The Red Sox ended April just one game out of first place in the AL East. However, the 12-10
Carmine Hose clearly have a boatload of problems—not the least of which is starting pitching. Our
Dalton Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) seems to be reflecting this —as it experienced a sharp drop in April—falling 22.3 points to
77.7. The initial 2015
preseason reading from our readers was normalized and set to 100.0 as the benchmark reading for the remainder of the year. The drop in the Index was fueled primarily by an
extremely low level of confidence in the team's starting pitching (a raw score of 22.0). Relief pitching came in at 34.7—while offense scored at 76.7 and defense had a raw score of 75.3. FenwayNation offers its readers this monthly reading of "The Mood Of The Nation" through our exclusive
Dalton Jones Industrial Average. Named for the all-time Red Sox pinch-hit leader, the average is a composite index of four key metrics:
starting pitching,
relief pitching,
total offense and
total defense. The editors invite readers from around the world to weigh in every month on the state of the team. The Index number—and its fluctuation up or down—has proven, over the years, to be a pretty accurate bellwether of actual team status.
