Although it’s currently still 36 degrees outside, Opening Day at Fenway marks the real end of winter in Boston and despite the Red Sox projected wins total, it’s impossible to be in a bad mood today. In order to truly and fully move on to 2023 though, first we must take a look back at last season.
To be fair, the Sox were coming off a 92 win season in 2021 and an electric ALCS appearance so I may have gotten wrapped up in the hype a little bit.
This year expectations are, to put it nicely, circling the drain already as the consensus has the Red Sox finishing in last place for the second year in a row. With that being said, let’s not lose sight of all the positives that came out of the disappointing (and confusing) 2022 season. To fully appreciate the full picture of last year, take a look at the 5 Best and 5 Worst Parts of Another Red Sox Last Place Finish.
But, as they famously like to say, if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry.
So with that in mind, have a good deep belly laugh at some of the wildest moments, reflect on the bittersweet moments, get excited about the potential shown, and fire up some game day dogs for Opening Day baby!
The trade deadline has come and gone and the Red Sox seemingly want to have their foot in all camps and be everyone to everyone, which is a superb way to run a business. Are they buyers? Are they sellers? After trading the team’s starting catcher and then picking up a new starting first baseman, Chaim Bloom says why choose just one?
An objective observer would have trouble faulting management for wanting to sell after seeing how dreadful the Sox have performed in recent weeks. After lighting the world on fire in June, the Sox had a catastrophic July dropping them into last place in the AL East. It wasn’t until the final day of the month that a Red Sox starting pitcher earned a win. That is not a typo. Not to mention, they still have yet to win a series against the AL East. Sitting at 53-53 and in last place, this doesn’t seem like a squad destined for October greatness.
On the other hand, this is the goddamn Boston Red Sox. This is a franchise that realistically shouldn’t ever be in the position of selling. It is laughable that a team with the resources of the Red Sox has so frequently hit rock bottom over the last 10+ years. They are 3 games out of the final wild card spot with 56 games left to play, there is zero excuse for a team with a $200M+ payroll to not at least try to make the playoffs. This isn’t the NBA where you have an outside shot at the top pick in the draft by missing the playoffs. Sure you aren’t going to trade away top prospects to bring in rental players to support a team you don’t believe in, but it is hard to fathom punting on the season.
Chaim Bloom argues the Red Sox are in just as good of a position to make the playoffs as they were last week, which isn’t exactly a confidence inspiring comment for a GM to make after a trade deadline.
Let’s recap what the Sox actually did over the last few days to reconstruct their roster.
Traded Christian Vazquez
There’s really no way to defend a major market team trading its starting catcher without any legitimate backup options or young player waiting in the wings. Now obviously the team wasn’t planning on resigning Vazquez so Bloom figured he would maximize the asset and get some prospects for him while he still could. It makes sense in a longer term view, but it hands down hurts this year’s team to trade away your starting catcher who’s having his best season in years. The Sox received two minor league prospects in return, but the move also had its team leader openly questioning the direction of the franchise.
Traded for Eric Hosmer
In a vacuum this is a good move, it legitimately makes the team better, but thats because the Boston Red Sox went the better part of two years without rostering an actual big league first baseman. I was starting to genuinely feel bad for Franchy Cordero after the three error game the other day so it will be nice to have a guy who actually has “1B” written on his trading card finally manning the position again.
It’s important to point out that the Sox only made this move because it fell into their lap though. They only made this move because they got Hosmer for literal pennies on the dollar. Why not make this move in May when it was clear Bobby Dalbec and co. were not cutting it at first base? Because then the move would have cost something. I heard Lou Merloni summarize it aptly saying Bloom is great at taking advantage of other team’s desperation (the Padres had to dump Hosmer after the Soto trade chaos), but has yet to really show a knack for preemptively identifying and targeting big league talent.
To top it off, rather than take on more of Hosmer’s contract to help the Padres shed salary and in return pick up higher rated prospects (as most big market teams do), instead the Sox opted to take on the bare minimum amount of Hosmer’s salary.
