Red Sox: Drew Pomeranz bouncing back

Boston Red Sox starter Drew Pomeranz has slowly been getting deeper into ball games – helps out with the bullpen getting overtaxed

Drew Pomeranz last month wasn’t going the distance and the bullpen was paying for it. Consistently letting the relievers come in during the 4th or 5th inning isn’t going to get the job done and only hurt the team long term. Pomeranz in the month of June has completely turned it around. Over his last six starts, only once has he not gone five innings and only other incident did he not record a quality start.

Pom has seen his ERA drop from 5.29 on May 14th to 4.07 after his last start yesterday. We’re hoping he can stay on the right track and continue going at least six innings while allowing two or fewer runs. The home run ball hasn’t been as common either which has helped out. In April, Pomeranz gave up 5 home runs. Since the end of April, he’s started 10 games and only given up six homers.

While some people aren’t completely convinced that he’s finally made it, you can’t deny that he’s no longer pitching only five innings after throwing 100+ times. He’s getting into the 7th inning and has been in the 92-98 pitch range which is very good. In a perfect world, we see Pom throwing 100-108 pitches and getting 7 innings of work in. As the weather warms up, we can only hope that his numbers and arm can carry this on.

After being acquired last June for starter Anderson Espinoza on July 14th, Pomeranz struggled through most of his first month after it was revealed that the Padres GM hid vital medical records that showed that Pomeranz had an injury to his shoulder. Sox GM Dave Dombrowski had the chance to do a trade back and opted not to go that route.

After struggling much through his first month in Boston, August brought some luck as he was able to go six innings or more in four of his six starts winning two games. The beginning of September was the same before the inconsistency became an issue.

His team has let him down in each of his last two starts as he’s posted decent games and recorded no decisions. That’s not all on the team as Pom has let his team down several times this season a well. He’ll next pitch against the Twins at Fenway Park on June 27th where he’ll look to get his 7th win on the season. Pom currently has six wins good for 2nd best on the Sox staff.

 

Photo Credit – Adam Hunger – USA TODAY Sports