The Boston Red Sox are in the midst of an outstanding season. They find themselves eight and a half games above the Yankees in a commanding lead over the A.L East division. Boston was the first, and still is the only team in the majors to reach 90 wins this season. This has been a common trend for the team as they have finished their past two seasons with 90+ wins in the bag. Boston’s previous records only make this season look more impressive, just take a look:
Numbers Do Not Lie
If you take a look at Boston’s last couple of years, you will see similar number of wins as 2018’s standings. They finished 2017 with a 93-69 regular season record. The Red Sox finished 2016 with those very same same numbers. Yes, the Boston Red Sox have had some impressive regular season records in recent history by the time October 1st came around. Things are a bit different now on the East Coast, as the Sox look strong with 95 wins and there is still about a month of baseball to be played. They are well on their way to meeting their season projection of 108 wins, they might even blow by it. This has been possible due to a talented roster and a smart front office.
The Red Pawed Work Horses
Not only is Boston good as a whole collective unit, but their players are shattering individual expectations as well. J.D. Martinez leads the entire MLB in a handful of stats. The outfielder is second in the league in batting average (.337), slugging (.652) and RBI (111). Just as the Red Sox, Martinez is having one of, if not the best season of his career. Mookie Betts has also done more than fine this year. Betts leads Boston in on base percentage (.425) and has the highest WAR stat on the big leagues (8.4). He also leads the league on batting average (.340)
Boston has done very well in the pitching department this season as well. David Price has bounced back from his mediocre debut season on the East Coast. The former Blue Jay has a 14-6 record and holds an ERA of 3.50 while pitching almost twice the innings as in 2017. Just as Price has bounced back, Chris Sale has torn the American League apart. Sale has a 12-4 record and the second best ERA of his career (1.97).
Give To Receive
Another thing for the history books during this Red Sox season has been their trades and acquisitions. Both Theo Epstein’s and Ben Cherington’s front offices made some painful decisions in the past. Epstein signed former all-star Carl Crawford during the 2010 off-season. Crawford was no good for Boston as he posted a 0.0 WAR alongside some of the worst stats of his career. Cherington Traded Jon Lester after their 2013 World Series win for outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. This was a big turmoil for them as Cespedes was later traded for Rick Porcello and Lester did not rejoin the team the following off-season. He also signed Pablo Sandoval on 2014, which turned out into more hospital bills than offensive production for Boston.
Dave Dombrowski’s Red Sox seem to have things under control when it comes down to transactions. They made some very good trades and signings all trough the season. For starters, the signed Martinez from Arizona during the off-season. He later rejoined his former Detroit Tiger teammate as Boston traded for Ian Kinsler from the Angels near the deadline. The second baseman has done a good job with the bat, hitting .283. He has also been an on base machine with an on base percentage of .327. Boston also added Nathan Eovaldi from the Rays. Eovaldi added depth and consistency to the BoSox rotation.
Theirs To Win, Theirs To Lose
It is well-known that the MLB postseason is a whole new ballgame. Fatigue creeps in after a long season and baseball becomes a game of strategy where every play counts. For Boston, winning it all seems more possible than in any other year before. Judging by how things are going for them, they will arrive in October in top shape. They will not have to worry about a Wild Card Game, poor offensive performance and/or any major injuries. If Boston seizes their opportunity, they will have a season not only for the record books but also worthy of being immortalized.
Theirs to win, theirs to lose.
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