Starting Pitcher Report Card – Clay Buchholz – B
Let’s take a look at the Red Sox starting rotation – despite injuries and some poor performances (Tim Wakefield, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Brad Penny and John Smoltz), the top 3 Red Sox starting pitchers were excellent – Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz. The Penny and Smoltz experiments can be deemed failures, but Beckett, Lester, Buchholz and Wakefield (when healthy) rallied to help the Red Sox win the wild card playoff position during the 2009 MLB schedule.
Clay Buchholz – 2009 Report Card Grade – B.
Clay Buchholz was a pleasant surprise for the Red Sox during the 2009 MLB schedule. The Red Sox organization will heavily rely upon Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz to pitch just as well, if not better, in 2010 if they expect to make some noise in the playoff race in October and November next season.
2009 stats – 92 innings in 16 starts; 7-4 record with a 4.21 ERA and 1.38 WHIP; 68 K’s; 36 walks; .256 opponents’ batting average.
2008 stats – 76 innings in 15 starts; 2-9 record with a 6.75 ERA and 1.76 WHIP; 72 K’s; 41 walks; .299 opponents’ batting average.
Buchholz took a major step forward in 2009 and looks to have a bright future ahead of him. He is a fan favorite at Fenway Park in Boston.