Previous grades:
First quarter
| Catcher | +/- | Stats |
| Jason Varitek | = | 254 pa - 34 r- 9 hr - 40 rbi -.232/.316/.386 |
| Doug Mirabelli | + | 63 pa - 5 r - 2 hr - 11 rbi - .175/.257/.317 |
| Comments: Offensive production has certainly been lacking for the first half. Neither Varitek or Mirabelli have significantly improved on their numbers from the first quarter of the season. Varitek has been basically the same, while Mirabelli has been better, but hasn't broken the Mendoza Line for batting average. The power seems to still be intact for both hitters. | ||
| First base | ||
| Kevin Youkilis | + | 317 pa - 60 r - 10 hr - 43 rbi - .297/.407/.467 |
| Comments: Youkilis really felt the long season wearing on him when the All-Star break approached. Thankfully, he's had three days off and he can get back on the field refreshed. His batting averaged dropped in the second quarter, but his OBP stayed consistent, which is more important. His power was better in the second half; the warm weather may have effected that. | ||
| Second base | ||
| Mark Loretta | + | 351 pa - 44 r - 3 hr - 37 rbi - .305/.353/.385 |
| Comments: When you address Loretta, make sure to mention he's an All-Star. His second quarter performance vaulted him into Pittsburgh thanks to fan voting. Everything improved for Loretta: batting average, home runs, OBP, slugging, and his defense was solid just like always. | ||
| Shortstop | ||
| Alex Gonzalez | + | 243 pa - 29 r - 5 hr - 27 rbi - .284/.327/.407 |
| Alex Cora | + | 100 pa - 20 r - 0 hr - 10 rbi - .300/.402/.350 |
| Comments: If I could put more plus signs on just one player, it'd be Gonzalez because his stats have drastically improved. Cora has been the same way, too. Both players have been surprises on offense and their defense has been fantastic. If Gonzalez doesn't win a gold glove this season, I'll be protesting in front of Bud Selig's house. | ||
| Third base | ||
| Mike Lowell | - | 316 pa - 44 r - 11 hr - 46 rbi - .307/.359/.516 |
| Comments: Lowell's numbers have dropped off, but not much. His numbers were remarkably high to start with, so a drop was expected. But he's still hitting a good chunk over .300 and although his doubles aren't coming as frequently as they did, he's got a good share of extra base hits. | ||
| Outfield | ||
| Manny Ramirez | + | 291 pa - 52 r - 24 hr - 65 rbi - .306/.434/.615 |
| Coco Crisp | - | 183 pa - 34 r - 4 hr - 14 rbi - .268/.323/.388 |
| Trot Nixon | + | 264 pa - 48 r - 6 hr - 43 rbi - .311/.415/.455 |
| Gabe Kapler | + | 31 pa - 5 r - 2 hr - 7 rbi - .355/.355/.613 |
| Comments: Ramirez has just exploded in the second quarter. Every stat is up for him and he's still walking a lot. Crisp has struggled since his injury, but I think we need to watch him in the second half to see what he's capable of (Did you see that catch Coco made?). Nixon upped his batting average 11 points, but his walks were down. He's making a good case for himself in the final year of his contract. Kapler has been fantastic since coming off the disabled list, but still hasn't worked a walk yet. As long as he hits .355 though, no one cares. | ||
| Designated Hitter | ||
| David Ortiz | + | 327 pa - 65 r - 31 hr - 87 rbi - .278/.388/.609 |
| Comments: One word describes Ortiz: monster. He leads the league in home runs and RBI for a reason, and if he keeps this pace up he'll be only the third man to knock in over 160 RBI in a season since 1938. Will the Red Sox have an MVP Award winner at the end of the year? Let's cross our fingers. | ||
| Starting Pitcher | ||
| Curt Schilling | - | 127.1 ip - 124 h - 115 so - 15 bb - 19 hr - 3.60 era |
| Josh Beckett | - | 110.0 ip - 100 h - 92 so - 36 bb - 26 hr - 4.75 era |
| Tim Wakefield | + | 115.2 ip - 103 h - 78 so - 40 bb - 14 hr - 4.05 era |
| Matt Clement | - | 65.1 ip - 77 h - 43 so - 38 bb - 8 hr - 6.61 era |
| Jon Lester | + | 32.1 ip - 30 h - 30 so - 20 bb - 2 hr - 3.06 era |
| Jason Johnson | - | 8.0 ip - 13 h - 5 so - 6 bb - 0 hr - 10.12 era |
| Comments: The rotation has been shaky, but thankfully the arrival of Jon Lester has settled it down a bit. Lester hasn't been perfect, but he's been lucky -- and that's almost as good. Schilling has been very good this season, but his stats dropped a bit in the second quarter. We thought Clement was bad, and he was, but Johnson is worse -- much worse. Wakefield has pitched through back injuries but still has been the second best pitcher in the rotation. | ||
| Bullpen | ||
| J. Papelbon | - | 46.0 ip - 25 h - 47 so - 8 bb - 2 hr - 0.59 era - 26 sv |
| Mike Timlin | - | 31.1 ip - 32 h - 18 so - 9 bb - 1 hr - 2.59 era |
| Julian Tavarez | + | 47.1 ip - 47 h - 28 so - 20 bb - 7 hr - 4.56 era |
| M. Delcarmen | + | 23.0 ip - 24 h - 21 so - 7 bb - 1 hr - 3.52 era |
| Keith Foulke | - | 32.0 ip - 35 h - 23 so - 4 bb - 6 hr - 5.62 era |
| Craig Hansen | + | 11.2 ip - 12 h - 12 so - 3 bb - 1 hr - 4.63 era |
| Rudy Seanez | + | 33.1 ip - 39 h - 37 so - 15 bb - 5 hr - 4.86 era |
| Javier Lopez | + | 6.2 ip - 5 h - 4 so - 4 bb - 1 hr - 5.40 era |
| Comments: The story of the bullpen this season has been the young guns. Papelbon anchors the bullpen with his 26 saves. Delcarmen has become the 7th inning guy that hands close games off to Timlin for the 8th. Hansen continues to get a lot of work and is just getting better with each outing. Add to that the reliability of Timlin and the ability Lopez has to get lefties out. Tavarez and Seanez haven't been great, but they've certainly been worse this season. It'll be interesting to see how Foulke fits into the puzzle when -- if -- he comes back. | ||