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This time it was
both starting pitching
and the bullpen that spelled doom for the Red Sox on Saturday in
The Mistake By The Lake.
Rick Porcello was less-than-pretty once again, going just five innings and coughing up four runs (three earned). Then, a succession of relievers actually performed well
until the entry of
Drew Pomeranz in the 11th inning. The lefty former starter was horrific—getting no outs, three hits and allowing the winning run to score in
the eventual 5-4 loss. Game. Set. Match.
Why Pomeranz is still on the Boston roster might be the mystery of this otherwise historic season. The Red Sox battled back to tie this game in the eighth—when
Andrew Benintendi knocked in two. Earlier,
Rafael Devers and
Blake Swihart homered. Still, this game is a portend for the future—there is no way the Red Sox win anything this year with a crappy, inconsistent bullpen. Period. Win records are nice, but
Dave Dombrowski fundamentally failed to improve a clear weakness at the trade deadline. That could very well
kill this season in October.
