Boston Red Sox looking to bounce back in 2010

The Boston Red Sox had a disappointing end to their season as they were swept by the Los Angeles Angels in the American League divisional playoffs. Despite winning 95 games and a wild card birth, Boston Red Sox fans will remember the bad times instead of the good ones. The Red Sox went 86 years without winning a championship and once the team did, they expected to be on the hunt for another one every year.

The Sox have plenty of star players that teams would kill for: Jason Bay, Dustin Pedroia, Josh Beckett, Kevin Youkilis, John Lester, Jacoby Ellsbury and David Ortiz. This is a championship-type lineup that couldn’t find the ball in the postseason. The Sox could only manage 7 runs in 3 games. In a 5-game series, the bats need to warm up very quickly before it’s too late and the Red Sox run out of time.

Jay Bay had a very good year with his first full season with the Boston Red Sox hitting 36 home runs (3rd AL), 119 RBI (2nd AL). Dustin Pedroia leads the American League with 115 runs scored and Jacoby Ellsbury leads all majors in stolen bases with 70.

Josh Beckett had a good season record finishing with a 17-6 record and a 3.86 ERA. In 2009, Beckett pitched 212.1 innings, which is the highest innings pitched in his career. This led to his highest career hit total of his with 198 as well. Daisuke Matsuzaka had a down year since last season when he went 18-3 with a 2.90 ERA. This year Matsuzaka only pitched 59.1 innings, by far the lowest in his 3 major league seasons.

The Red Sox will want revenge and shamefully sweep 2009 with a world championship in 2010.