The 2013 Boston Red Sox have been so much more than I expected. In February, I thought this team was going to be a major bust. Looking like the 2012 Red Sox all over again: A complete joke. BUT, I quickly ate my words after they very quickly became the ‘team to beat’ in the American League, and at one point had a comfortable 3 game lead over the East.

How are the Red Sox doing so well? Its very simply, their pitching.

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “defense wins championships” but I believe that’s just an urban legend. Teams in the past didn’t just focus their team entirely off the success of defense, although it does help, but by the success of their ace and their other starters. Last year, Boston’s starters’ ERA was 5.19, which ranked as 4^th-worst in all of baseball. Among all the team’s pitchers who started any games for them, only Franklin Morales had an ERA below 4.56. Felix Doubront was arguably the Red Sox’ best starter with a 11-10 record, 167 strikeouts, and a 4.86 ERA. It doesn’t take a genius to know there is no winning formula involving numbers like those for a team’s “best” pitcher. The World Series winners of 2012, the San Francisco Giants,  had super-star ace Matt Cain hold down their Championship season. Along with Cain was Madison Baumgarner, Ryan Vogelsong, and Barry Zito, all very good pitchers that were incredible in the regular season and also into the postseason.

The Red Sox of 2012 and 2011 were missing a dominant or leading pitcher, and for this year, they have two.

Jon Lester so far has gone 5-0 with a 2.73 ERA and 45 Ks, and Clay Buccholz 6-0 with a 1.69 ERA and 21 Ks. As of right now, both are in the top five for starting pitchers in the American League, only behind Yu Darvish of the Rangers and Felix Hernandez of the Mariners.

That’s pretty good company for two guys projected ERAs that were close to 5.00 .

Along with Clay and Jon, Ryan Dempster has been a big surprise for the Sox this year. Dempster has an era of 3.75, which is ok, but he ranks 7th in the ML in Ks. Dempster, flying under the radar at 2-4, is a strikeout machine, averaging about 7 Ks per game. And for a pitcher that only goes 5.0-7.0 innings, that’s pretty good for someone getting up there in the years category.

As of Mid-May (May 15th), these are the Red Sox pitching statistics:

W: 22 (7th in MLB)

L: 17 (19th in MLB)

ERA: 4.00 (19th in MLB)

SV: 9 (17th in MLB)

ER/R: 154/166 (9th and 10th in both categories)

BB: 142 (4th highest in the MLB)

K: 368 (2nd in the MLB to the Detroit Tigers)

BAA: .240 (7th in MLB)

Although a majority of the stats listed have them in the middle of the pack, I believe that the pitching staff in Boston is one of the best in baseball. No questions.

-Tyler Hetu

If you’re anything like me, you eagerly await baseball season all year. Once it starts, you never want it to end. Once it ends, the cycle repeats.

This is how it is for everyone, even when the Red Sox have seasons to forget like the “Valentine Experiment” of 2012. Don’t get me wrong, I love the NHL, and enjoy watching the NFL, NBA, and NCAA, but baseball is on top.

Yes, the northeast is covered in a thick blanket of snow, and there is rain, and more snow on the way. But pitchers and catchers are in Fort Meyers beginning their conditioning drills in preparation for Opening Day on April 1 in the Bronx.

The Boston Red Sox are back, and so are the other 28 Major League Baseball teams.

The San Francisco Giants are the defending champs, and are going to do everything they can to repeat as World Series Champs in 2013, something that hasn’t been done since the New York Yankees repeated in 2000. But what about the Red Sox?

The Red Sox will spend 2013 trying to put 2012, and the historic collapse at the end of 2011, as far back in the rear-view mirror as possible. The Red Sox are a franchise that has spent most of the 21st century playing at a very high level; but have been in a steep decline since September of 2011. The 2013 season is going to be a quest to fix their problems, and to return to the top of the American League East.

So here’s your 2013 Boston Red Sox:

The outfield will have two new faces in it. Jonny Gomes is likely to start in left field (replaces Cody Ross), and Shane Victorino will start in right.

Stephen Drew is the projected new shortstop (replaces Mike Aviles), and Mike Napoli is the new first baseman (replaces Adrian Gonzalez).

Jarrod Saltalamacchia returns as the team’s primary catcher, but the backup is newcomer David Ross, and Napoli as their third option.

The starting rotation, which was one of the 2012 team’s greatest weaknesses, will have now feature Ryan Dempster, and will feature the return of John Lackey who missed the entire 2012 season recovering from Tommy John surgery. Great.

