By Matt McCarthy, 985TheSportsHub.com
The Red Sox closed out their four-game series in Seattle with a 10-8 loss to the Mariners Sunday, dropping to 1-3 on the season.
W: Wade LeBlanc (1-0)
L: Rick Porcello (0-1)
S: Chasen Bradford (1)
Here are three takeaways from the game:
1. The Sox can’t get out of Seattle fast enough:
If it weren’t for a Mariners bullpen meltdown on Friday night, the Red Sox would easily be 0-4 to start the season. Being honest, they likely deserve to be winless in 2019. The pitching hasn’t been good enough to give the Sox a chance every time they’ve taken the field.
2. Can we send Red Sox pitchers back to Fort Myers?
It’s clear that the Red Sox rotation is not ready for the regular season after the team deliberately held their starting pitchers out of much of spring training. Rick Porcello was the latest starter to get knocked around, giving up seven runs (four earned) over 2 2/3 innings. Porcello uncharacteristically struggled with his command, walking three hitters. Red Sox starters have only thrown 15 total innings over the course of the team’s first four games.
3. J.D. Martinez already looks in midseason form.
Martinez went 2-for-3 with a three-run homer.
Of course J.D.'s 1000th career hit is a dinger!
— Boston Red Sox (@RedSox) March 31, 2019
Congrats, @JDMartinez14! pic.twitter.com/AZ4oChqNai
He is hitting .412 to start the season and is the least of the Red Sox concerns.
Martinez has now knocked in a run in each of the first four games. Last Sox player to do that was Shea Hillenbrand in '03. And that's likely the last time Martinez and Hillenbrand are ever mentioned in the same sentence.
— Sean McAdam (@Sean_McAdam) March 31, 2019
Up next:
The Red Sox now head to Oakland to kick off a four game series with the Athletics. David Price will take the ball Monday night in his 2019 debut.
You can hear Matt McCarthy on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s own Hardcore Baseball podcast and on various 98.5 The Sports Hub programs. Follow him on Twitter @MattMcCarthy985.