McAdam: Troubles continue for Red Sox, who can't seem to do much right

The lineup on the field Monday featured a catcher starting at second base and a first baseman/DH patrolling left field. The usual DH was in right field, the usual right fielder was in center and the second baseman was (again) the DH.

And yet, the defense was the least of the Red Sox' issues in the annual Patriots Day game at Fenway.

Christian Vazquez, making his first appearance at second in the big leagues, handled the few chances sent his way, and Steve Pearce, in the outfield for the first time as a member of the Sox, executed a nice sliding catch in the sixth.

Nope, the defense was fine.

Everything else? Not so good.

The Red Sox wrapped up their first homestand of the season with a 3-3 mark. Ordinarily, that wouldn't be grounds for excessive concern, despite the fact they played at .703 clip at home last year. Small sample size, early in the year, yadda, yadda.

But consider that that .500 mark came against two teams on the rebuild, with neither expected to sniff contention for a while and it becomes more worrisome. And coming on the heels of a disastrous 3-8 season-opening road trip and Fenway was supposed to offer a roadmap for the Sox to begin their turnaround, and well, it's a problem.

You can look at all the numbers you'd like -- the Red Sox' run differential of minus-32 is eyepopping, by the way -- but this being a bottom-line, results-first business, here's the one that should catch your attention the most: the Red Sox have played five series this season and have yet to win a single one.

There's simply no positive way to spin that, even if you were so inclined. In a season almost three weeks old, the Red Sox haven't figured out a way to beat a single team more than they've been beaten.

Ugh.

"Obviously, it's not the start we were looking for,'' Mitch Moreland told BostonSportsJournal.com. 

Moreland then dissected the Sox' main problem, one familiar to all underperforming teams since the game began: "It seems like when we hit, we have a tough time keeping runs off the board. And when it's kind of the opposite -- when we pitch, we don't score many. It's kind of vice versa.''

In a bit of a reversal, the Red Sox managed to fail in both components Monday, a rare bit of symmetry for a team seemingly out of sync since its first game. Facing the immortal Dan Straily and his 19.29 ERA, the Red Sox were held hitless until the fifth inning. They finished the afternoon with a total of four hits.

And on the mound, they were similarly inept: Six pitchers were utilized and only two held the Orioles' young and inexperienced lineup off the scoreboard.

So, pitching and hitting -- two of the three basic food groups -- have been equally suspect, though not always at the same time. But the Sox' 6-11 mark reflects deeper issues.

"You look at the game and we haven't played it the way we're capable of playing,'' Moreland said. "We're walking guys, we don't make plays in certain situations that lead to longer innings. As for as at-bats, we're not getting many innings where we're constantly putting guys on and putting pressure on the other team. We're having quick innings. It's just been a tough run.''

Alex Cora continues to walk the fine line that separates general dissatisfaction with his team's play and not sounding the panic button. Cora is intent on projecting some stability in the clubhouse. The last thing he needs to do is send a message to his players that he's lost faith in his roster.

But it's a walk that becomes harder to navigate each day.

"It doesn't concern me,'' said Cora when reminded that his team has yet to win a series. "It's just a bad start. We've got to keep working on it, keep preaching. We know what we have to do. It's an awesome group, from the coaching staff to the players. Keep preaching that it will get better, and it will get better.''

That's the analysis, that's the pep talk for public consumption. But in the standings, there's this: the cold, naked shame of being 6-11.

"There are no excuses for it, obviously,'' concluded Moreland.

Worse, there are no answers either, at least not yet.

Asked to characterize the mood in the clubhouse, Moreland offered up a string of adjectives, none of them positive.

"Disappointed, frustrated, angry, anxious...,'' said Moreland. "There's a lot of words to describe it, but none of those words are going to help us get it going. In the end, we've got to forget all that and go out and play one pitch at a time, one inning at a time, and try to win that pitch, win that inning. That usually leads to winning the game, and after we do that, try to win the next one and get it going.''