According to the Associated Press, the Red Sox owe Eric Hosmer:
If I were an accountant, that would have me running out of the tunnel like Tom Brady shouting obscenities. But I’m not, so I don’t really care that the Sox got a guy for cheap UNLESS they use that money to pay some of their own upcoming free agents. Now the trade off for taking on such little salary is that the Sox instead picked up a couple of lower level prospects AND had to attach their No. 11 ranked prospect in Jay Groome. That move really is the one that set me off. If you want to sell then fine go ahead and sell, but don’t half ass it.
Chaim Bloom can trade everyone on the team to acquire more and more and more lottery ticket prospects so he can continue to play Franchise Mode on his computer. But to then turn around and start dumping your own top prospects just to save money? That should make fans lose their minds. So now the Boston Red Sox, who seemingly want to rebuild the farm system with as many prospects as possible, are sending former first round picks out the door to save a few million dollars.
As Big Z so perfectly put it, “Classic Moneyball move by one of the richest teams in North America.”
Traded Jake Diekman for Reese McGuire
I cry no tears for Diekman, who was a high wire act in the truest sense of the term. He was Bloom’s highest price bullpen offseason addition though so that’s an L for Chaim. As for McGuire, the internet and talk radio has already shredded this guy to pieces for his, um, fondness for Dollar Store parking lots so I’ll just post my joke and move on.
Chaim, this is Reese McGuire. He is a catcher in the Top 10 in Defensive WAR and runners Caught Stealing. His only flaw is that he cannot legally be within 200 feet of a school. #RedSox | #DirtyWater | #MLBpic.twitter.com/CCLYb2MBue
The Sox added Pham for almost literally nothing as they gave the Reds the illustrious “player to be named later or cash considerations” in exchange. Pham has some pop with 11 home runs this year, but is only hitting .238 so not a massive upgrade. He is however the guy that punched Joc Pederson in the face over a fantasy football dispute so he definitely has a bit of an edge!
Released Jackie Bradley Jr.
I was honestly surprised to hear this news today because it seemed like the Sox were so smitten with his defense that JBJ would be penciled into the lineup until someone ripped the lineup card out of Alex Cora’s hands. Let us never forget the otherworldly performance Bradley had in the 2018 ALCS when he picked up MVP honors, but he was a streaky player who’s hot streaks were becoming shorter and further apart every day. He was batting .210 with a negative WAR so while he was a joy to watch in the outfield, a championship caliber team needs more out of an everyday outfielder.
So did this team get better? Did it get worse? Who knows, it kind of seems like a shell game of asset management at this point, but it’s hard to say winning this year was a priority of ownership. The Sox probably weren’t going to win the World Series this year, but nobody expected them to reach the ALCS last year either. My concern is on the direction of the franchise and the overall plan to make this team better. God help me if this team lets Xander Bogaerts walk and/or trades Rafael Devers because I can only handle the Tampa Bay Red Sox blueprint for so long.
If you gave him some truth serum and asked Chaim Bloom when he thinks the Red Sox will contend for a World Series, I imagine his answer would sound something like Cal from the 40 Year Old Virgin.
To be fair, if Bloom and his legion of prospects win a championship down the road then fine, but don’t just punt on this year because you have your eyes on four years from now. You run the Boston Red Sox, don’t be afraid to act like a big market bully once in a while.
After another cold, dark, and suspiciously long winter, this afternoon we get The Masters, game day dogs on the grill, and most importantly, Red Sox Opening Day. I wasn’t sure we’d get here after an extensive lockout, constant news of failed negotiations between the players and the owners, and rainouts delaying games further, but we made it guys. It’s baseball season.
After finishing the season 92-70 last year and making a surprise run to the ALCS expectations are high for this Red Sox team. With one of the best lineups in the game expectations should be high as the Sox look to build on last year’s deep postseason run. This season already has a melancholy vibe to it though because there could be some big changes after the season with JD Martinez, Kike Hernandez, and potentially Xander Bogaerts all hitting free agency. The farm system is back in the Top 10 and the Sox finally opened their wallets with the Trevor Story signing so the franchise is in a good position for the long haul, but it’s definitely win now time down on Jersey Street.
