"He had a couple of tough ones and then the world's gonna end," Francona said hours before Beckett had another tough one, giving up six runs in 6 1/3 innings of a 7-2 loss to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Earth is still spinning. The Apocalypse has been staved off. But after an uneven outing that pushed his ERA to 6.67, Beckett's battle for consistency continues.
The right-hander had three good starts and two bad ones after coming off the disabled list last month. On Thursday, he had five good innings and two bad ones. The end of August approaches and we are still waiting for Beckett to find his groove.
At the very least, he flirted with finding it early on Thursday night.
Not one Angel reached second base through the first 5 1/3 innings. Beckett was showcasing a dominant curveball that has been working for him for several starts and locating a fastball that had not. But in the span of 13 pitches in the sixth, he gave up four hits, including a three-run homer to Hideki Matsui on a two-seam fastball that severely missed its mark.
The fact that he was so dominant early on suddenly meant nothing. Runs are runs are runs, and when you give them up, early success is of no consequence.
"Does it make it easier to swallow if I gave up one run every inning? No," said Beckett, who is 0-2 with a 10.69 ERA in his last three starts. "I think it's the same, one way or the other."
Beckett said he was trying to go down and away with the pitch to Matsui. It was essentially straight and true over the inside half of the plate, and the Angels' designated hitter launched it into the Red Sox' bullpen.
A bunt single and a walk chased Beckett with one out in the seventh, and both runs came around to score when Manny Delcarmen failed to provide relief. It made for an even uglier line for Beckett, whose coach hopes will focus on the first five innings rather than the last two.
"There were some encouraging things tonight, yet you look up on the board and there were six runs that he's charged with," said pitching coach John Farrell. "I think it's going to be key for him to recognize there were a lot more positives than the line score indicates."
Simply put, positives have been tough to come by in Beckett's worst season in the majors. And while he had a stretch Thursday night that made him look like the Beckett of old, the trend continues to be a downward one — Beckett has given up at least six runs in three straight starts for the first time in his 10-year career.
There was a sense that Beckett's start against the Angels, whom he defeated last month in Anaheim, was the biggest of the season for him. He needed to show that the last two outings were a fluke and that he could be a guy the club could rely on down the stretch. Now, with both positives and negatives swirling around his latest appearance, Beckett's next start becomes the big one.
"We'll see," he said when asked if he can carry the first five innings into his meeting with Seattle in five days. "When I was getting outs I was making pitches. When I didn't get outs, I wasn't making pitches."
No sarcasm needed.
