Matt Hall, Matt Roney, Josh Osich, Mike Maroth, Jeffrey Springs, Adam Bernero, Phillips Valdez, Wil Ledezma, Zack Godley, Jeremy Bonderman
Congratulations if you picked all five Red Sox pitchers (answers posted below). Bonus points if you knew that the other five pitchers were all part of the 2003 Detroit Tigers, a team that finished with a 43-119 record and a team ERA of 5.30.
That Tigers team goes down as one of the worst in baseball history (and the worst of the 21st Century so far). This year's Red Sox will certainly join the conversation for worst team of the 21st Century.
This is not overreaction to a 1-4 start. Not at all. It is obvious to anyone who knows the difference between a strike and a ball that this Red Sox team is on the fast track to failure.
Red Sox management made the decision months ago, well before Covid-19 and quarantines became part of our daily lives, that this was going to be a rebuilding year. They traded Mookie Betts, along with David Price, to the Dodgers in a glorified salary dump. They were not active in free agency. They had staff ace Chris Sale, signed to a 5-year/$145-million contract extension in March 2019, undergo Tommy John surgery at the end of March. John Henry ran up the white flag quicker on 2020 than a French colonel facing the German invasion in 1940.
I get that teams do have to transition at times, as one group exits their prime and the next group is ready to take control. The Red Sox teams of 2014 and 2015 exemplify that line of thinking, as promising young players such as Betts, Xander Bogaerts, and Jackie Bradley Jr. came up from the minor leagues to begin replacing the core of the team that won the 2013 World Series.
In this case, the Red Sox seem to be dismantling a team that had the opportunity to contend for several years. This is a team that captured the 2018 World Series championship in dominating fashion but is now staring down a long two months of the Covid shortened 2020 season.
Betts is gone because of money. That hurts. It was well known that Betts wanted top dollar once he got to free agency - and the Dodgers have already signed him to a 12-year/$365-million contract - and that even if the Red Sox had signed him that it was likely Betts' play over last few years of that mega-contract would not justify the money. But losing the 2018 A.L. MVP over money when the team still had the talent to compete around him is a terrible look for a franchise valued at over $3-billion and that charges $12 for a 16oz domestic draft beer.
Boston's roster still has JD Martinez, Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, Bradley, and Andrew Benintendi in their daily lineup. That is a group that will score runs. The issue this team has is its pitching.
Sale's injury was not a surprise, and it is fair to question the team as well as Sale as to why surgery was not an option last summer. At this point, Sale is not likely to return until June of 2021.
Price was not the most popular member of the Red Sox but he was 46-24 with a 3.84 ERA over his four years in Boston, the team went to the playoffs three times, and his performance in the 2018 playoffs was a major part of why the team captured the World Series. Losing him hurts their pitching staff and the money that was saved was not reinvested in pitching that inspires confidence for 2020.
Eduardo Rodriguez, the team's best pitcher in 2019 and the presumed ace for 2020, tested positive for Covid-19 and is now dealing with Covid-related myocarditis and his season is in jeopardy.
That leaves Nathan Eovaldi to lead a staff that is filled with a bunch of guys that make you ask, "Who?" Eovaldi also had an excellent postseason in 2018 but has a long history of injuries and it is hard to rely on him being able to complete even a 60-game schedule.
The Red Sox are lucky to be playing only 60 games and with no fans in the seats. After an Opening Day win in which Eovaldi pitched well, the Sox have been beaten up by the Orioles and Mets due to poor pitching.
This is an issue they are likely to face all season. Eovaldi will give them a chance to win most times he takes the ball but the four games in between his starts are going to be a challenge due to the lack of pitching. If they end up playing all 60 games - which is no guarantee after the Marlins breakout of Covid-19 this week - they will be lucky to win 20 games.
If the salary saved this season allows the Red Sox to quickly rebuild and be back in contention by 2021 or 2022, then a train wreck 2020 season is allowed. This ownership group has built the Red Sox into a perennial contender and it is fair to assume they will continue to allow their baseball operations department, now led by former Rays executive Chaim Bloom, the resources needed to contend on an annual basis.
However, if the shift to Bloom is the beginning of the Red Sox trying to copy the Rays plan of spending less with the hope to still be a consistent winner, it's going to be hard for them to command the high ticket and concession prices that fans have been willing to fork over to see a winner.
Regardless of the long term plan, 2020 is a lost cause.
(Answer: Matt Hall, Josh Osich, Jeffrey Springs, Phillips Valdez, and Zack Godley all started the 2020 season as members of the Red Sox.)
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