Starter trouble: Loss to O's exposes Sox
by Jeff Horrigan
Saturday, July 27, 2002
Dream all you want about a Jim Thome, Frank Thomas, Cliff Floyd or Derrek Lee being acquired as the clock ticks away toward Wednesday's non-waivers trading deadline, but last night's 9-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park showed why Red Sox general manager Mike Port is looking in another direction.
Rolando Arrojo demonstrated the vulnerability of the starting rotation once again by getting hammered, this time for five runs in only three innings. Arrojo also suffered a contusion to the right shin after being struck by a ball in the second.
The injury isn't serious but Arrojo's tender shoulder and continued struggles are exactly why Port has set his sights on acquiring a pitcher rather than a slugger. The Montreal Expos are 95 percent certain they won't trade Bartolo Colon, according to a major league source, but the likes of Brad Penny, Paul Byrd, Jeff Suppan, Livan Hernandez, Todd Ritchie, Scott Erickson (scheduled to pitch the series finale for Baltimore tomorrow) and Kelvim Escobar are all believed to be available. The Sox' barren farm system, however, continues to throw up a giant road block in the path of any potential trade.
``If there's a starter available who would give up improvement to the rotation, we'd go that way,'' Port said. ``You can never have enough pitching.''
Arrojo (4-3) was hit on the lower leg by Jay Gibbons' second-inning liner but remained in the game through the third, which proved to be his Achilles' heel. The Orioles batted around and scored five runs, building a lead they wouldn't relinquish. Frank Castillo, Wayne Gomes and Willie Banks failed to offer much relief out of the bullpen.
Red Sox manager Grady Little was clearly dissatisfied.
``We're exploring a lot of different avenues,'' he said. ``There's no doubt in my mind there will be a change, either with the personnel we have in-house or elsewhere.''
The loss was the Sox' third in four games and continued a disturbing trend of struggles against sub-.500 teams. The Sox are 8-11 since July 5, including 7-9 against teams with losing records. A loss today or tomorrow would send them to a sixth series loss in the last seven, five to sub-.500 teams.
Last night's defeat dropped the Sox to a season-high five games behind the New York Yankees in the AL East.
``We're in a tough spot, but there's the wild card hunt to be going after, too,'' center fielder Johnny Damon said.
Baltimore pitcher Rodrigo Lopez (11-3) won his fifth consecutive start, holding the Sox to only one earned run on four hits in eight strong innings. Lopez improved to 3-0 with a 1.96 ERA vs. the Sox.
``He's turning out to be a Sox killer,'' Damon said.
The Sox didn't seem to have their full concentration on the game and made some crucial mental mistakes. Arrojo made an unwise decision to throw to third base on Jerry Hairston's sacrifice bunt attempt in the third inning, allowing the Orioles an extra out in the decisive frame. Jose Offerman also lost track of the outs in the bottom of the third inning and was doubled off first base on Rey Sanchez' fly ball to right fielder Gary Matthews Jr.
``We made a couple of bonehead mistakes and I can't give you any reasons why,'' Little said.
Arrojo fielded Hairston's bunt in front of the mound and made an ill-advised and late throw to third base, allowing the Orioles to load the bases. Melvin Mora and Howie Clark followed with consecutive, two-run doubles and Matthews added an RBI single to put the Sox in a 5-0 hole.
The Sox did their only scoring in the fourth, when Trot Nixon reached on an infield single and scored on Nomar Garciaparra's double. Hairston's strong relay throw had Garciaparra gunned down attempting to stretch it into a triple, but the ball squirted out of Tony Batista's glove. Garciaparra scored two batters later on a Jason Varitek single.
===
The Red Sox left the door for Rich Garces to return at a future date after designating him for assignment yesterday, but the rotund relief pitcher all but slammed it in the team's face.
Garces lost his job when a roster spot was needed for the activation of infielder Carlos Baerga from the disabled list. The right-hander proceeded to anger usually unflappable general manager Mike Port by refusing to show up at Fenway Park after learning that his spot was in jeopardy.
``We try to make our best effort to be courteous, professional, proper and direct with our players and when somebody stands us up, we don't take to it too kindly,'' said Port, who finally reached Garces by telephone. ``Nobody told him not to come to work (yesterday).''
