The Boston Red Sox have been one of the worst teams in baseball as they creep in on a seven-game losing streak while sitting at the bottom of the American League East standings. Things are not going well in Bean Town and they might not improve on Monday as Rick Porcello takes the mound against an Atlanta Braves while having dropped his last four starts to.
The Red Sox are struggling and Porcello is not helping the effort. Boston's starting pitching rotation has a combined 4.94 ERA and Porcello offers up his own 5.26 ERA to the cause. During a four-game losing streak for the pitcher, he has put forth a 7.30 ERA while being 4-6 on the season altogether. His last start was against the Baltimore Orioles saw him give up five runs and 10 hits over five innings. This has just been one storyline to Boston's struggles as the team was just swept at home by the Toronto Blue Jays while giving up 43 runs in a six-game slide.
Porcello did win his last start against the Braves which was back in 2013. This is a team that while their win record is not showing it, they are starting to register an offense. Freddie Freeman is currently hitting .365 with five home runs in 13 games. Cameron Maybin his hitting .420 in his last 11 games while Jace Peterson is batting .400 in an eight game hit streak. The team's downfall has been inconsistent pitching from either their starters or bullpen. The team dropped two of three against the Mets despite scoring eight runs on Sunday.
Atlanta will put rookie Williams Perez on the mound who has a 1.80 ERA in five starts. He did earn a save on Friday against the Mets during a 12-inning effort from the two teams. His last start was against the San Diego Padres where he gave up one unearned run over seven innings. He will be forced to face a batting lineup that includes David Ortiz who has hit three home runs in his last four games while knocking out eight in 27 games against the Braves. Dustin Pedroia is 6 for 16 against the Atlanta Braves.
