Big Papi Not Progressing

Have you ever had an achilles problem? It hurts like heck to do anything. You can't even walk on a bad one, none the less hit & run. Big Papi is not ready to get back into the lineup today & I would bet he won't be ready next week either. For an older guy I have heard that a bad achilles rupture (which no one is saying that this one is that severe) can take up to a year to heal. David Ortiz cannot run pain free yet. His absence is definitely effecting the offensive run production. The top 4 of Ellsbury, Crawford, Pedroia & Gonzalez need to stay hot to give the Sox a chance to win without #34. Middlebrooks has been a nice compliment. Any contributions from the rest of the lineup are a plus - like Ciriaco. But how long can Ciriaco keep coming up with big hits in the clutch? Let's hope that Ciriaco's shelf life doesn't expire before Big Papi gets back. Given the non-active trade deadline, these are our guys for the rest of the season.