Port phoned agent Jeff Borris earlier in the day to tell him of the impending move and the news was passed on to his client, who evidently decided that it would mark the end of his Red Sox career. The designation, however, allows the Sox 10 days to either trade, release or assign him to the minors, providing Garces clears waivers.
The GM said the final option would be available ``almost immediately'' - indicating that Garces has already cleared waivers. Willie Banks was in a similar situation in May and accepted the minor-league assignment to Pawtucket, leading to his return in June.
``We're still offering the possibility to go to Pawtucket to pitch and get himself back on track and maybe down the line if we'd be so inclined, he'd be of some help to the Red Sox,'' Port said prior to last night's 9-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles. ``Am I expecting that? Probably not, (but) I'd like to think that someone would want to earn his money and would accept that challenge.''
After going 19-3 with a 3.11 ERA from 1999-2001, Garces signed a one-year, $2.2 million contract during spring training, but got off to a horrible start and never recovered. Garces, 31, was 0-1 with a 7.59 ERA in 26 appearances and had fallen behind Chris Haney, Banks and Wayne Gomes on manager Grady Little's depth chart. Left-handed batters, whom he previously dominated, were hitting .364 against Garces.
When Garces was overweight, he was susceptible to injuries, but each time he trimmed down, his stamina diminished, leading to poor results. Port called it a paradox.
With lefty reliever Alan Embree (elbow) due to come off the disabled list on Monday, it's expected that Gomes will be the next to be designated for assignment.
Trade rumors fly
Port was flabbergasted by an ESPNews report that stated the Red Sox were on the verge of acquiring both Frank Thomas and Todd Ritchie from the Chicago White Sox. Ritchie, a right-handed pitcher, is a possibility, but the chances that they will take on designated hitter/first baseman Thomas and his classic albatross contract are slim to none.
That doesn't mean, however, that the Sox aren't looking into other trade possibilities as the July 31 deadline fast approaches.
``Things tend to crystalize in the last week,'' Port said. ``We rule nothing out.''
by Jeff Horrigan
Saturday, July 27, 2002
Dream all you want about a Jim Thome, Frank Thomas, Cliff Floyd or Derrek Lee being acquired as the clock ticks away toward Wednesday's non-waivers trading deadline, but last night's 9-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park showed why Red Sox general manager Mike Port is looking in another direction.
Rolando Arrojo demonstrated the vulnerability of the starting rotation once again by getting hammered, this time for five runs in only three innings. Arrojo also suffered a contusion to the right shin after being struck by a ball in the second.
The injury isn't serious but Arrojo's tender shoulder and continued struggles are exactly why Port has set his sights on acquiring a pitcher rather than a slugger. The Montreal Expos are 95 percent certain they won't trade Bartolo Colon, according to a major league source, but the likes of Brad Penny, Paul Byrd, Jeff Suppan, Livan Hernandez, Todd Ritchie, Scott Erickson (scheduled to pitch the series finale for Baltimore tomorrow) and Kelvim Escobar are all believed to be available. The Sox' barren farm system, however, continues to throw up a giant road block in the path of any potential trade.
``If there's a starter available who would give up improvement to the rotation, we'd go that way,'' Port said. ``You can never have enough pitching.''
Arrojo (4-3) was hit on the lower leg by Jay Gibbons' second-inning liner but remained in the game through the third, which proved to be his Achilles' heel. The Orioles batted around and scored five runs, building a lead they wouldn't relinquish. Frank Castillo, Wayne Gomes and Willie Banks failed to offer much relief out of the bullpen.
Red Sox manager Grady Little was clearly dissatisfied.
``We're exploring a lot of different avenues,'' he said. ``There's no doubt in my mind there will be a change, either with the personnel we have in-house or elsewhere.''
The loss was the Sox' third in four games and continued a disturbing trend of struggles against sub-.500 teams. The Sox are 8-11 since July 5, including 7-9 against teams with losing records. A loss today or tomorrow would send them to a sixth series loss in the last seven, five to sub-.500 teams.
