Rafael Devers and the Boston Red Sox enter Tueaday’s game against Miami with a record 40-39 and in last place in the AL East. Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press
It seems like every time the Red Sox have turned a corner, they’ve found a way to stumble back to square one.
When they won eight straight to move a season-high seven games over .500, they then lost six of their next seven, including a three-game sweep at the hands of the last-place St. Louis Cardinals at Fenway Park.
When they bounced back with four straight wins and a pair of series victories over Seattle and San Diego, they face-planted again and went 5-12 over the next two-plus weeks.
Now, since winning six straight to move back into the playoff picture, the Red Sox have dropped 4 of 5 to a pair of unremarkable AL Central clubs, including last weekend’s series against a bad Chicago White Sox team that seems destined to sell off its entire starting rotation ahead of the trade deadline.
As a result, the Red Sox come into the week 40-39, last in the AL East and three-games back of the last wild-card spot with three teams to jump.
They haven’t been bad, per se. They’ve just been… blah.
The Red Sox will hit the season’s official halfway mark on Thursday and to this point the club has been thoroughly mediocre. Both the offense and pitching has come and gone, and the club has consistently been sunk by key injuries and horrible defense.
The season hasn’t been without its bright spots. Brayan Bello looks like the real deal and several of Boston’s other young pitchers have taken important steps forward. Big offseason signing Masataka Yoshida has been a borderline All-Star and rookie first baseman Triston Casas has shaken off his terrible start, batting .267 with an .848 OPS since the start of June.
Chris Sale also looked for a while like he was back to his old self too, but then he suffered yet another injury setback and is out until at least August. Trevor Story also likely won’t return until around then, and his absence and the club’s inability to find a serviceable replacement has been the biggest reason for the Red Sox malaise.
With those two, plus guys like Tanner Houck, John Schreiber and Joely Rodriguez on the shelf, Boston could badly use reinforcements. The club’s flaws are fixable, but given that the trade deadline is still five weeks away and few teams are in obvious sell-now mode, the Red Sox will probably have to try to tread water for another month before meaningful help arrives.
The Red Sox have it in them and they’ve already shown they can compete, now they just have to start being more consistent and stop losing to clubs like the Rockies and White Sox every other week.
By going 3-4 on this past week’s trip the Red Sox failed to capitalize on a soft spot on their schedule. Now the road gets a lot tougher.
Coming up next the Red Sox (40-39) host the surprising Miami Marlins (45-34) for a three-game set at Fenway Park. The Marlins, who finished fourth or worse in the NL East in four of the past five seasons, have enjoyed a resurgence and are second in their division and first in the NL wild-card race.
The Marlins’ success has been fueled by Luis Arraez’s historic season at the plate – he was batting .399 entering Monday – and also by the emergence of 20-year-old rookie Eury Perez (5-1, 1.34 ERA). Longtime Red Sox reliever Matt Barnes is also on Miami’s roster, but he is currently on the 15-day injured list with a left hip impingement and won’t pitch at Fenway Park this week. Prior to the injury Barnes had a 5.48 ERA in 24 appearances.
After finishing with the Marlins the Red Sox will hit the road again and play a crucial three-game set against the Toronto Blue Jays (43-36) over the weekend. It will mark Boston’s first visit to Toronto this season, and entering Tuesday the Blue Jays were three games ahead of the Red Sox for the final AL wild-card spot.
Boston then returns next week to play a three-game series against the AL West-leading Texas Rangers (47-30) before wrapping up the first half by hosting the hapless Oakland Athletics (20-60). This upcoming stretch will be crucial for the Red Sox, who must hold their own against a series of contenders if they hope to survive into the All-Star Break.
THE RED SOX made another small trade to add some pitching depth.
Boston acquired right-handed reliever Andrés Núñez from the Royals for cash considerations, according to MLB.com’s transactions log. Núñez has spent the entire season at Triple-A Omaha and is expected to join the WooSox in the coming days.
Núñez, 27, is a 6-foor-4, 240-pound righty who was originally drafted by the Royals out of Florida International University in the 2018 draft. The South Florida native pitched to a 6.66 ERA and 1.726 WHIP in 21 games (24 1/3 innings) at Omaha this season in what has been his third go-around ad the minors’ highest level. Núñez has spent his entire professional career in the Kansas City organization, logging 163 appearances (one start) since making his pro debut in 2018.
The Red Sox have made a point of accumulating depth arms throughout the season. Journeymen Brennan Bernardino and Justin Garza, who were both claimed off waivers early in the year, have contributed out of the bullpen. Boston also traded for Dodgers righty Tayler Scott last week and assigned him to Triple-A Worcester.
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