The Duct Tape Rotation
The 2022 pitching staff is a mixed bag that should get better when if everyone can get healthy at the same time, but as it currently sits the rotation has some question marks. The staff includes one legit starter in Nathan Eovaldi (11-9, 3.75 in 2021) but he comes with a long history of injuries, one potential hidden gem in Nick Pivetta (9-8, 4.53) who’s looking to build off an eye opening postseason run (2.63 ERA, 14 K’s in 13.2 IP), a 25-year-old in Tanner Houck (1-5, 3.52) that the Sox kept the training wheels on a bit last year but shows a ton of potential, and then two old and possibly washed up vets in Michael Wacha, yes that Wacha from the 2013 World Series, (5.05, 6.62, 4.76 ERAs the last 3 seasons) and Rich Hill (7-8, 3.86) at 42-years-young is back in Boston to see how long he can survive throwing 88 mph fastballs. Gone is rotation mainstay Eduardo Rodriguez after the Red Sox deemed him expendable and to be honest E-Rod seemed like he was gone the minute Alex Cora publicly scolded him for celebrating too hard in the middle of an ALCS game. A rare miss for Cora.
Eduardo Rodriguez got an earful from Alex Cora after mocking Carlos Correa’s celebration. 😳
If it sounds like I’m missing someone, you’re right, I haven’t mentioned Chris Sale who somehow cracked a rib last month throwing a baseball. So I hate to pin my hopes on Chris Sale because while has the stuff to be the best pitcher in the game, he he has struggled mightily to stay healthy the last few years. I still blame the Sox for delaying Sale’s March 2020 Tommy John surgery by several months for no particular reason, which ended up costing Sale nearly two full years. After recently being placed on the 60 day IL, Sale is projected to return the first week of June so I’m cautiously optimistic, but when healthy the lefty has the stuff to carry the Sox down the stretch and into the playoffs.
Welcome to Boston, Trevor Story
I love this signing IF Story is indeed slated to be the second baseman of the future. I don’t however love the optics of the Red Sox signing a career shortstop the same exact year that their own franchise shortstop can opt out of his contract and become a free agent. At best it feels like hedging, at worst it feels like the Sox are preemptively moving on from their team’s de facto leader, homegrown All-Star, and 2x World Series champion.
Garrett Whitlock Will Be Key
For those who don’t know, the Red Sox essentially got Garrett Whitlock off the scrap heap, selecting him in the 2020 Rule 5 Draft off the Yankees roster. Coming off Tommy John surgery, Whitlock was nothing less than a revelation for the Sox last year going 8-4 with a 1.96 ERA and racking up 81 strikeouts in 73.1 IP. Like a child of divorce, Whitlock seems to be stuck between what his dad (Alex Cora) and his mom (Chaim Bloom) want him to be as he gets yo-yo’d back and forth from the rotation to the bullpen. It has a striking similarity to the Jonathan Papelbon situation way back in 2006 when Paps came into the league as a starter before getting shifted to the pen for the postseason and ultimately taking the closer reigns from Keith Foulke. Now, I think Whitlock should be a starter because he has all the tools and multiple legit pitches to become a top of the rotation guy. However, baseball as a whole has really devalued top tier starters as analytics have taken over the game and managers routinely pull starters after a couple of times through the batting order. “Openers” used to be something we all laughed at the Rays for sending out relievers to pitch a few innings to start a game instead of a traditional starter. Now you see it all the time. The workhorse ace of a pitching staff is an endangered species. There were only THREE players with more than 200 innings pitched last year in all of baseball!
