Jackie Bradley Jr. is not human

Photo Credit: AP

When Jackie Bradley, Jr. came up at first, most of us with an eye for baseball recognized his very real defensive talents, yet JBJ struggled early on with the bat. Coming into this season, I would have been thrilled with a .250 average and him continuing with the stellar defense he has shown so far in his young career.

So here we are, a little over a month into the season, and Bradley is riding a Major League best 20-game hit streak. He's hitting a cool .331 with 6 home runs and 30 RBI's so far, and exceeding just about every expectation at the plate. As mentioned above, I would have been more than happy with a .250 batting average, yet he continues to wow me at the plate, and it is amazing to watch. Granted, he's just one guy in an offensive juggernaut that has come to life in the past week especially, but he has managed to stand out even among a red-hot Red Sox lineup because of the generally low expectations for him offensively. 

So, the question remains: Is Jackie Bradley, Jr. human? Until he proves me otherwise, I refuse to believe that he's human, given the way he has been performing this season.

I just hope it continues. He's proved himself an important part of this lineup, no matter where he hits, and that has to continue going forward.

The curious case of the $100 million signing: Pablo Sandoval

AP Photo/ Patrick Semansky

Way back when the Red Sox signed Pablo Sandoval, I was intrigued to say the least. I watched as he deliviered 2 World Series to San Francisco in 2012 and 2014, then signed a 5-year/$95 million deal with Boston. When the deal was inked, I thought it could only help to have someone with his postseason background on our team, but I was worried a little about his weight. I brushed those aside, thinking the deal's value would show in time, but it doesn't help now that those concerns seem to have some validity. I elaborated on that when he showed up to Spring Training with no noticeable improvement.

Now, it has apparently gone from bad to worse with him, as Masslive reports that the Panda may be out for the remainder of the season after he undergoes shoulder surgery. This will be a good thing for one Travis Shaw, who is more than capable of filling in, and is more than deserving to be the everyday third baseman. The one thing that remains, though, is Sandoval's contract. It's clear he's been a bust, and one that cost the team nearly $100 million over 5 years, so he's not cheap either. If Shaw keeps performing at the level he has (.322 average, 3 home runs, 17 RBI's and solid defense so far), the question won't be "Who starts at 3rd?," it will be more like "How do we cut our losses with Sandoval and find a team that'll take him off our hands?"

Maybe Sandoval will be the second coming of John Lackey, who came back in 2013 after a bad start to his Red Sox career and played a major role in helping us win it all in 2013, but that seems unlikely with Panda. He could prove me wrong, and I want him to do just that, but it just seems so unlikely at this point.

The best thing would be to trade him at some point and cut our losses, but right now, I doubt there is a team out there that would take him, even if we ate the vast majority of the remainder of his contract.

Red Sox heat up as April turns into May

AP Photo/Michael Dwyer

The saying "April showers bring May flowers" may not apply to the weather in Boston, but it is proving true for the Red Sox. After a rough start to the season, the Red Sox turned on the jets towards the end of April and into early May and have a half-game lead on the Baltimore Orioles on top of the AL East.

The good news is that almost everyone has contributed, from David Ortiz to Hanley Ramirez to the young guns. David Ortiz looks like he could play until 50. Ramirez has been surprisingly effective at first base, and proving my worries about him from Spring Training wrong, which is a very good thing.

The bad news is that there are still a few noticeable holes, namely David Price and Clay Buchholz. Price has been shaky so far, despite a 4-0 record. He has shown flashes of why he got all the money, but he also has a 6.14 ERA in 6 starts so far. Needless to say, he has to get better. Buchholz has been suffering from the same inconsistencies that have followed him throughout his whole career. Right now, he's going through a down stretch at 0-3 and a 6.51 ERA to go with. He's also been on the mound for the only 2 losses during the Red Sox 8-2 stretch. It is still early for both guys. The season isn't decided in May, and both guys have time to work through their issues, but I think most Red Sox fans would agree that the sooner they do so, the better.

In the meantime, the team has more than enough firepower to get by, especially with a lot of the young guys playing so well. Not to mention they seemed focused at the moment, which seemed easier said than done coming out of Spring Training with a lot of questions. The team will look to continue their momentum into a 3-game series with the 18-8 Chicago White Sox.