Dice-K Should Go Back on the Disabled List

Those of us who watched Dice-K Matsuzaka's performance this past Saturday night (June 13th) saw a pitcher who does not look close to how he pitched last year. Instead, he continued to not only pitch poorly, but, to appear at less than full strength.

Dice-K, in my view, has some physical problem that's making him ineffective. Maybe it's simply fatigue - in his arm or shoulder. I don't know. All I know is that he looked terrible. His fastball not only lacks velocity, but the kind of zip or giddy-up it has had in the past. His breaking pitches, particularly his normally-effective slider that cuts to the left, have been really bad and wild. He's lost much control of all his breaking pitches. All of this seems to point to an injury or health problem that must be addressed.

I predict the Red Sox will place Dice-K on the disabled list (DL) but, if they don't, they should.

I just hope Dice-K can improve in time to return to the rotation and be effective this season. He looks so bad and arm-weary that I worry this problem may be more long-lasting. Dice-K has, after all, pitched a ton of innings that might have contributed to general fatigue in his arm.

Addressing Questions On the Rotation

I think if Dice-K goes on the DL, it would make immediate decisions about which pitchers to include in the rotation much easier. You could move Smoltz into Dice-K-s spot - if, in fact, Smoltz pitches well in his next start in Pawtucket. (If Smotz, by chance, keeps giving up hits and runs in Pawtucket, perhaps he should, simply, not join the Red Sox at all).

In any event, it appears the Red Sox could benefit from taking a bit more time to make decisions about its rotation for the rest of the 2009 season. Brad Penny, so good against the Yankees last week, can get a couple of more starts to evaluate. The team can monitor Smoltz and Dice-K. Then, depending on their needs, they can decide if they might trade Penny or what other moves to make. Perhaps the next few weeks will make it easier to decide to bring Clay Buchholz up to the Sox.

I hope, when the dust clears, that Dice-K has a good-sized rest before he rejoins the staff or is allowed to keep pitching. Something is wrong with him and it makes zero sense, given our incredibly rare "surplus" of good pitchers, to "force things" with an unhealthy Dice-K. (Even Dice-K, in a rare interview with Foxsports.com last week, said that, after his previous start, he felt his pitching had been "plain" and described his inability to mix his "hard' stuff with his "softer" pitches.

On the Rest of the Team..............

This has been a terrific stretch for this team. Their sweep of the Yankees last week was impressive. especially their overall pitching - starting and bullpen. Lester and Beckett have been on fire. (OK, Beckett had one bad outing...) David Ortiz showed more signs of life in the past ten days than he has all season, hitting a couple of "Ortiz-type" home runs at Fenway and showing more patience at the plate. It seems, every night, a different player or two plays the key role in contributing to a win. Papelbon has kept getting the job done. A couple of relief pitchers had unusual, bad outings (Ramirez, Delcarmen, Bard yesterday) but, for the most part, have continued to excell. Hideki Okajima continues his stellar pitching.

If this team can be in first place - despite the ups and downs it has experienced so far - all indications suggest this Red Sox team will remain in serious contention all summer - and, if they can add a little more hitting - have as good a chance as any team to win the World Series.