Alex Cora's Latest Update on Heath Hembree is a Bit Concerning

It's no secret that the premier problem concerning the Boston Red Sox in 2019 has been their woeful pitching -- both in the bullpen and starting rotation. After all the club is currently on the outside of the playoff picture despite boasting the second-best offense in all of baseball on a per-game basis.

Prior to heading on the injured list with a right elbow extensor strain, right-hander Heath Hembree boasted a 2.51 ERA across 31 appearances, emerging as one of the few arms manager Alex Cora could actually trust out of the pen. Since his return, however, Hembree has been imploding virtually every time the skipper has called his name. And the most puzzling aspect of his struggles? They're not physical in nature.

“The breaking ball wasn’t good," Cora said after his poor showing against the Yankees on Friday. “The fastball command wasn’t great. As everybody knows, Heater is a guy that lives upstairs regardless of the velocity and everything was down in the zone. He hung a slider to Austin Romine.... I think the command of the fastball wasn’t there.”

In nine appearances since his return, the College of Charleston product has conceded 7 runs on 10 hits in just nine appearances, seeing his ERA to balloon to a middling 3.63.

In truth, the best case scenario for Cora and Co. here would be if Hembree was actually dealing with an injury and simply needed time to heal. At least then they would've had a complete analysis as to what was wrong with the hurler.

Instead, they just have to assume he has lost all command and confidence he demonstrated from April to late June. And we don't have to explain how concerning that is.