Whatever happened to that surplus of pitching the Red Sox had?

Suddenly, there are pitching questions surrounding this team as the clock ticks towards Friday's 4 p.m. non-waiver trading deadline. The two elder statesmen of the Boston rotation have left the pitching staff a little thin.

First, Tim Wakefield went on the disabled list with a lower back strain.

While the team believes he will be back soon, there has to be cause for concern when a 42-year-old pitcher goes to the DL for the third time in four years. And that doesn't include the back pain that kept him off the playoff roster back in October 2007.

John Smoltz also is 42. He will someday join Jim Rice in Cooperstown, with 20 years of pitching excellence on his resume.

He has finished in the top 10 in National League Cy Young Award voting five times over the course of his career, and is the only pitcher in history with at least 200 career wins and 150 saves.

None of that has helped him in a Red Sox uniform. There were a smattering of boos Sunday from the Fenway Faithful.

Smoltz only lasted five innings against the Orioles, giving up six runs on nine hits. The loss pushed his ERA to 7.04.

This is no longer a case of Smoltz being rusty. Smoltz has made six starts, and has not impressed. He believes he has the stuff to succeed, but we've yet to see it.

"Right now, my frustration is it looks like I'm not delivering," said Smoltz.

"That will change one way or the other, I can promise you that. I work at it pretty hard. I'm not a guy that has a ton of anger on the field or off the field, but I'm grinding."

"One way or the other" indicates the once-great pitcher is at a crossroads. Is the team ready to move on from the Smoltz experience? The answer – for now – is no.

"I've certainly been wrong before," said Manager Terry Francona. "I don't think I'm wrong this time. I don't think we're wrong this time. This guy, it's going to work, I really believe that. The results certainly haven't been what we've wanted so far. I think he's going to be just fine."

He'd better be. Pitching depth has been one of Boston's biggest strengths this season. Now, that depth may be put to the test. Clay Buchholz is in the rotation while Wakefield is on the DL. Buchholz may find himself remaining in that rotation if Smoltz struggles again on Friday.

There is also Daisuke Matsuzaka. Francona has reported that Matsuzaka's made significant improvement in his strength and added that he expects Dice-K to return to help the team before the season is over.

That means Matsuzaka could replace Smoltz in the rotation if Smoltz continues to struggle. Or he could replace Buchholz if the Red Sox decide to trade the young righty for someone who can help them over these final 10 weeks of the season.

There was a time when it would seem crazy to think about trading a valuable young arm like Buchholz.

That said, the Sox took the field Monday night having lost six of nine since the All-Star break.

One week from tonight they open up a stretch of games against the Rays, Yankees, Tigers and Rangers.

All four clubs are playoff contenders, and all are going to be looking for help in these final days before the deadline.

The Sox will also be on the lookout for help. And now, for the first time, it seems that help might be in the form of another arm to help stabilize the staff.

Tom Caron is the studio host for Red Sox broadcasts on the New England Sports Network. His column appears in the Press Herald on Tuesdays.