Fantasy Baseball Insiders

Ricky Romero has become a valued fantasy asset over the last two seasons. His numbers against division rival Boston, however, have been downright awful.

Here are all seven of Romero’s starts against Boston over the last two seasons (not including Wednesday night):

• 7/9/10: 2.1 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
• 8/10/10: 6.0 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
• 8/21/10: 7.0 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 8 K
• 9/18/10: 6.0 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
• 4/18/11: 4.1 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 5 BB, 4 K
• 7/6/11: 4.1 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
• 9/8/11: 6.2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 7 K

All told, Romero has complied a 7.62 ERA in his last 36.2 innings against Boston, including a 4.91 BB/9 and 1.93 WHIP.

Against all other MLB teams over the last two seasons, Romero has near ace-like numbers, posting a sterling 2.96 ERA in 373.2 innings, with a strikeout rate of 7.39, a walk rate of 3.34 and a WHIP of 1.16.

On Wednesday night, Romero finally conquered Boston, allowing four runs (three earned) in eight innings. The Toronto southpaw threw 65 of his 103 pitches for strikes, allowing six hits and a single walk.

Despite Wednesday night’s performance, I cannot force myself to start Romero against Boston — under any circumstance. And this is despite the fact that the Red Sox generally field left-handed-heavy lineup.

But when you consider Romero’s career batter vs. pitcher splits against current Boston hitters, benching him is clearly the best option.

• Carl Crawford: 2-for-17 (.118)
• J.D. Drew: 12-for-24 (.500)
• Jacoby Ellsbury: 9-for-21 (.429)
• Adrian Gonzalez: 1-for-6 (.167)
• David Ortiz: 10-for-29 (.345)
• Dustin Pedroia: 8-for-19 (.421)
• Jarrod Saltalamacchia: 2-for-7 (.286)
• Marco Scutaro: 5-for-15 (.333)
• Kevin Youkilis: 7-for-18 (.389)

The 26-year-old Romero is under team control for three more years, so he’s likely to face a handful of Boston matchups each year for the foreseeable future. When he does, make sure to pull him out of your lineup. Until he establishes a record of success against the Red Sox, he can’t be trusted.

Image courtesy of: theseoduke

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