On doing the job at home, bullpen uncertainty and other topics

Five thoughts from the homestand finale....

1 – The Red Sox did the job at home. Now, they have to do it on the road.

The Red Sox’ 6-2 win over Oakland Thursday afternoon gave them wins in all three series on this second-to-last homestand and a record of 6-3 on the nine-game Fenway stay.

Given they were playing three teams with losing records (Toronto, Tampa Bay and Oakland), it could have been better. But winning series is critical and the Sox did that three straight times. It’s hard to take issue with a .667 winning percentage over a week and a half.

Now, they embark on the final road trip of the season. It also features three three-game series and also pits the Sox against teams with losing records: Tampa Bay (again), Baltimore and Cincinnati. Quality of opponents aside, a 6-3 mark might be a lot to ask away from home, but if the Sox can do that, they’ll effectively end the division race.

It’s worth noting, too, that while the Sox play their next nine on the road, the Yankees are home for their next seven in a row.

2 – Drew Pomeranz continues to gain trust.

Pomeranz pitched really well Thursday afternoon. He allowed just one run over six innings, and as has been his custom for much of the season, pitched himself out of some jams when necessary.

He had two runners on in a tie game in the sixth, his final inning of work and ran the count full to Matt Olson.  As John Farrell later revealed, that was going to be the final pitch of the afternoon for Pomeranz, who was at 110 pitches.

Pomeranz made the most of it, getting Olson to swing through a fastball, stranding two baserunners and preserving the tie. The Sox then scored two in the bottom of the inning to go ahead for good.

In almost half of his starts this season (13-of-29), Pomeranz has allowed one or no runs, and tellingly, the Sox are 20-9 in his start.

3 – The bullpen remains somewhat undefined.

The Sox have just over two weeks remaining to get everyone lined up. Addison Reed had a shaky outing, and even though he escaped trouble, he needed 23 pitches to get the final two outs in the seventh.

It’s also worth noting that Reed has a 4.76 ERA in 19 appearances since being obtained from the New York Mets at the non-waiver trading deadline.

Beyond that, there are questions: Can Brandon Workman be counted upon? How about Joe Kelly (a hit, a walk and a run in an inning)?

If you go into the post-season with Reed as your primary set-up man – be it the seventh or eighth inning – who else is dependable?

All of which makes the David Price Experiment so fascinating to watch in the final 16 games.

4 – Andrew Benintendi has a unique ability to put a bad week behind him.

Recall that in August, Benintendi was struggling badly enough that Farrell sat him for a few games, believing that he needed a mental break as much as anything. Benintendi then responded with a big breakout at the plate, having made some adjustments and gathered himself somewhat during his time on the bench.

Dating back to the end of the last road trip through Sept. 6, Benintendi was hitless in 20 consecutive at-bats. But since that skid, he’s come alive again, with six doubles in his last six games – including two Thursday – and nine RBI in that span.

“I didn’t even know that (I was 0-for-20),’’ maintained Benintendi when informed of the slump. “It’s such a long season. You get so many at-bats. It’s kind of something I’ve (already) been through this season, so you just have to keep swinging.’’

5 – There used to be an adage that you can’t win with lefties at Fenway Park. Apparently, that’s not true anymore.

After Pomeranz’s outing Thursday, the Red Sox have started lefties 95 times this season, tying the franchise’s high with another 16 games to go.

And, it’s worth noting that the two lefties (Pomeranz and Chris Sale) are two of the four pitchers in the American League with 16 wins this season.

The last time the Sox had 95 starts from lefties came in 1983, with the likes of John Tudor, Bobby Ojeda and Bruce Hurst.