Daily Red Sox Links: Jon Lester, Daniel Bard, Ryan Dempster

I think we all know what the biggest story on the Red Sox blogosphere is on this sad Monday. Jon Lester got crushed again, and now has a 4.80 ERA. It's been a backwards season for the starting staff this year, and having the ace perform worse than any other starter has been a big part of it. (Tim Brittion; Providence Journal)

• Lester isn't the only pitcher struggling, though. Josh Beckett has continued to struggle in first innings, and is digging the offense into deep, early holes. If those two can't figure things out, the future of this season looks bleak for the Sox. (Maureen Mullen; Comcast Sports Net New England)
• In a season where the Red Sox just have not been able to get over the hump, this weekend may have been the most crushing series of the season. With the team about to start a brutal part of their schedule, getting swept by Toronto at home is beyond disappointing. (Scott Lauber; Boston Herald)
• Speaking of disappointing pitchers on the Red Sox this year, Daniel Bard is showing some epic inconsistency in Pawtucket right now. We're still left waiting for his return to the big league team. (Mike Scandura; Fire Brand of the AL)

• Reports are that the Red Sox are out of the Ryan Dempster trade market, while the Dodgers are the new favorites. As we know, especially in the Twitter-Age with new information popping up seemingly every minute, things can change very quickly. Here, Jay Jaffe takes a look at how much Dempster would cost an interested team. (Jay Jaffe; Sports Illustrated)
• I hope you all enjoy some good steroid talk! With yesterday's Hall of Fame induction ceremony in the books, it's officially time to hear about the class of 2013, which will include such newcomers as Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. Brace yourselves for people pretending to be experts on the effects of steroids, and some good old fashioned snark on Twitter for the next year. (Jerry Crasnick; ESPN)
• The trade deadline officially got started this weekend, with a few different moves being made. The biggest name to move thus far was probably Brett Myers, who was dealt from Houston to the White Sox. (Joe Lucia; The Outside Corner)
• Jeff Sullivan is one of the best baseball writers on the web, and over the weekend he posted a fascinating piece about which hitters have the best luck in terms of their strike zones, and who has the worst. They're are a couple of unfortunate rankings for the Red Sox. (Jeff Sullivan; Baseball Nation)