You simply can't give away games like the one on Wednesday afternoon and expect to go far in October.
Daniel Bard gave it away in the 8th inning to Toronto, as he walked the first two batters he faced and you could hear the bells tolling. An error, a ground out, and a single brought in three runs. A 4-2 lead turned into a brutal 5-4 loss.
Bard has been complete crap in his last three outings, losing all three and allowing a staggering 9 runs and now has a record of 2-8.
John Lackey gave up two runs in the first inning, and I was ready to throw something at my television set. But Lackey settled down, got the Sox to the 6th inning with a 3-2 lead. Franklin Morales and Alfredo Aceves did a nice job getting the game to the 8th inning before the latest Bard Disaster unfolded.
To me, it looks like Bard is tired from all the work, that is if he's not hiding an injury. He is an important piece of the puzzle, and if he isn't right, the Sox have big trouble.
And speaking of trouble, Adrian Gonzalez left the game after hitting a home run in the 6th inning with a tight calf. Pray that that is nothing.
It's early to start looking towards next season, but if you'd like to, here's the Red Sox 2012 schedule.