making ’em count

The numbers look a little strange. Mitch Moreland, the Mississippi State alum from Amory, has more home runs than singles in 42 games for Boston. “Mitchie 2-Bags” also has more homers than doubles. His batting average of .239 ranks as one of the lowest among the Red Sox’s regulars, and yet, with just 32 hits, he leads the team in homers with 12, is tied for the team lead in RBIs with 31 and ranks second in slugging percentage at .575. In short, he has been productive. And the team, after a sluggish start, is winning, which is what matters more than any of those other numbers. As Moreland told the Boston Globe in a recent article: “I wanted to go up there, get my pitch, and put a good swing on it. In this game, that is really all you can control. Whatever I’ve got to do to help the team win, I’m fine with.” In a 12-2 bashing of Toronto on Monday, Moreland went 3-for-5 with two doubles and three runs. He is batting .292 over his last 15 games with five homers, 16 RBIs and 12 runs. The BoSox, 10-2 in games in which Moreland has homered, are 25-22 overall, 12-5 in May, and 4½ games behind first-place New York in the American League East. After the Toronto series, they close out May with Houston, Cleveland and the Yankees. Moreland’s continued productivity could be huge in that stretch.