The bullpen has a host of new faces as well. Joel Hanrahan and Koji Uehara are both new additions and both men are expected to make significant contributions. Hanrahan is slated to be the team’s new closer/set-up guy and Uehara will be one of the most frequently used left-handed pitchers out of the pen in the late innings of games, sort of like a new Hideki Okajima.

Rounding out the long list of new faces is the team’s “new” manager.

John Farrell is not new to the team or the organization, but the former Red Sox pitching coach is now the team’s manager. He inherits a team that finished in last place for the first time in decades. Farrell might be the perfect fit, but his managerial stint in Toronto was not nearly as successful as many thought it would be. Now, just like the roster of players he has inherited, he has something to prove as well.

The 2013 roster has players such as Clay Buchholz, Jacoby Ellsbury, David Ortiz, Jon Lester, and Dustin Pedroia. All of those players played on the 2007 team that won the World Series. Ortiz was also a key member of the legendary 2004 champs. He is also the last remaining on the Red Sox to play on the team in 2004.

The 2013 Red Sox have players that know how to win, they’ve also got new additions eager to show their peers and the fans that the 2012 Red Sox are just a memory. Spring training is always a good time for optimism and change. But in the eyes of some, the changes they’ve made have not been dramatic enough.

It is not as if the offseason provided a long list of top players to either sign as free agents or acquire via trade. The Red Sox certainly made some effort to change and improve the roster for the better. Starting Monday, the journey to finding out if those moves will work begins.

Welcome back boys, lets go get that Pennant.

Well, it looks like the Anaheim Ducks have hit the jackpot in the free-agent market after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year.

The acquisitions of defenseman Sheldon Souray, forward Daniel Winnik and goalie Viktor Fasth have played major roles in the Ducks’ 7-1-1 start (the best in franchise history). All three players contributed to a 3-0 victory against the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday night at the Pepsi Center.

Souray, 36, has already posted four goals and three assists this season. Souray also added a goal and an assist against Colorado on Wednesday. Winnik, a former Colorado forward, has five goals and three assists after setting up a second period goal for Francois Beauchemin.  Fasth, a 30-year-old rookie from Sweden, stopped 31 shots for his first carrer NHL shutout and is 4-0 in four starts. Fasth has an incredible goals against average of 0.98 goals-and a save percentage of .962.

The Ducks are cruising with a four game win streak, and are 5-0-1 in their past six games. The Ducks are also 3-0-1 on the road with five games remaining on a six-game road trip, their longest of the season.

 

The Avalanche, meanwhile, have lost two consecutive games (both at home) and five of the past seven to fall to 4-6-0.

The Ducks grabbed a 2-0 lead very early, needing only eight shots. The first goal was scored by Souray and another followed soon after by forward Saku Koivu

Beauchemin pushed the lead to 3-0 when he received a pass from Winnik, setting up a one-time goal past goalie Semyon Varlamov with 9:55 left in the second period.

Colorado closes out its four-game homestand on Monday against Radim Vrbata and the Phoenix Coyotes. Anaheim looks to continue their win streak in Dallas, going up against the Stars and Jaromir Jagr.

-Tyler Hetu

Before I begin my first ever column, I would like to introduce myself. I’m an aspiring writer, born and raised in the great state of Rhode Island, and I love sports. Although I reside out in New England, I am a die-hard Colorado Avalanche fan. Other than the Avalanche, I will be writing about the Boston Red Sox once the season comes, and any other sporting even that strikes my interest. I hope to keep you interested while I am writing on ProSportsBlogging.Com, and I thank you for your interest in my writing. You can also follow me on Twitter, @Hetubird.

San Jose Beat Down:

In their first game of a four-game road swing, Colorado entered San Jose hoping to give the undefeated Sharks a run for their money. And, when they weren’t on the penalty kill, they did well. However, the Sharks (40% on the power play going into the game) converted three of the six opportunities they had with goals, two of which came after defenceman Ryan O’Byrne was given two penalties for instigating. O’Byrne was given the penalties after the Avalanche captain, 20 year old Gabe Landeskog, was hit hard by Brad Stuart seconds earlier. Landeskog appeared hurt, limping off the ice, but returned in the second period. San Jose added on the goals, winning the contest 4-0. Surprisingly, the Avalanche could not find their way through a weak Sharks defense, and back up goaltender Tomas Greiss was awarded his first career shutout.

The Avs travel to Edmonton tonight, to face off against young superstars Jordon Eberle, Nail Yakupov, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Taylor Hall. With Gabe Landeskog out tonight (possibly a concussion), the Avs may struggle without their captain on the ice. The two teams enter the game at 2-2, and I can already tell it will be a great game.