9 thoughts on a Red Sox team that should prove to be the club’s best since 2013
The Sox are still on pace to win 116 games.
Playing Nine Innings while suspecting Didi Gregorius stole some of countryman Xander Bogaerts’s powers during the 2017 World Baseball Classic …
1. Well, that evaporated fast. After trailing the Red Sox by 7.5 games in the American League East on April 20, the Yankees tied the Red Sox for the lead in the American League East Tuesday night with their 15th win in 16 games since that date. And they did so with a 3-2 win that was just the kind of annoying victory, dotted with Red Sox what-ifs and a clutch Yankees hit against a jeered Red Sox pitcher, that felt straight out of 1998. Is it a sign of a rivalry reborn? Eh, the rivalry never goes away; it just simmers every few years or so. But this could be the year that the rivalry bubbles up and boils close to early 2000s intensity (though nothing can ever surpass the mutual loathing of October 2003). They’re both excellent teams fighting for the same prize. And they’ve already rumbled once. Better get used to it, because they meet 15 more times, including 10 times after August 1. And probably, for the first time since 2004, beyond the end of the regular season.
2. Despite their recent return to the earth’s atmosphere after their out-of-this-world 17-2 start, the 25-10 Red Sox are still on pace to win 116 games. That would tie the 2001 Seattle Mariners – which happened to be the recently sort-of-retired Ichiro’s first season stateside – for the most victories in a single regular season. Not a bad pace, even with their recent hiccups. Barring a cruel string of catastrophic injuries – and yes, the David Price situation is ominous — this really should prove to be the Red Sox’ best team since 2013. I suspect Red Sox fans probable need a reminder of that right now.
3. Of course, that optimism in a moment of frustration tells the broader story of the season so far, which is somehow already nearly one-quarter of the way through. (Weren’t these guys just in Fort Myers?) It does not address the frustrations of the moment, with the Red Sox having lost 8 of 16 while question marks showed up everywhere – in the lineup, rotation, bullpen, and even the dugout. And it offers no solutions to quickly repair what ails the Red Sox now, other than the callow suggestion to play the way they were before they, you know, stopped playing well.
4. The macro problem is that the Yankees are on the same pace, and they’ve already endured and escaped a chaotic stretch of the season while the Red Sox are currently flailing around in their own. Two weeks ago, it was actually reasonable to wonder whether the Sox might run away with the division. Now, it’s tempting to curse that the wild card is just a single win-or-go-home game given the slim but possible chance that they end up winning 100 games for the first time since 1946 while not winning the division.
New York Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius right fielder Aaron Judge celebrated after the Yankees pulled even with the Red Sox in the standings.
5. The Red Sox started 17-2. The Yankees have won 18 of their last 21. You know what you get when you put the two extraordinary streaks together? A won-lost record equal to the Detroit Tigers’ 35-5 start in 1984. That’s nuts for a team to play .875 ball for nearly a quarter or the season.. The Tigers got a no-hitter from Jack Morris on the fourth game of the season, won their first 9, didn’t lose again until their 18th game (a 19-inning loss to Cleveland), lost two in a row to drop to 19-4, then won 16 of their next 17. They finished 104-58 and beat San Diego in the World Series.
6. My frequently stated suggestion last season that Andrew Benintendi would be a complete player in the Fred Lynn mold and a superior player to Aaron Judge in the long run isn’t looking especially prescient right now. After a prolonged slump last summer, Judge adjusted and has been outstanding since. Benintendi had a fine season for his age (22) last year – his top career statistical comparison at that stage was Dave Winfield, who is actually the perfect visceral comp for Judge. But Benintendi’s .426 career slugging percentage needs to rise. He’s basically been at the Todd Benzinger level as a major leaguer (.432 with the 1987-88 Red Sox).
7. In terms of talent and charisma, Mookie Betts is one of the most appealing Red Sox players I’ve ever seen. But let’s admit it: He needs to do what he’s doing now for at least three more years before a comparison to Mike Trout is reasonable. Playing on the West Coast really limits Trout’s exposure, which is too bad. The relatively low profile has probably cost him a couple of MVP awards. If he played in New York, they’d be saying he’s Mickey Mantle with two good knees.
8. I’m not quite there yet, but it’s near: Maybe Jackie Bradley Jr. is nothing more than a platoon starter/fourth outfielder. He’s better get on one of his insane hot streaks soon, or he’s doomed to a career of being the modern-day Gary Pettis.
9. Alex Cora’s mistakes are magnified because he’s learning on the job and he thinks unconventionally and analytically, which takes him out of the realm of conventional wisdom. But man, he has done some strange stuff, especially in his deployment (or non-deployment) of pinch-hitters. I’m not sure how he let Tuesday’s game pass without using Mitch Moreland. He’s done a good job – the record is confirmation enough – and I like how he explains himself. I just hope he gets to the point where he has to explain himself a little less often.
