Mazz: A look at the Red Sox exactly one month from Opening Day
Opening Day is exactly one month away, so this seemed like a good time to take quick stock of the Red Sox and offer up a bunch of thoughts, observations and concerns. If I do this right, you’ll like some and dislike others.
Frist, let me start with this: I like the team … but I don’t love it. In the wake of the Alex Bregman signing, there was a euphoria/relief that washed over the Red Sox and their followers for all the wrong reasons. During the six years prior to this one, the Sox went 437-433 and finished last three times. Minus the 2021 season, the Sox went 345-363. We’ve all been so starved for a team with any sustainable buzz that we were all bound to overreact.
On the day the Sox announced the Bregman acquisition, here’s what agent Scott Boras said about the Sox’ state of mind, specifically as it pertained to principal owner John Henry:
“I think it was after (Juan) Soto signed. I could tell, from knowing John back from the Marlins, that he had a real onus about ‘We need to really do things differently than we’ve done before.’ I knew from the ownership level that they were really looking to correct what’s happened the last five or six years.
“These owners have needs and ideals and their hope of what they do – a lot of it is attached to their own personal feelings. This is a point in time where I believe Red Sox ownership was again hungry for championship play and I think very, very exhausted with what’s happened the last few years here.”
We all were. So you rejoiced. But that doesn’t mean they’re all the way back yet.
This brings us to Red Sox pitching staff and concerns that should be obvious. If healthy, both Garrett Crochet and Walker Buehler should be upgrades, but Buehler has made at least 30 starts only twice in seven seasons and Crochet’s total of 146 innings last year was a career high. Meanwhile, Kutter Crawford won’t be ready to start the year and Brayan Bello has also been sidelined. Lucas Giolito is working back from elbow surgery. When people talked about six-man rotation, nobody was anticipating that it might be 2 x 3 (Crochet, Buehler and Tanner Houck).
Pump the brakes.
As for the lineup, have you noticed that no one has really talked about the catcher position? There’s an obvious reason. It feels weak. On June 27 of last year, through 81 games, Connor Wong has an .870 OPS. After that, the number plummeted to .666 with a .239 batting average. Defensively, for the season, Wong ranked 17th among 17 qualifying candidates (850 innings minimum) in defensive runs saved and last in framing. Just sayin’.
Fact: the 2025 Red Sox look soft at the position. Keep an eye on it.
As for the infield defense, it should be better. But ask yourselves this: who’s the second baseman? Kristian Campbell? Vaughn Grissom? Bregman? The answer is that we don’t know, which would be acceptable if this were 2007 and Dustin Pedroia was joining an established, winning operation. (It isn’t and he’s not.) Compared to last year, Grissom has looked a little better in the little bits I’ve seen. Campbell has athletic ability but is a little gangly and still appears to be learning his body. If Bregman ends up there, that means Devers is at third – where, among regular third baseman, he was the worst defensive player in the game last year.
Let’s make sure the Sox can turn a double play – something is key in killing opposing rallies and escaping big innings – before we clear the calendar for October.
A few final bullet points:
Campbell has a lovely approach at the plate and seems focused on right-center field – which I love – but he sometimes moves his feet a lot in the batter’s box. (Most of it appears to be when he doesn’t swing; when he makes contact, his feet seem to remain planted.) That said, he’s thin and needs to fill out more, though that isn’t unusual for someone so young.
I found it interesting that, in his opus on the Sox’ prospect trio, ESPN’s Jeff Passan said that Roman Anthony “is widely regarded as the best hitting prospect in the minor leagues.” There was, of course, no mention of his defense. Watching Anthony run, he’s more lumbering than I thought and his defensive instincts seem questionable. (Again, these are based on small samples I’ve seen.) Does that mean he’s a bust? No. But it means he’s not perfect. Again, keep an eye on it.
Marcelo Mayer is the smoothest, most-polished player of the bunch – but he also feels like the frailest. First, I question whether he’s really 6-foot-3. Adding bulk could be tricky if he remains at shortstop. His swing is smooooooooth. And so are his feet.
Oh, one more thing: Aroldis Chapman threw 23 pitches in his first outing as 12 of them were balls. If it’s possible, I hate him more than I already did
