Boston Red Sox

3 bright spots of the Red Sox’ season so far

We promise there are three bright spots.

Red Sox rookie infielder Michael Chavis has succeeded early and often in the first games of his MLB career.

By Tommy McArdle

3 minutes to read

The Red Sox’ poor start to the 2019 season was not what they expected. It was not the first month anyone – Dave Dombrowski, Alex Cora, the players, or the fans – wanted.

On May 1, the Red Sox hold a 13-17 record and sit in fourth place in the AL East, seven games behind the Tampa Bay Rays.

Can they turn it around? It’s not 2018 any longer, but that does not mean the Red Sox could not find any positives in the first month of the MLB season.

Here are three bright spots for the Red Sox after one month of play:

Ryan Brasier and the bullpen are strong.

Craig Kimbrel was the Red Sox’ dedicated closer for three seasons. When Dave Dombrowski indicated that the Red Sox would not re-sign Kimbrel, the dominating question of the offseason focused on Alex Cora’s bullpen strategy.

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Ryan Brasier, the 31-year-old who started the 2018 MLB season in the minor leagues, has pitched about as well as he did in the Sox’ World Series run last October. In 9 postseason games, Brasier posted a 1.04 ERA and guided the Red Sox through tough innings each time, allowing no more than two hits in any individual appearance.

In 2019, that’s largely remained the same: Brasier has made 14 appearances, posting a 1.32 ERA along the way. He has earned six saves in seven opportunities. He has entered the game in the final two innings of 12 of those 14 appearances and averaged fewer than four pitches per batter faced.

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The bullpen is not just a one-man show, though. Matt Barnes has pitched important innings: 10 of his 12 appearances have come with the Red Sox either ahead by less than three runs, tied, or behind by only one run. He has contributed two saves and allowed only seven hits over 48 batters faced.

Among the Sox’ relief pitchers as a group, it’s been an equal effort: Brasier and Barnes, along with Heath Hembree, Brandon Workman, and Colten Brewer, have all pitched in between 11 and 14 innings this season. According to Baseball Reference, the Red Sox boast MLB’s fourth-best bullpen so far in 2019.

Michael Chavis is making an impact early in his MLB career.

Bleacher Report named the Red Sox as having the MLB’s worst farm system on Jan. 2 of this year. Michael Chavis, the team’s top prospect, was not listed on Baseball Prospectus’ top 101 prospects this season.

Nobody seems to have told him.

Chavis, 23, has hit three home runs, driven in eight runs, and scored seven times himself since making his MLB debut April 20. Through April 30, he’s slashing .313/.436/.625. According to Baseball Reference, his 0.6 WAR (a calculation of how many wins a player adds above a replacement level player) is tied with J.D. Martinez for fifth-highest among Red Sox batters.

Chavis has adjusted to MLB pitching well through his first 10 games while playing all over the infield, too. In Dustin Pedroia’s absence, Chavis has mostly played second base, but he has started one game apiece at first and third base. In 38 defensive chances, he has only committed one error. Rafael Devers, for example, has committed one error for almost every 12 defensive chances he’s faced this season.

Chris Sale’s velocity and overall performance are growing stronger.

The Red Sox gave Chris Sale a four-year, $145 million contract extension through 2024 before the season started. His poor pitching in April threatened to turn that extension into a $145 million hill for Dave Dombrowski to die on.

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ā€œI keep saying the same things over and over, but itā€™s a step in the right direction,ā€ Sale said after his most recent start, a seven-inning effort against the Rays that culminated in a 5-2 loss for the Sox.

Sale was right, though. That game was a step in the right direction. Sale struck out eight batters, pitched seven innings for the first time this season, and threw the most strikes swinging he has all season (15) against the Rays.

According to FanGraphs, Sale’s average fastball velocity has yet to consistently match its peaks from the 2018 season. But ever since it dipped below 90 mph in his April 2 start, the velocity has risen.

Chris Sale clearly needs to make further adjustments to get back to top form, but as he said, it’s a step in the right direction.