Last night's defeat dropped the Sox to a season-high five games behind the New York Yankees in the AL East.
``We're in a tough spot, but there's the wild card hunt to be going after, too,'' center fielder Johnny Damon said.
Baltimore pitcher Rodrigo Lopez (11-3) won his fifth consecutive start, holding the Sox to only one earned run on four hits in eight strong innings. Lopez improved to 3-0 with a 1.96 ERA vs. the Sox.
``He's turning out to be a Sox killer,'' Damon said.
The Sox didn't seem to have their full concentration on the game and made some crucial mental mistakes. Arrojo made an unwise decision to throw to third base on Jerry Hairston's sacrifice bunt attempt in the third inning, allowing the Orioles an extra out in the decisive frame. Jose Offerman also lost track of the outs in the bottom of the third inning and was doubled off first base on Rey Sanchez' fly ball to right fielder Gary Matthews Jr.
``We made a couple of bonehead mistakes and I can't give you any reasons why,'' Little said.
Arrojo fielded Hairston's bunt in front of the mound and made an ill-advised and late throw to third base, allowing the Orioles to load the bases. Melvin Mora and Howie Clark followed with consecutive, two-run doubles and Matthews added an RBI single to put the Sox in a 5-0 hole.
The Sox did their only scoring in the fourth, when Trot Nixon reached on an infield single and scored on Nomar Garciaparra's double. Hairston's strong relay throw had Garciaparra gunned down attempting to stretch it into a triple, but the ball squirted out of Tony Batista's glove. Garciaparra scored two batters later on a Jason Varitek single.
===
The Red Sox left the door for Rich Garces to return at a future date after designating him for assignment yesterday, but the rotund relief pitcher all but slammed it in the team's face.
Garces lost his job when a roster spot was needed for the activation of infielder Carlos Baerga from the disabled list. The right-hander proceeded to anger usually unflappable general manager Mike Port by refusing to show up at Fenway Park after learning that his spot was in jeopardy.
``We try to make our best effort to be courteous, professional, proper and direct with our players and when somebody stands us up, we don't take to it too kindly,'' said Port, who finally reached Garces by telephone. ``Nobody told him not to come to work (yesterday).''
Port phoned agent Jeff Borris earlier in the day to tell him of the impending move and the news was passed on to his client, who evidently decided that it would mark the end of his Red Sox career. The designation, however, allows the Sox 10 days to either trade, release or assign him to the minors, providing Garces clears waivers.
The GM said the final option would be available ``almost immediately'' - indicating that Garces has already cleared waivers. Willie Banks was in a similar situation in May and accepted the minor-league assignment to Pawtucket, leading to his return in June.
``We're still offering the possibility to go to Pawtucket to pitch and get himself back on track and maybe down the line if we'd be so inclined, he'd be of some help to the Red Sox,'' Port said prior to last night's 9-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles. ``Am I expecting that? Probably not, (but) I'd like to think that someone would want to earn his money and would accept that challenge.''
After going 19-3 with a 3.11 ERA from 1999-2001, Garces signed a one-year, $2.2 million contract during spring training, but got off to a horrible start and never recovered. Garces, 31, was 0-1 with a 7.59 ERA in 26 appearances and had fallen behind Chris Haney, Banks and Wayne Gomes on manager Grady Little's depth chart. Left-handed batters, whom he previously dominated, were hitting .364 against Garces.
When Garces was overweight, he was susceptible to injuries, but each time he trimmed down, his stamina diminished, leading to poor results. Port called it a paradox.
With lefty reliever Alan Embree (elbow) due to come off the disabled list on Monday, it's expected that Gomes will be the next to be designated for assignment.
Trade rumors fly
Port was flabbergasted by an ESPNews report that stated the Red Sox were on the verge of acquiring both Frank Thomas and Todd Ritchie from the Chicago White Sox. Ritchie, a right-handed pitcher, is a possibility, but the chances that they will take on designated hitter/first baseman Thomas and his classic albatross contract are slim to none.
That doesn't mean, however, that the Sox aren't looking into other trade possibilities as the July 31 deadline fast approaches.
``Things tend to crystalize in the last week,'' Port said. ``We rule nothing out.''
