I am going to be honest with you, from July 28th to August 4th, I was miserable. How does a team that absolutely manhandles the first-place Yankees (who also happen to be one of the two favorites to win the American League Championship, along with the Houston Astros) go on to lose 8 straight games? Granted, all 8 losses were against either the Yankees or Tampa Rays, the 2 teams ahead of them in the AL East standings. However, after dismantling Masahiro Tanaka for 12 (you read that correctly! 12!) earned runs on 12 hits, and adding on 7 more against the tenacious Yankee bullpen, I was a confident Red Sox fan strapping up for another wild postseason ride. Then, after another 10-5 win at Fenway the next night, Mookie Betts returns to MVP form. He went 4-5 with 3 home runs and a scorching double. In case you’re as bad at math as I am, that is 3 straight wins for the Red Sox against their long time rivals and one of the best teams in the majors. Life was fantastic. I had not been this exuberant about the Red Sox and their chances to make yet another postseason run since Chris Sale’s legendary slider made Manny Machado look like a Little Leaguer first learning how to swing last October. That is when the bottom fell from underneath the Sox. There was no warning. There were no flashing lights telling us that gloomy days were ahead. Life, all of a sudden, was now terribly painful.
We all know what happens next. As much as I wish it was all a bad dream and that one of these days I will wake up to a glorious 3 or 4 or maybe even 5 game lead on the Rays for second place in the Al East, I know that in reality, the Red Sox truly did lose 8 games in a row. When I first saw the schedule for the 2019 Red Sox season, I could already feel the importance of the 13 (which turned into 14 due to a rainout at Yankee stadium earlier in the year) games that would take place between the Yankees and Rays at the end of July and beginning of August. After being swept by the Yankees to extend their losing streak to 8 games, the longest losing streak for the Red Sox since 2015, I did not know what to think. There were almost no positives. Chris Sale haters were swimming in the tears of Sox fans after arguably his worst start of the career, as the lefty went just 3.2 innings and allowed 8 earned runs to the Yankees. The dangerous and trustworthy offense that had basically kept any postseason hopes afloat all year were falling stagnant. JD was slumping. Mookie, despite the 3 home run game, had only shown minor glimpses of his previous 2018 MVP campaign throughout the year, and the losing streak didn’t change that narrative. Dombrowski made no moves at the trade deadline. The bullpen was still a hot mess. The starters were still below par. And, on top of all this, the Red Sox found themselves 6 games back of the 2nd wild card spot after being a half game up on the Rays a week prior.
Despite all of this, there is still hope Red Sox fans. I promise. I was just as skeptical as you. I did not enjoy that week whatsoever. The horrendous play of the Red Sox affected my mood towards life in general. I was grumpy all the time, pissed at people for no reason other than the fact that the 2019 Red Sox, whose roster is almost identical to that of the World Champions in 2018, were pretty much dead. However, the talent on this team is still undeniably elite. Xander Bogaerts is having one of the best years at shortstop in franchise history. Rafael Devers busted at the seams, emerging as a legitimate AL MVP candidate, although it is highly unlikely he will surpass Mike Trout as the favorite to take home the award. Mookie Betts is still Mookie Betts, and his numbers and productivity have been steadily rising since mid-June. The starting rotation still has names like Chris Sale (who last night allowed just 2 hits in 8 inning and did not give up a run in a 3-0 shutout of the Angels), David Price, and the once-Cy Young winner Rick Porcello. Plus, for as bad as many Red Sox fans believe the bullpen has been, and reasonably so, they still possess Matt Barnes, Brandon Workmen, Darwinzon Hernandez, Marcus Walden and hopeful closer Nathan Eovaldi, who, if Steve Pearce did not exist, would likely have won the World Series MVP award.
Trust me, I know how bad it may look. It kills me to watch this team waste the amazing talent they have because of inconsistency and poor performances by big-name players. But we aren’t dead. If there was ever a team to do it, it would be the 2019 Red Sox. They have been there and have done that. This team knows how to win important ballgames, and as the year wanes down, the talent in the Red Sox clubhouse will emerge. They will be too much to handle for many of their opponents. Every team has bad weeks. Maybe, just maybe, the Red Sox week was extra horrible. And maybe, just maybe, the timing could not have been worse for the Red Sox. But they can just as easily win 8 in a row and pull themselves within a couple games of the second wild card spot with 30+ games left in the season. From there, I don’t know about you, but I’m trusting the experience, talent, and will of the 2019 Red Sox. So, to the other 14 teams in the American League, don’t look now, but the Red Sox are coming with absolutely no mercy to dish out.
Everything Baseball 