Something Fishy In Boston

I’ve been asked by a number of people this season, “what’s up with the Red Sox?”   People want to know how they could unload their high priced players (see Beckett, Gonzalez, Crawford, etc), then not make a major splash in the off-season free agent market, yet own the best record in the American League in July?  Is it a mirage? Most tell me that they feel that it can’t be just team chemistry.  So what is the secret?

 

Well, there is no single answer, but let’s give credit where credit is due.  The Red Sox brass did not go out and make a big splash in the free-agent pool, but instead went out and reeled in a handful of players in the offseason, who were not seen as big catches at the time, but who have, together, given Red Sox fans plenty of wins to feast on so far this season.   And Mike Carp epitomizes this quiet strategy that the Red Sox have employed, by producing and continuing to produce in any roll, I mean role that he’s been put in.

 

Mike Carp, at 27, has had a quiet major league career.  He always seems to be the “guy in waiting” where ever he has been.  He was stuck behind Carlos Delgado (EDITORS NOTE: Pshhh) when he was a Met, then behind Justin Smoak (ED: PSSHHHHH)in Seattle, before tweaking his shoulder last year.  The Red Sox acquired Carp for a player to be named, to bolster their bench.  But all Carp has done when given the opportunity, is to produce.  Produce at a high level!

 

In 117 at-bats this season, Carp has hit 8 homers and knocked in 25.  That extrapolates out to over 40 dingers and 128 RBI over a 600 at bat season.

It Doesn’t Hurt When The Fielders Give You An Assist

Carp also has a Ruthian .650 Slugging percentage and an OPS of 1.026 to go along with .377 OBP!    (Miguel Cabrera is currently slugging at .670 and has an OPS of 1.123).  I am obviously not trying to infer that if Mike Carp had the same number of at bats as Cabrera, he’d be in the MVP mix, but I am saying that whenever Mike Carp has been called upon, he’s produced at a tremendous clip.  He epitomizes why the Red Sox are winning and why they are in first place.  As does Daniel Nava, Jonny Gomes,   Jose Iglesias, et al! (ED: The Yankees playing my 4 year old niece at Shortstop may have something to do with it) They play their role to perfection.  Whether part time or whether working their way into the starting lineup, these guys have produced.

 

On the other side of the ball, Carp and company have done the job defensively while showcasing tremendous versatility.  Carp seamlessly moves back and forth from outfield to first base when needed, as has Nava.  And though Jose Iglesias has been touted as the Red Sox’ best fielding short stop prospect in many decades, he has slid over to third base while Will Middlebrooks was sidelined or struggling and again, made a seamless transition.

 The Kid Has Skills

The way guys have filled their roles and put the team first has produced results and helped strengthen team camaraderie.  These guys know that on any given night, guys are stepping up and taking the lead.  It’s not a team built on superstars, but one might surmise that it’s a team built in a backroom, on multiple laptops, by a guy like Bill James.   And Mike Carp is the poster-child for the sabermetric gurus.   His numbers are astounding considering that he hasn’t played enough to get in a get in any kind of a consistent groove; or so you would think.

 

As we turn the page to the second half of the season, Sox fans are hoping that this team that has an uncanny knack for finding ways to win, isn’t going to sink down the stretch like the 2011 team did.  (That would be “reel-y” cruel!)   But unlike that team, this team seems to have a lovable bunch of characters that seem to bring out the best in each other.  And one thing’s for sure, guys like Mike Carp have definitely made Red Sox fans fall for this team, hook, line and sinker! (ED: Be sure to tip your waitress.)

 

 

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