There were two types of people on July 14^th. People who loved the Drew Pomeranz trade for Anderson Espinoza, and people who hated it. Regardless, there was much anticipation for Pomeranz’s first start for the Red Sox this past Wednesday.

However, Pomeranz’s debut for the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park was not one to be remembered. His stat line from Wednesday was: 3.0 IP, 8 hits, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 2 HR.

The 2016  All-Star started the game strong, keeping the San Francisco Giants off the board for the first three innings. Then, he was unable to record an out in the fourth inning. He gave up a two-run home run and a three-run shot right before he got pulled from the game.

I’m not the guy to give a list of excuses for poor performances, especially after almost letting a team come back when you have an eight-run lead. But, I don’t think there is any reason to jump off any bridges yet.

Drew Pomeranz coming from a sub .500 San Diego Padres team was put into a Red Sox team who is on top of the American League East Division, making a run for the playoffs. Wednesday’s game had a playoff-like atmosphere, a type of atmosphere that Pomeranz has never been used to. The Giants have also seen him plenty of times and showed no unfamiliarity. In addition, after not pitching since June 7th, a 27-minute wait in between the third and fourth inning, it could have almost been predicted he would come out not as sharp.

(Not sure if Pomeranz should have used this excuse himself, but what’s done is done.)

He had a great first half of the season so far, boasting an ERA of 2.47, 1.059 WHIP, 5.9 H/9, 0.7 HR/9, and 10.1 k/9. This was only one start. It may have been one bad start, but the sample size is still too small to make any assessments on this acquisition. He still possesses a 2.83 ERA, after giving up 5 earned in 3.0 on Wednesday. So, give it time before drawing any conclusions about the addition of the lefty.

Regardless of his debut and his collapse, the Red Sox were still able to pull out an 11-7 win. Pomeranz is slated to pitch Monday, July 25th, against the Detroit Tigers at Fenway. Hopefully, things turn around for Pomeranz because his success is going to be vital at the back end of the rotation.

If this makes anyone feel any better, Anderson Espinoza making his debut in the Padres organization went 3.0 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, and 2 BB.