Random thoughts on the Red Sox as they stumble toward the finish line originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
News of the Red Sox heading to Tampa with their playoff hopes hanging by a thread…
The weekend in New York was not a kind one. Not only did the Sox lose three of four games, they were also furious with Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, who decided to intentionally bench Rafael Devers with the bases empty after intentionally hitting him hard in his first at-bat on Saturday (almost certainly).
The Red Sox didn’t like that, and Brayan Bello threw behind Yankees MVP favorite Aaron Judge in the sixth inning. Manager Alex Cora tacitly admitted the Red Sox were trying to retaliate, and now MLB is investigating, according to The Boston Globe.
“We had our chance,” Cora told reporters. “It didn’t happen. We have to keep going.”
Cole has openly expressed his admiration for Devers’ abilities and his frustration with his own inability to handle the Red Sox hitter. Devers has hit eight home runs in 46 batting appearances against Cole, leading to the odd sight of the pitcher holding up four fingers with the bases empty on Saturday to call his own intentional walk. The move backfired as the Red Sox scored three runs.
Cole’s personal suffering continued an inning later when Devers hit a two-run single with the bases loaded that was part of a four-run fifth in Boston’s 7-1 victory.
If Cora had hoped the incident would motivate his team to make one final playoff push, he was disappointed. New York won the last two games and Judge got his revenge with a two-run homer in Sunday’s finale. …
The wild-card situation isn’t pretty. The Red Sox are four games behind the Twins, with 12 games left to play, and a crucial series between the two clubs this weekend. The problem is that the red-hot Tigers and Mariners have overtaken the Red Sox by a .500 record, meaning even a win over Minnesota doesn’t guarantee anything. The Tigers have moved to within 1.5 games of the Twins, while the Mariners are two games back. …
More immediate concerns lie with Tampa. The Red Sox have not finished ahead of the Rays in the standings since 2018, and despite blowing up the core of its roster at the trade deadline, Tampa is still only two games behind the Red Sox.
It’s a sad commentary on how bad the trade deadline has been for the Red Sox that they have exactly the same record as Tampa (19-25) since July 30. The Red Sox traded 10 young players to get a quartet that either got injured, contributed next to nothing, or both. One of them, left-hander James Paxton, has already announced plans to retire.
The Rays, on the other hand, took advantage of the seller’s market by trading away key talent: All-Star outfielder Randy Arozarena (Mariners), reigning AL wins leader Zach Eflin (Orioles), powerful corner infielder Isaac Paredes (Cubs), shutdown reliever Jason Adam (Padres) and versatile utility man Amed Rosario (Dodgers, since released).
In total, the Rays sold or traded nine major league players in July. It made sense at the time, but now it’s clear the Red Sox should have followed their example. …
One reason to watch the last 12 games beyond the fading playoff hopes: outfielder Jarren Duran.
He’s coming off one of the 20 best offensive seasons in franchise history, and if he can add to his league-leading doubles and triples, he could not only surpass 350 total bases, but also become the eighth Red Sox hitter to reach 9.0 WAR, joining Ted Williams (six times), Carl Yastrzemski (three times), Mookie Betts (twice), Tris Speaker (twice), Rico Petrocelli, Babe Ruth and Wade Boggs.
This will give Duran MVP votes on the next ballot, and even if that race comes down to a duel between Judge and Royals superstar Bobby Witt Jr., Duran has a good chance of finishing in the top five.
