The nature of the blowout loss might obscure it for the time being, because yesterday, there were problems everywhere you looked - on the mound, at the plate and in the field.
But long after the 14-5 defeat to the Tampa Bay Rays is forgotten, the Red Sox still will have a problem - and a big one - at shortstop. Three times in their six-run fifth inning, the Rays slapped balls through the hole between short and third. At no point did shortstop Julio Lugo come close to fielding any of the three. In fact, he didn't so much as dive at any of them. None, it should be noted, were hit particularly hard. None required spectacular defensive efforts to stop. But Lugo couldn't get to any of them, and eventually, the sellout Fenway Park crowd seemed to recognize this. With each successive seeing-eye hit, fans groaned louder and louder. Later, when he got caught in between on a potential double-play ball and took the out at second himself rather than flipping the ball to second baseman Dustin Pedroia, it seemed like one more misstep. Once more, he elicited boos from frustrated fans.
Finally, when Lugo drifted back to make a routine catch for the third out of the inning, fans delivered a mock cheer. Some stood in derisive salute. If Lugo had made the plays in the fifth, maybe the game would have turned differently. Or maybe the Rays would just have found other ways to beat up Red Sox pitching.
The larger point is this: Just 31 games into the season, the Sox now have a sizable hole at a critical position and no easy solutions within reach.
Earlier this week, manager Terry Francona brought Lugo into his office and told him he would be sitting for a few days.
Lugo has struggled mightily of late, showing little mobility at the position, and Francona said his sub-par play in the field was probably a result of rushing back from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.
In recounting the inning, Lugo seemed to infer that the balls weren't playable. ``There was nothing I could do,'' he said, adding that the knee is fine now. ``I just need to go out and play.'' ``We're trying to balance winning and getting some of that athleticism back,'' said Francona diplomatically. ``It's there. He knows it and we know it. We're walking a little bit of a fine line. . . . We're doing the best we can.''
The problem is, with Jed Lowrie out until (at least) the All-Star break following surgery on his wrist, the Sox don't have a lot of options. The lone alternative on the roster is Nick Green, a serviceable utility man whose flaws get exposed over extended periods of playing time.
There's no help at Pawtucket, where Angel Chavez and Gil Velazquez are sharing playing time. Both are, like Green, journeyman. Further down the minor league chain, Argenis Diaz has terrific range but in spring training demonstrated an unfortunate knack for botching the routine play.
The Oakland A's would love to unload former Rookie of the Year Bobby Crosby and his $5.25 million salary, but Crosby can't stay healthy and wouldn't represent much of an upgrade.
Where the Sox turn remains to be seen. But this much seems clear: The Sox can't go with Lugo much longer if his play doesn't improve.
- smcadam@bostonherald.com
