Top 5 - Greatest Single Seasons by a Red Sox Pitcher

Rick Porcello won the 2016 AL Cy Young Award but how does his season stack up in Red Sox history? Well his 22-4 with a 3.15 ERA and 145 ERA+ doesn't come close to cracking the top 5 seasons by a Boston pitcher.

1. Pedro Martinez - 2000 - 18-6 / 213 IP / 313 K / 2.07 ERA / 285 ERA+ 

2. Cy Young - 1901 - 33-10 / 371 IP / 158 K / 1.62 ERA / 216 ERA+ 

3. Pedro Martinez - 1999 - 23-4 / 217 IP / 284 K / 1.74 ERA / 245 ERA+ 

4. Roger Clemens - 1990 - 21-6 / 228 IP / 209 K / 1.93 ERA / 211 ERA+ 

5. (tie) Pedro Martinez - 2003 - 14-4 / 186 IP / 206 K / 2.22 ERA / 211 ERA+
    (tie) Smokey Joe Wood - 1912 - 34-5 / 344 IP / 258 K / 1.91 ERA / 180 ERA+ 

Notes: Cy Young's 158 K's may seem small but it led the league that year and his ERA+ is smaller than what Pedro had in 1999 but keep in mind that Cy pitched 154 more innings - so I think we can give him a break on the ERA. Roger Clemens finished second in Cy Young voting in 1990 to Bob Welsh of the A's who had a 27-6 record with an ERA that was a full run higher than Roger (2.95 to 1.93). Joe Wood had a great 1912 but his K's and ERA were still second in the league to Walter Johnson of Washington. You could also argue Pedro's 2002 and I'd be OK with that.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

When I see articles or Tweets about a remake of the horror movie IT. My mind always reads it as I.T. Truth be told I have more nightmares about technology than clowns at this point in my life... You know you want the answer to the question "How big is a fart?"... There should be a video of Donald Trump's most narcissistic statement set to Carly Simon's You're So Vain... Heh heh - True Detective Season Three... It's important for Red Sox fans to remember that we wouldn't have Rick Porcello if Boston never traded Jon Lester... So true!... Porn Stache Donald Trump would be a good name for a lesbian Gordon Lightfoot cover band... Fantastic act of kindness... My name is Chris and I'm a recovering Keno addict. "Hi Chris!"...

State of the Red Sox

The Red Sox are 31-40, in last place in the AL East and 8.5 games out of first place. To say they have been a disappointment would be a major understatement. So what gives? What's been the problem(s) and what should the Red Sox do going forwards?

Let's start with the pitching - a staff whose ERA of 4.46 is dead last in the American League. First there's the Rick Porcello in theory and the Rick Porcello in reality. I admit that I too was high on Porcello who has shown flashes of what he was last season. If Porcello was 7-4 with an ERA around 4.00 instead of 4-8 with an ERA of 5.61 then Boston would still be in last in the AL East but only 5 games out of first and talk radio would be hammering about a trade for Cole Hamels. Instead Boston has tied their wagon to a guy whose career ERA+ is not even league average (95). Sadly at this point Red Sox fans can only cross our fingers and hope for the best.

Justin Masterson has been a mess. The Red Sox gave him 7 starts and he gave them a 6.37 ERA in return. Those 7 starts should have gone to Steven Wright and now that Eduardo Rodriguez has taken Masterson's rotation spot for good - when Masterson comes back from his "rehab" in Pawtucket he may force Wright out of the bullpen as the long-relief guy. Wright can't buy a break. I'd prefer for Boston to just admit that the Justin Masterson reclamation project was a mistake and move on.

Then there's the case for Brian Johnson who has been pitching even better than Eduardo Rodriguez in Pawtucket and is 2-years older. Is it wrong to hope that either Porcello or Joe Kelly develops "fatigue" and has to be put on the DL so we can see what Johnson has to offer at the MLB level? Or here's an idea - with the Red Sox out of it why not trade Koji Uehara and see if Kelly can close?

Then there's the position players and hitting where there's been basically 3 sore spots for Boston - catcher, 1st base and right field. Not much you can do about catching. Christian Vazquez and Ryan Hannigan sounded like a great defensive combo before the season but injury ruined that. Now we'll see what Blake Swihart (who has been heating up at the plate) and Hannigan (once he's healthy) can do for the rest of the season.

1st base? Mike Napoli has been hitting well below his career averages but what's the alternative at this point? Allen Craig? Sure Craig has been hitting at Pawtucket but does anyone think if things had been reversed that Napoli wouldn't be raking on AAA-pitching? Best to leave 1st as is and hope Napoli gets on another hot streak that brings his numbers back to where they should be.

That leaves right field where the answer is simple - bring back Jackie Bradley Jr.

And for those of us optimists out there - the Red Sox magic number is an even 100!

