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It has been a somewhat surprising season for the Boston Red Sox as they headed into the second portion of this Major League Baseball season. Following a slow start, which had some of their fans calling them the “Dead Sox,” the team put on a spurt which produced a 53-win/42-loss record going into the 93rd playing of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, which coincided with the induction ceremony of 2024 class of Baseball Hall of Fame recipients.
Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran PHOTO: Rickmunroe01
The most notable star player for the Sox to date is outfielder Jarren Duran. The speedy Duran has put up strong numbers to lead an inconsistent offensive attack. His .290 batting average (120 hits), with 12 home runs, 11 triples, 30 doubles and 22 stolen bases, earned him a spot on the American League All-Star roster. He made a huge splash by hitting the game-winning two-run homer in the American League’s 5-3 victory over the National League, earning game Most Valuable Player honors in the process — the first Red Sox All-Star MVP since J.D. Drew in 2008.
Duran stands in the shadow of third baseman and fellow All-Star Rafael Devers, the team leader with 23 home runs and 62 runs batted in to go along with a .284 batting average. The Sox have a special player in Ceddanne Rafaela, who puts in solid defensive work at shortstop and centerfield while hitting over .260. Outfielder Tyler O’Neill has provided power with 18 home runs while catcher Connor Wong has provided steady defensive work behind the plate to go along with a .258 batting average.
Red Sox pitcher Brayan Bello Photo: Courtesy Major League Baseball Boston Red Sox
The team’s most glaring deficiencies come in the department of team defense and relief pitching. This team still commits too many costly errors, giving the opposition more than three outs in an inning and thus adding stress to their starting and relief pitchers.
The starting pitching has had its ups and downs. Brayan Bello leads the staff with 10 wins but has had moments where a bad pitch or bad inning throws him into confusion. The young man has major league stuff, especially his fastball/change up combination. But he needs more consistency in the area of game-management to reach what baseball people say is his potential as a number one starter. Tanner Houck leads the pitching staff in earned run average (2.54 ERA) and strikeouts (112). Chris Martin leads the subpar relief staff with 10 holds. 2023 All-Star Kenley Jansen (19 saves) has provided some positive results in the closer role.
Red Sox catcher Connor Wong Photo: Courtesy Major League Baseball Boston Red Sox
This all leads to the question: Just how good are the 2024 Red Sox? Their current third place status in the American League Eastern Division is partly due to terrible seasons for the Toronto Blue Jays and the Tampa Bay Rays. They find themselves looking up at the division-leading Baltimore Orioles and N.Y. Yankees as of this writing. Neither the Orioles nor Yankees have played winning baseball of late, leaving hope that the Red Sox can make a run at playoff spot by the end of the regular season.
A three-game sweep at the hands of the Dodgers in Los Angeles coming off the All-Star break raised doubts among Sox fans as to where this team is headed. Due to the aforementioned poor team defense and inconsistent middle-relief pitching, it is difficult to give this Red Sox team higher than a “C+” grade point average.
