September 2011 Redux

Now it's seven straight.

Seven straight brutally ugly losses in a row for the Red Sox. It was 7-1 after an inning and a half yesterday.

It's the third time they have been swept at home in a three-game series this year.

These losses have been horrific to watch. The starting pitching has gone down the crapper. The offense can't muster anything, especially after the starters put them in a large hole. It is bringing back horrific memories of September 2011. Absolutely atrocious starting pitching sank that season, and now it's causing big time leaks in the boat right now. All five starters were awful in consecutive starts this past week. (The bullpen has been the only part of this team that has performed well in recent games. But they have been taxed of late.)

Not exactly a recipe for success.

These last six home losses is the first time the Red Sox have gone 0-6 on a homestand in 20 years, and just the second time in club history. And that is saying something, considering all the bad teams they had in the 1920s and '30s. They didn't even do that while Bobby Valentine was in charge.

More horrific stats. In the six home losses, which added up to 54 innings, they had the lead for just one inning, when they grabbed a quick 1-0 lead on Sunday night in the second inning against Detroit. And that disappeared quickly. Go back to the last loss in Minnesota and you can make that the last 63 innings. Ugh.

And the offense is no bargain either. They have continued their stretch of playing bad baseball in the clutch, going 1-for-7 with RISP yesterday. In the last six games, they didn't score more than 4 runs in any game, and the last time the Red Sox did that in a six game homestand was in 1968.

I simply see no easy answers here. They made their beds, now they have to lie in it. Forget any kind of trades now, as the price for anyone of quality is just sky high. (And please DO NOT mention the name Giancarlo Stanton any time soon. The Marlins are not trading an MVP candidate they control until 2017.)

The Red Sox have to fight their way out of this. 20-26, five games back.

Yeah I know, this season is far from gone. But I need a respite from this stretch of lousy baseball from this lifeless bunch, and get these memories of three years ago out of my brain.