Hideki Okajima a late-inning mainstay as a rookie, has not been nearly as effective this season for the Red Sox.

The Providence Journal / Bob Breidenbach

SEATTLE — Baseball’s non-waiver trading deadline is a little more than a week away, and while the Red Sox’ needs may be obvious, the solutions are not.

Even as the team battles a short-term offensive slump, the expectation is that the lineup will produce, particularly with David Ortiz tentatively slated to rejoin the lineup Friday when the Sox begin a homestand.

The bullpen, however, is seen as a more obvious weakness. Collectively, Red Sox relievers have lost more games than they did last season — and more than a third of the schedule remains.

Hideki Okajima, a late-inning mainstay as a rookie, has not been nearly as effective this season.

“A big thing last year,” said manager Terry Francona, “was Okie cleaned up a lot of innings and then came back and pitched another one. That was such a big part of our bullpen. A lefty with strikeout potential for both lefties and righties? That’s a big deal.”

But not this season. Okajima’s struggles with inherited runners have been well documented, and his earned-run average is nearly double what it was at this stage a year ago.

However, the trade market doesn’t offer much in the way of answers.

“The asking price (for quality relievers) is sky-high right now,” said general manager Theo Epstein. “It just doesn’t make sense.”

The Sox are one of many teams intrigued with Colorado lefty Brian Fuentes, but the Rockies have asked for Clay Buchholz in return — far too steep a price for a two-month rental. Fuentes can become a free agent at the end of the season.

Other lefties said to be available include Pittsburgh’s Damaso Marte and Kansas City’s Ron Mahay. Both fit the mold of lefty specialists more than Fuentes, who can close and get righties out, as well.

The asking price for Marte and Mahay may not be as extravagant, but it remains prohibitive, nonetheless. The Sox are reluctant to sacrifice a significant prospect for a pitcher who might contribute a dozen or so innings for the remainder of the regular season.

The Oakland A’s, who have dealt three starters — Rich Harden, Joe Blanton and Chad Gaudin — in the last two weeks, are not listening on offers for closer Huston Street. But if Fuentes would fetch an elite prospect, what would Street — who isn’t eligible for free agency for another three seasons — be worth?

Whether it’s because they wish to avoid sounding a note of desperation for potential trading partners or believe they’re better off fixing what they have, the Sox are sending signals that they are unlikely to make a significant bullpen addition by the deadline.

“The bullpen we have,” said GM Theo Epstein, “is essentially the same one that won a World Series a year ago.”

“I keep feeling our bullpen can still be a strength of our team,” said Francona.

But Francona couldn’t help but voice some concern.

“We’re late in July,” he said, “and we’re still being inconsistent. The quicker we get on a roll, the better off we’ll be.”

The weekend series in Anaheim was perfectly illustrative. After a blowout loss Friday, the Sox lost leads in the seventh and eighth innings.

On Saturday, Francona had Josh Beckett pitch a complete game even as he gave up two runs in the seventh against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Sunday, Tim Wakefield got into trouble in the eighth and got no help from Manny Delcarmen, who gave up a bases-loaded double to Casey Kotchman that helped seal the Sox’ fate and deliver a sweep to the Angels.

And the inconsistencies of the bullpen have been exacerbated by the team’s poor situational hitting of late, particularly on the road. The Sox have lost a stunning number of one-run road games — in part because of a lack of timely hitting without Ortiz’s lineup presence and in part because the set-up relievers have too often faltered.

The only saving grace for the Sox might be that other American League contenders also are struggling in the seventh and eighth innings. After moving Joba Chamberlain to the rotation, the Yankees are similarly searching for answers to bridge them to closer Mariano Rivera.

The same can be said of Tampa Bay and Chicago.

In time, Justin Masterson, recently transformed from a starter to reliever, may get an opportunity to see if he can fill the eighth-inning void. If the Sox try him in that role, it will be a sign that not only do they not expect help via the trade market, but also that they have given up hope on Okajima or Delcarmen laying full-time claim to the job.

smcadam@projo.com