So perhaps Whitlock has a higher objective value coming out of the pen as the team’s Rover, but I still would rather seem him as a starter. Then again, Papelbon went on to become the greatest closer in team history so what do I know. Let’s not forget that the team did jerk around guys like Daniel Bard who eventually fell apart and the Yankees did the same thing with Joba Chamberlain. I once saw Chamberlain start a game at Fenway where he struck out 11 guys before the Yankees move him back to the pen. Then again he was a dominant reliever and was the heir apparent to Mariano Rivera before also falling apart. So I guess my main point is let’s just make a decision and stick with it rather than hem and haw to the point that the team screws up another young pitcher.
Rafael Devers Poised for Another MVP Season
Contract extension talks have stalled between the Sox and Bogaerts and Devers so that’s been a bit of a downer heading into the season. Devers just turned 25 in October and posted a season of 38 HR, 113 RBI while hitting .279/.352/.538 last year. He led the Red Sox in HR, RBI, Runs, Hits, Total Bases, Slugging and OPS en route to his first All-Star selection and finishing 11th in MVP voting. No player has more extra base hits than Rafael Devers over the last three seasons. Get. The. Deal. Done.
“We are talking cheapies here. The big boys came through.” – Eck
Matt Barnes was an All-Star last season lest anyone forget after his second half ERA of 6.48 and ya know being left off the ALCS roster. It didn’t help that Barnes seemingly fell apart right around the time the Spider Tack story broke and was suddenly explicitly banned. Maybe it was just a mental thing and he needed a full winter away from the ballpark to reset, but I’m not exactly penciling Barnes in for 40 saves this year. Whitlock could step in and handle the role, but again with baseball overindexing in middle relief guys, the Sox may not want to pigeonhole Whitlock to 1-inning outings. Cora has gone out of his way to not name a closer, which is fine, but I don’t love a revolving door at the end of games.
“They don’t want to call it closer by committee so they’re not gonna use that term is because they know theres a negative connotation. The reason Cora hasn’t named a closer is because they’re not going to use one.” – Tony Mazz on 98.5
It seems like the Sox are just throwing arms against the wall to see what sticks and that could be a problem, but then again relievers are notoriously fickle. So the team will need to define some roles in the pen, but expect the Sox to be active in the reliever market if Barnes and co. don’t bounce back.
This is a Flawed But Dangerous Team
Vegas has the over/under set for the 2022 Red Sox at 85.5 after winning 92 last year. With a loaded lineup that will mash its way to a ton of wins on its own and a potentially sneaky good bullpen, the Sox should be a lock to hit the over. The rotation could be a disaster if there are any more injuries, but with Sale due back in June they should be good enough at the front end. The only thing that could hinder them is how the AL East has seemingly become the best division in baseball. Vegas has the Yankees, Rays, and Blue Jays all projected to win more games than the Sox this season, which Boston is intimately aware of after all-time classic playoff battles against the Yankees and Rays just last fall. With all that being said, I like my chances with a lineup featuring Kike Hernandez, Rafael Devers, Xander Boagaerts, JD Martinez, Alex Verdugo, Trevor Story, and even Bobby Dalbec if he keeps up his second half surge from last season. I think this team will definitely need to add an outfield bat if they’re going to reach the World Series because I love former ALCS MVP Jackie Bradley’s defense, but the man did hit .163 in his lone season with the Brewers last year. Maybe that bat off the bench comes in the form of top prospect Triston Casas, but even then, the kid plays first base. So Chaim will likely need to find an OF bat at the deadline in the same vein as Steve Pearce if the Sox are to go the distance.
Media predictions are all over the place too so nobody knows what to expect from this team. The Ringer has the Sox as the 12th ranked team in baseball behind the Jays, Rays and Yankees, Felger has the Sox winning 95 games, and Chris Gasper has called the upcoming season a bridge year. Then again media predictions are just that, fugazi attempts at defining a team before the first pitch of Opening Day. A lot of people picked the Sox to finish a distant 4th in the division last year, but the team clicked and ended up winning 92 games en route to the ALCS.
With the addition of a healthy Chris Sale I have this team winning 95 games this year, which should be enough to get them into the new 12-team playoff format. Is this a World Series winning team? I’m not sold on that without some additions, but this should be a team that is threatening for the pennant.
The 300s 