative record of 12-15, with an ERA of 3.88, and they've allowed 29 home runs. Forgive me if these numbers instill no confidence in me.

Last night, Dice only gave up one run in 6 innings, and Daniel Bard was nearly perfect for the 7th. After allowing a base runner in the 8th, with a total of 18 pitches, Bard was 'relieved' by Okajima, who apparently delighted in loading the bases, because he didn't THROW THE DAMN BALL TO FIRST! I've never hated Oki before, but come on, dude, what the hell?! You're not going to make the out at 3rd! Get the sure out! Where are the goddamned fundamentals?! He couldn't even get out of the inning after allowing five hits and two runs, and Rambo had to be brought in to finish the job.

No, the offense didn't help against Doug Fister. Nor did they help out against David freakin' Pauley. Really? You can't score two or three runs off a guy who has zero career wins and only pitches every other year? It's a joke. I don't even want to look at the numbers with runners in scoring position, because I'm afraid I'll cry. I don't get it. I really don't. What is happening with them? They're not facing good pitching. They can't really be that tired, because they've had plenty of time off this month. Sure, the lineup is a bunch of rookies and backup guys, but it's not the rookies and backup guys coming up to bat when we have the bases loaded. Why is Lackey the only one who gets any run support?!

It's a test of faith, I know. And it's incredibly tempting to demand Theo start making crazy trades and do something... anything to shake this team up a little bit, but I don't think it's the best idea. We've got to stand down and just make it through right now, as much as that hurts. Our guys are slowly trickling back to play. Besides, if it turns out that getting the hurt guys back is too little too late, then what good is a trade going to do for us anyway? We might as well keep the talent.

Though, I honestly would not mind some help in the bullpen, since Delcarmen and Oki don't remember how to get outs.

Dahmer should be on the mound tonight for game number 100 of the season, and I feel like today's just as good a day as any to get the bats going again. I'm keeping the faith.