FOtF Game 82: The Red Sox sweep the Angels behind JBJ and the Bottom of the Order

Very impressive series from the Red Sox in Boston these last few days. Throughout this series, the Red Sox produced runs, while pitching well. As Johnny Gomes would put it, you win games by scoring more runs than the other team, and that's exactly what the Red Sox did tonight.

Honestly, it was a really boring game. The Sox close out the series with a sweep, but the real story of the game was the defense from the outfield. JBJ's catch in the first was nothing short of sensational, and definitely provided Brian Johnson with extra confidence in his much needed four innings of one-run ball. Hector Velazquez pitched 2, earning the win, his sixth on the year. And Joe Kelly was bailed out by a leaping Benny on a heat-seaking line drive.

Am I worried about Joe Kelly, no. Should I be worried about Joe Kelly, probably, but here's why I am not. He has surrendered 7 ER in 7 2/3 IP so far in June. I'm not mathematician, but an 8.21 ERA in a month is not good. I do feel good about him pitching against the Yankees though, as he is usually a big game performer. With the month coming to a close, he has thrown an average of 2 innings a week. That's not enough. The Red Sox starting pitching has been so good that the Sox bullpen is over-rested. These are professional ball players, they need to pitch a certain number of innings to stay sharp. Barnes has been the only late-inning reliever to not struggle this month (besides taking the L in Seattle). He has thrown 11 2/3 innings since June 1, four more than Kelly, and that makes a difference. Kimbrel has thrown 7 1/3 innings this month so far while allowing six free passes. His BB/K ratio is never that low. Dare I say it, the Red Sox's phenomenal starting pitching has caused the bullpen to struggle. This is not going to be a persisting problem. Cora will make adjustments and the key relievers for the Red Sox will find their grove again.

This series, the bottom of the lineup has come through when it matters, and they provided all the offense in this one. JBJ is still very much back after hitting what ended up being the game-winning two run HR. Devers blasted a solo shot and Holt earned an RBI on a bases loaded walk. An off-night for the top of the order, who see the first five guys all with an impressive OPS over .850. These are the games the Red Sox from two weeks ago would have lost. When there is a lull at the top of the order, the bottom third needs to deliver, and that's exactly what they did tonight. Despite the boring game, this game provided lots reason to be optimistic, as the bottom of the order continued to produce.

For this upcoming series, I expect the Red Sox to take two of three, winning the first two and dropping the finale to an electric Severino.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, the Red Sox are a WHOLE game up on the Yanks and a season best TWENTY SEVEN games over .500.