Because the Bruins lost, let's talk Sox

We are 67 games into the Red Sox’s season; that’s a good arbitrary number for a midseason look.  After last season’s collapse, the pink hats got tossed in the closet and the die-hards relapsed to pre-2004 depression.  But I was actually looking forward to the 2013 season.  The massive salary/roster dump they pulled off with the Dodgers was a great addition by subtraction move for the clubhouse.  Also, hiring former pitching coach John Farrell—to get past the atrocity that was Bobby Valentine—seemed like the best way to get their rotation back on track (which derailed around the time Farrell left to manage the Blue Jays).

"I made $4 million to get a tan and ride my bike, how wasn't 2012 a success?"

My friends and I speculated on how the AL East would turn out.  The general feeling was the Orioles and Blue Jays appeared poised to become the new powerhouses in the division with their pitching/young talent and accumulation of big free agents, respectively.  Joe Maddon would get the most out of Tampa’s roster playing small ball.  The Yankees were too old and broken down to be dangerous.  And lastly, the Red Sox were stuck in rebuilding mode and they would suck.

Ortiz will do what he wants.

Those weren't my predictions.  I figured that Toronto’s talent level wouldn’t matter because they were perennial losers.  Baltimore’s backend pitching was good, but what they did last year was a little fluky.  Tampa Bay...THEY ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE!  They've been a smallball team since Maddon became their skipper.  New York has a tradition of winning, and though I feel like it’s a copout reason, they have talent and know how to win…they just do.  And finally, with Farrell returning, Boston’s rotation would improve drastically and they would be a good, balanced team.  Bold prediction for the division that I am still standing by: No team wins more than 90 games.

Do people even know who this is?

At this point, I’m pretty spot on.  I didn’t think they would have the best offense in the league; they have 24 more runs than the second place team at this point.  More surprising is that Jose Iglesias (a Mendoza Line hitter in the minors) is batting .449 with an OBP of .494 in 24 games.  Keep this kid in the lineup, please.

So what if he doesn't hit the ball out of the infield? He gets on base.

Also surprising is while Buchholz/Lester have looked great and the rest of the starters seem to be pitching well (even Lackey is delivering Quality Starts) they are 13^th in runs allowed.  The team is 9-6 in 1-run games and 4-1 when playing extra frames.  But their bullpen is the obvious weak point.  They don’t have a guy that makes it an 8 inning game like Papelbon used to.  It feels like they have a bunch of 8^th inning guys who have good stuff, but not the killer instinct of a true closer.

His performance to bullshit ratio was right inline with Manny.

I’m sticking with my predictions, with the addendum Boston, Baltimore, Tampa, and NY all win between 85-90 games. Boston wins the division with Tampa and Baltimore getting wildcard spots.

Think I’m wrong? Let me know.

Later this week: Bruins/NHL Finals, Heat v Spurs/Why I hate LBJ