6-27-2010: Victor Martinez breaks thumb, the season in perspective

Oh man, when it rains, it pours. Victor Martinez has broken his left thumb in today’s game, after taking a couple of foul tips off of his glove in today’s game. He may or may not go on the DL, but this is certainly not good news for the injury-riddled Sox.

At least Clay Buchholz won’t have to go on the DL. In fact, he may even make his next start, though the schedule would allow for the Sox to get him some extra time off without having to call anyone up.

Dan Barabisi notes that 2B/OF Eric Patterson will be activated Tuesday, and that the left-handed hitter could make a decent platoon partner with Bill Hall. It’s a nice thought, but Hall is actually hitting much better against righties this year, and in his career, his platoon split is not so bad; he’s hit righties at a .243/.298/.428 clip. Patterson has hit .226/.309/.365 against RHP. All indications are that Patterson is a depth backup.

This season, full of injuries and disappointments as well as pleasant surprises, is pretty frustrating, but it makes for some fascinating baseball, says Patrick Sullivan. I have to agree.

One thing about Josh Beckett’s poor performance this season – it’s come against some pretty tough competition. In fact, by at least one measure, it’s come against the toughest competition there is in baseball. So there’s still some small hope that if he can get back healthy, we might see the old Beckett.

The Red Sox took some measures to shut down their opponents on the basepaths back in May, and it really worked. However, now that the problem has become less of a concern, it seems that opponents are gearing it up again.