The Red Sox have horrible pitching, and I don't mind one bit because they're entertaining

Wade Miley got knocked around for 7 runs Wednesday afternoon. He allowed 5 hits and 3 walks, and only got 5 outs. And I'm not upset about it. Nor am I upset that Justin Masterson and Clay Buchholz were also recently roughed up. This rotation is shaky and unreliable, and I'm not bothered.

My surprising mellowness after a 10-5 defeat isn't because the Red Sox are 6-3. It isn't because the Sox have won all 3 of their series. And it isn't because they're in first place. The number responsible for the smile on my face is 56, as in the number of run the Sox have scored.

Because of the offense, this team is exponentially more entertaining than the 2014 Red Sox. They've scored 56 runs in 9 games (more than 6 per game). Through 9 games last year, the Sox had scored 33 runs (less than 4 per game). Last year it took the Sox 16 games to score 56 runs (3.5 per game).

So even when the pitching is awful, the team is still in the game. And even if it's 8-2, like it was at one point Wednesday, you still want to watch the Sox hit because they're capable of coming back. And even if they don't, they're not painful to watch as they were last year.

A healthy Dustin Pedroia is fun to watch at the plate, compared to what it was like watching an injured Pedroia struggle to hit. Mookie Betts is exciting at the plate, as opposed to the frustration that Jackie Bradley Jr. caused.

So the parade of poor pitching can continue, so long as the offense continues to keep the Sox in the game, so long as these at-bats aren't torturous to endure.

All I want from the 2015 Red Sox is to be entertained, and so far they have been entertaining.

Photo Credit: AP Photo/Charles Krupa

All I want/expect from the 2015 Red Sox is to not suck

I'm a little sick of hearing how Opening Day is a day for optimism and not a day to allow yourself to be pissed that Clay Buchholz is your "Ace." This team finished in last place, then lost its best player at the most important position. So let's be optimistic, but also realistic.

And if you truly are optimistic that the Red Sox are within arm's reach of another World Series, then you should be angrier than I am that the Sox didn't employ the left arm of Jon Lester to reach for that ring.

Is this team good enough to win the 2015 World Series? No. Good enough to make the World Series? Highly doubtful. Good enough to win a playoff series? Maybe. Good enough to make the playoffs? Solid chance. Good enough to contend for a playoff spot? Probably. Good enough to be above .500? Definitely. Good enough to not finish last? It fucking better be.

I'm sick of long pointless summers of Red Sox baseball. I'm sick of games played poorly by overrated prospects. Only 2 AL teams were struck out more often than the Red Sox (1,337 times). I'm sick of that. I just want to once again feel like these games mean something. I want to watch players who can play. All I want from the 2015 Red Sox is to not suck. Be a legitimate, watchable, respectable team.

I don't think I'm asking for much. I don't mind a "bridge season," so long as the bridge isn't as painful to cross as the Bourne Bridge with one lane open the Friday before Memorial Day. The not-optimistic reality is that 2015 will be a bridge season.

The rotation has tremendous depth in the middle, with five strong candidates to fill the #3 slot. That's as optimistic as I can phrase my assessment of the pitchers.

I don't know why everyone thinks the lineup is amazing. Probably because last year's was so terrible. The offense will be good, but I'm not sold on it being as great as everyone thinks it will be. If Dustin Pedroia doesn't improve, that's a problem. Mookie Betts has fewer than 200 MLB at-bats, so how can we be sure what he'll do in the next 600 ABs? Pablo Sandoval's regular season production isn't great, he hasn't slugged above .450 or hit 20 HRs since 2011. Shane Victorino is your starting right-fielder, 'nuf said about that.

David Ortiz is 39. His average, OBP, and SLG have all decreased in each of the last 3 seasons. He hit 35 homeruns last year, and maybe he'll hit 35 more, and maybe all his offensive numbers will rebound. But he's also 39. At that age, the "no" side of maybe gets larger and the "yes" side gets smaller. I'm not being a Debbie Downer, I'm being a Pragmatic Pete and a Factual Frank. The core of the lineup is 39 years old. It's a fact. On May 19th, he'll be closer to his 40th birthday than his 39th.

It's a good lineup. It will be less painful to watch than the 2014 Sox. But it won't be the Murderer's Row that some in this town seem to think it will be.

Then there's the bullpen. The most positive thing I can say about them is that I have no idea what they'll do.

I'm not trying to be pessimistic on Opening Day. It's sunny out, the snow is almost all melted away, I'm excited for the game, and I haven't been excited to see this team play in over a year. The Sox have a team that can be entertaining and relevant. And I think I'm going to enjoy the 2015 season because my expectations and hopes are rational. I won't be disappointed when this team finishes 3rd, or loses the Wild Card playoff game because it has no Ace. And if the Sox pull off a miracle, I'll be just as happy as the rest of you.

Enjoy the bridge season.

PawSox 5, White Sox 4

Brock Holt leading off and playing shortstop. Christian Vazquez catching. Rubby De La Rosa on the mound. If parking had been free, fans at Fenway Park might have thought they were at McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket. The home team also won, another thing that's happened more in Pawtucket this season than Boston.

To be fair, the Major League regulars made most of the winning plays in Wednesday night's game. At best, Rubby De La Rosa was okay in his 5 innings, giving up 2 homeruns and 3 runs in total. Vazquez was 0 for 3, Jackie Bradley Jr. was 0 for 4, Xander Bogaerts was 0 for 3. Mookie Betts had a great game, though. We'll get to him in a bit.

Brock Holt had been 0 for 4 until the 9th inning. His single to knock in Daniel Nava capped off a rally that was executed mostly by the established Major Leaguers in the middle of the lineup. Down 4-0 the Red Sox scored 3 runs in the 8th. Mookie Betts, one of the few Pawtucket faces who did well in the game, led off the inning with a double. He scored on a Pedroia single. Pedroia scored on an Ortiz double. Jonny Gomes hit another double to knock in Ortiz.

The back end of the bullpen maintained the close deficit. Junichi Tazawa pitched a scoreless 8th. Recently named All-Star Koji Uehara struck out the side in the 9th.

In the bottom of the inning Mookie Betts got on base again (HBP). Daniel Nava drove him in with a double. And Brock Holt's line drive single to right ended the game.

The season is over in terms of competing for playoff spots. However there are 71 games left and it's important to end the season with some positives that can be carried over to 2015. Wins like this, where the offense and the bullpen step up after the starting pitcher isn't great, are important lessons for younger players. And for some older ones too.

Red Sox and White Sox finish their series Thursday afternoon at 4. Jon Lester faces 5-7 Jose Quintana.

Photo Credit: Elise Amendola/Associated Press