Stop Sign

Imagine my surprise when it was revealed during one recent Red Sox telecast that the Sox are in the top 10 in the Major Leagues in stolen bases. Wait, what? I nearly demanded a recount. For a moment I thought they meant bases that had literally been stolen, as in removed from the premises. I figured the Sox were so abysmal on the road they were leaving other team's stadiums with whatever they could stuff in their gym bags, just to prove they had indeed shown up.

But the reason for the glut of stolen bases (it is true, as it turns out) is simple, and it's wearing one long red sleeve. Rookie centerfielder Jacoby Ellsbury spent the first few months of the season running circles around opposing pitches and catchers, disrupting the rhythm on the mound the minute he reached first base. I still remember a few instances where he'd swipe second and third - on consecutive pitches. Just nasty.

But here we are in late July, and he has the same amount of steals - 35 - that he had on the first day of the month. He still leads the league - which is a strong illustration of how lost an art the stolen base has become - but he hasn't shifted into fifth gear in some time.

Of course, one needs to be on base in order to steal one, and Ellsbury has been mired in the first significant batting slump of his career. Most point to his troubles at the plate as the reason he isn't stealing bases. Seems logical enough to me.

But allow me to combine the two topics and toss out a different theory: Ellsbury is injured. I know, I know, he doesn't appear to be, and he isn't whining about it like Manny would to get yanked from the lineup. But consider - what part of your body is necessary to both drive the ball and swipe bases? Your legs. And if your legs are not functioning properly, the result would be a precipitous drop in your batting average (think David Ortiz and his knee, circa last year) and a resulting drop in your stolen bases.

It's just a theory, obviously. Mine eyes have seen no evidence that Ellsbury is ailing other than his statistical struggles. But we've seen players - and teams - hide injuries to keep from letting the media put more pressure on a young player. It wouldn't be the first time. Maybe his hamstring is sore, maybe his quad is tight, maybe his ankle is tweaked ... who knows. But the Red Sox wouldn't be reinventing the wheel by keeping it quiet.

Of course, his struggles could easily be explained by his age and inexperience alone. Rookies often have their struggles, and it's not impossible for him to have simply hit the rookie wall. In fact, this is probably the more plausible and likely scenario.

But you never know. If Ellsbury comes up lame down the stretch, you heard it here first. But as a Red Sox fan let me say, I'm hoping that I'm way off base here. At least then there's a better chance Ellsbury will be back on one soon.