Youkilis Done for the Season

Damn. Kevin Youkilis will undergo season-ending surgery on his right thumb, which he tore a muscle in this week. Youkilis finishes out his 2010 campaign with a formidable .307 average, dinging 19 homers and driving in 62 runs. Those are some numbers that the Red Sox are definitely going to miss. Injury after injury this season. It's so ridiculous. It's like the Gods just don't want Boston in the postseason this year. As hard as this is to say, though, it could be a lot worse for the Sox.

Think about it. We've been decimated by injuries at a number of positions. When Ellsbury and Cameron go down, who is taking their place? The likes of Darnell McDonald and Daniel Nava have been doing the honors. When Pedroia goes down, we throw Bill Hall into the mix at second base. When Victor and Varitek start ailing, we have Kevin Cash to replace them. All minor leaguers for life. Nobody impressive. What happens when Youk goes down? We're not royally screwed, at least. Mike Lowell, according to Terry Francona, will play at least 4 of the next 5 games at first base. That's probably a trend that will continue for the rest of the year. David Ortiz can also play first base. So can Victor Martinez. Once Varitek comes back, there are plenty of options to mix and match quality players around. Guys that were at one point in time major impact players on this roster. So, as difficult as it is to say it, Youkilis may not be the most difficult piece to replace due to injury. They'll miss him a lot, but they do have guys that are proven and capable to fill the void.

It will come down to pitching down the stretch. The Sox have a rotation of 5 guys who are all capable of winning 15-20 games in a season. They just need to pitch like it. Buchholz and Beckett are the only two in recent weeks to be pitching to their stellar expectations. Lester has lost 4 straight decisions. Lackey has consistently been inconsistent. Dice-K has actually shown some good signs, but he's still not stringing together multiple quality starts in a row -- it's been hit or miss. Papelbon has blown some saves. The middle relievers have blown some leads. The Sox just need to get their pitchers up to speed with their own talent levels. Simple as that. Their offense is near the top of the league by the numbers. The pitching will be the key. Pitching and defense wins championships. I see no reason why it won't apply to this Red Sox team.