Are the Red Sox True Contenders in the American League?
The Boston Red Sox play in one of baseball’s deepest divisions in 2021, the American League East.
After last year’s shortened season, many people throughout the MLB thought the Red Sox were a bottom team in the AL East. As baseball usually goes, anything can happen. The Red Sox were one of the best teams in the league throughout the first half. The team looked like a championship-caliber roster with a potent offense and decent starting pitching that could be better with the addition of Chris Sale by August. Then the trade deadline happened, and the Red Sox were one of the few teams who were not active, only acquiring then-injured outfielder Kyle Schwarber to play first base and reliever Hansel Robles. Since then, much to the chagrin of Red Sox fans, the team lost its first-place spot and fell to third behind the Yankees, who struggled mightily during the first half of the season. Flash forward to today, and the Red Sox are struggling to field a competent team due to a COVID-19 outbreak and barely holding on to the last Wild Card spot.
Kyle Schwarber has provided an immediate impact for the Red Sox through a strong power bat and high on-base percentage.
What makes this team so frustrating is that the Sox are showing flashes of their early season dominance, while at other times, they look like a Double-A team. The offense continues to sputter; first, it was from a lack of production, then when things started to click a little bit, COVID-19 decimated the roster. Now the team wishes to get four runs on a good night and hope their pitching holds up. J.D. Martinez has not hit a Major League slider in about two months, or so it feels. The Red Sox needs Martinez to be his usual middle-of-the-order bat. Give him enough time to figure out what is going wrong so he can return to smashing opposite-field dingers by the postseason.
If J.D. Martinez can find flashes of his opposite field stroke, the Red Sox offense could re-emerge as one of the league’s best.
The starting pitching, which many people around the league thought would be a disaster entering this season, has held up with creaky floorboards. It may not look pretty at times, but the Red Sox have a slightly average pitching rotation. The bullpen, meanwhile, continues to be full of uncertainties aside from Garrett Whitlock and Adam Ottavino. Any other bullpen pitcher can give up the lead on any night, which does not bode well if the Red Sox continue into October. The inconsistency between their defense, which has looked atrocious lately, and their offense is the biggest problem for the Red Sox right now.
Where would the Red Sox be without relief ace Garrett Whitlock? The rookie has establish himself as one of the most overpowering pitchers in MLB, despite not playing above Double-A prior to this season.
As of now, the unpredictable is predictable for the Red Sox. The team must show consistency and show us who the Red Sox are; the team that rivaled the best teams in the league or the one that dropped two spots in the division. A lot must go right for this team to make it to October and hope for the best against the surging Yankees. It might not be easy, Red Sox fans, but take note of the positives. Look at Rafael Devers looking like a solid middle-of-the-order bat or Hunter Renfroe establishing himself as an everyday contributor. There are good things to like about this Red Sox team. It might not go deep into October, but it could be worse. Anything can happen in October, even a Red Sox team looking like the team that defied expectations in the first half re-emerging.
Hunter Renfroe’s elite throwing arm has contributed to nabbing runners who dare to run on the righty.