Update. Last 5 Red Sox' playoff games now, here's their starting pitching performances:
2016 Porcello: 4.1 ip, 6 h, 5 r, 5 er, 0 bb, 6 k
2016 Price: 3.1 ip, 6 h, 5 r, 5 er, 2 bb, 3 k
2016 Buchholz: 4.0 ip, 6 h, 2 r, 2 er, 1 bb, 4 k
2017 Sale: 5.0 ip, 9 h, 7 r, 7 er, 1 bb, 6 k
2017 Pomeranz: 2.0 ip, 5 h, 4 r, 4 er, 1 bb, 1 k
Totals: 18.2 ip, 30 h, 23 r, 23 er, 5 bb, 20 k, 11.1 era, 1.87 whip, 9.64 k/9
And here are the starting pitching performances by every starter so far in the 2017 playoffs:
Severino: 0.1 ip, 4 h, 3 r, 3 er, 1 bb, 0 k
Santana: 2.0 ip, 3 h, 4 r, 4 er, 2 bb, 0 k
Greinke: 3.2 ip, 6 h, 4 r, 4 er, 1 bb, 1 k
Gray (Col): 1.1 ip, 7 h, 4 r, 4 er, 0 bb, 2 k
Sale: 5.0 ip, 9 h, 7 r, 7 er, 1 bb, 6 k
Verlander: 6.0 ip, 6 h, 2 r, 2 er, 2 bb, 3 k
Gray (NY): 3.1 ip, 3 h, 3 r, 3 er, 4 bb, 2 k
Bauer: 6.2 ip, 2 h, 0 r, 0 er, 1 bb, 8 k
Pomeranz: 2.0 ip, 5 h, 4 r, 4 er, 1 bb, 1 k
Keuchel: 5.2 ip, 3 h, 1 r, 1 er, 3 bb, 7 k
Sabathia: 5.1 ip, 3 h, 4 r, 2 er, 3 bb, 5 k
Kluber: 2.2 ip, 7 h, 6 r, 6 er, 1 bb, 4 k
Hendricks: 7.0 ip, 2 h, 0 r, 0 er, 3 bb, 6 k
Strasburg: 7.0 ip, 3 h, 2 r, 0 er, 1 bb, 10 k
Walker: 1.0 ip, 4 h, 4 r, 4 er, 2 bb, 3 k
Kershaw: 6.1 ip, 5 h, 4 r, 4 er, 3 bb, 7 k
16 quality starting pitchers - including some of the very best in the game (Severino, Greinke, Sale, Verlander, Keuchel, Pomeranz, Kluber, Hendricks, Strasburg, Kershaw). Of these 16 starts, just FIVE of them have been good. One was mediocre (Sabathia's). One was....passable (Kershaw's), but the rest (9 of the 16) were godawful, horrendous, disastrous performances.
It's hard to overstate just how bad the starting pitching has been this series. And let's be honest. The Red Sox had both Verlander and Keuchel on the ropes in the early innings, but couldn't break it open. Then those guys settled down.
It's been an epic meltdown by most of the starting pitching in these playoffs so far. Not just for Boston.
Boston (2 g): 7.0 ip, 14 h, 11 r, 11 er, 2 bb, 7 k, 14.14 era, 2.29 whip, 9.0 k/9
New York (3 g): 9.0 ip, 10 h, 10 r, 8 er, 8 bb, 7 k, 8.00 era, 2.00 whip, 7.0 k/9
It's not like the Yankees' starting pitching has been much better than Red Sox' starting pitching. But the Yankees are 1-2 because they've managed to score some runs.