A long, strange trip to first place

As it turns out, this year's Opening Day game was representative of something. Looking back, it's actually a perfect encapsulation of the team we would see for the next month. First there was the starting pitching slump, represented in the Opening Day game by the uncharacteristically homer-prone Jon Lester, who gave up three, along with five total earned runs, before leaving after 5 and third innings. Then there was the tantalizing offensive surge, in this game tying the game at five but not completing the comeback. Exciting new acquisition Carl Crawford was a letdown with an oh-fer day. And in the end, said half-awakened bats were complemented by a gobsmacking bullpen meltdown, especially on the part of one Daniel Bard. It really was all there -- a true cross-section of our team's problems, laid bare at the starting gate. The total team suckiness was so complete it was difficult to point to just one factor in the awfulness of that game, or of the April 2011 Red Sox. An...