Top 5 - Red Sox Pitching Trade Targets

With Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval in the fold - now all Red Sox fans attention tuns to pitching. My number one wish remains that they sign (re-sign?) Jon Lester but the Sox have a glut of players and a trade for at least one starter is bound to happen. Here's who I would consider the Top 5 pitching trade targets for Boston.

1. Cole Hamels Phillies - has 5-years and $110 million left on contract (if you include the 2019 option year). Maybe a package of Clay Buchholz, Jackie Bradley Jr., Allen Craig and Brandon Workman would be a good starting point.
2. Jordan Zimmerman Nationals - free agent after this season. Maybe a package of Yoenis Cespedis and Allen Craig get this done.
3. Doug Fister Nationals - free agent after this season offer same package as above.
4. Rick Porcello Tigers - trade him for Yoenis Cespedis straight up.
5. Cincinnati Reds - a number of pitchers here (Johnny Cueto, Mat Latos, and Mike Leake) are all free agents after 2015 but the Reds may wait till mid-season to do any trading.

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

I wonder if all the votes for AL Rookie of the Year are already in? If not Rick Porcello has the ultimate stage to impress voters when he starts for the Tigers in the one-game playoff on Tuesday. Not sure who wins this game but my gut says it will be a relatively high scoring affair.... Joe Flacco was OK for the Ravens yesterday but don't forget the name Dominic Randolph. He's the starting QB for Holy Cross and he's a better player than either Flacco or Ryan Fitzpatrick were in college... The one game playoff reminds me of one of my favorite stats. Jim Rice started for Boston back in 1978 when the Red Sox faced the Yankees in a one-game playoff (f*cking Bucky Dent). That meant that Rice played in all 163 games that season. Only Brandon Inge is close to that mark having played in 160 games so far this season... The New Orleans Saints defense has been as impressive as the offense. Adding Gregg Williams as Defensive Coordinator and Darren Sharper to a one-year deal have really made a difference... I think one of the main lessons so far in this NFL season is don't fire your Offensive Coordinator during the pre-season games. The Bills and the Buccaneers have been awful so far.... Happy 60th birthday to baseball genius Bill James...

Baseball Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous baseball thoughts and observations.

The Cleveland Indians are 1.5 games ahead (behind?) the Orioles for the worst record in the American League. Who saw that coming? I know I saw some people picking the Indians to go to the World Series in their pre-season picks. I can't recall anyone picking them to contend to be the worst team in the league... For all the complaining that their are no races this year in baseball - only less than half of the teams in the league (14) are numerically eliminated... Of all the teams that will make the playoffs - the Detroit Tigers have by far the worst road record (33-44). They also have the worst overall record of any team who will probably make the post-season. Which means they probably win their first round match-up with the Yankees... Alex Rodriguez needs one more RBI for 1696 and to pass Cal Ripken for 23rd place on the All-Time RBI list. He also needs just 1 more run for 1677 and to pass Mickey Mantle to move into a tie with Bid McFee for 26th place on the all-time runs list. I'm guessing that privately both these milestones mean a lot to A-Rod... Speaking of milestones - did you know that Todd Helton was tied with Babe Ruth for 44th place on the all-time doubles list with 506? Helton needs 4 more doubles to catch Rickey Henderson. As impressive as Helton's record of hitting doubles has been - he's only 5th among active players for two-baggers - behind Garrett Anderson (515), Ken Griffey (522), Manny Ramirez (530) and Ivan Rodriguez (547)... Quietly Florida's Chris Coghlan has made a pretty good case for NL ROY. Coghlan is hitting .314 with a respectable .836 OPS. I think JA Happ of the Phillies has the nod for the NL ROY though with a 10-4 record and a 2.77 ERA. In the AL - I think Rick Porcello of the Tigers deserves the award with a 14-9 record with a 4.14 ERA... Today is Rafael Palmeiro's 45th birthday. Has anyone ever fallen off the grid as quickly as finger-wagging Palmeiro?

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Happy Labor Day!... With the win over Oklahoma - many people are asking "can an undefeated BYU team realistically reach the national championship game?" I say yes. If BYU can also beat TCU, Florida State and Utah and if they are the only one or two undefeated teams in college football then they deserve to be in the championship game. SI's Stewart Mandel looks at the question in depth... If I'm a Detroit fan - then I'm hoping that Jim Leyland names Rick Pocello as the #3 starter in the playoffs over Jarrod Washburn. Good line-ups like the Red Sox or Yankees will pound Washburn... In most articles about Richard Seymour you'll notice that people bring up D-lineman Ron Brace as a reason the depth was there to trade Seymour. I'd appreciate it if people started referring to him as "Worcester's Ron Brace". Thanks... As pointed out at the Sports Frog - one of the rules to live by for every young man is never dip your wick in crazy. Shawn Merriman obviously never heard that piece of advice... It's been six years to the day since the passing of legend Warren Zevon. Play some Zevon today. Play it all night long...