Questions about rotation still linger
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The trade deadline is behind us . Unless the Red Sox claim a player off waivers or sign a free agent, they have the group which will carry them through the final 56 games of the season for better or worse.
Here’s a breakdown of where the Sox stand as of Saturday with a reminder that rosters will expand from 26 to 28 on Sept. 1:
Rotation
MLB roster: RHP Nathan Eovaldi, LHP Martín Pérez, RHP Nick Pivetta, RHP Garrett Richards, RHP Eduardo Rodriguez. Injured list: LHP Chris Sale (elbow).
Analysis: The rotation had a 3.94 ERA at the end of April. It was 4.20 at the end of May, 4.57 at the end of June and was 4.57 through Friday. The other AL teams in playoff position — the White Sox (3.34), Astros (3.45), Athletics (3.63) and Rays (3.92) — are all significantly better. After failing to improve the rotation at the deadline, the Sox are putting a heavy burden on Sale to provide a lift.
Bullpen
MLB roster: RHP Matt Barnes, LHP Austin Davis, RHP Adam Ottavino, RHP Yacksel Rios, RHP Hansel Robles, RHP Hirokazu Sawamura, LHP Josh Taylor, RHP Phillips Valdez, RHP Garrett Whitlock. Injured list: RHP Ryan Brasier (left calf ), RHP Matt Andriese (right hamstring), LHP Darwinzon Hernandez (oblique)
Analysis: Davis and Robles were low-profile acquisitions at the deadline, but Chaim Bloom and his staff have shown a knack for making good pitching choices.
Alex Cora and pitching coach Dave Bush have had a good feel
for bullpen use all season. But as was the case in the rotation, they could have used higher-quality help than Davis and Robles at the deadline.
Infield
MLB roster: UTIL Jonathan Arauz, SS Xander Bogaerts, 1B Bobby Dalbec, 3B Rafael Devers, 2B-SS Kiké Hernández. Injured list: Christian Arroyo (left hamstring), Marwin Gonzalez (right hamstring), Danny Santana (left groin).
Analysis: The Sox have All-Stars at shortstop and third base and Hernández is playing well offensively and defensively at second base. But the Sox have the third-lowest OPS (.646) at first base in the majors. Their plan is for recently acquired outfielder Kyle Schwarber to come off the injured list in 2-3 weeks and learn to play first base on the fly.
Outfield
MLB roster: LF-1B Franchy Cordero, CF Jarren Duran, RF Hunter Renfroe, LF Alex Verdugo. Injured list: LF-DH-1B Schwarber.
Analysis: Count Hernández in this mix, too. As a group, the Sox outfield is in the lower third of the American League in OPS (.712) and home runs (38).
Designated hitter
MLB roster: J.D. Martinez.
Analysis: There aren’t many true DHs any more outside of Martinez, Nelson Cruz, Giancarlo Stanton and Shohei Ohtani. Martinez has bounced back from his forgettable 2020 season but isn’t yet producing at the level he did from 201819.
Catcher
MLB roster: Kevin Plawecki, Christian Vazquez.
Analysis: Vazquez is among the top defensive catchers in the game and has played 715
⅔ of a possible 923 ⅓ innings. Only Willson Contreras of the Cubs has played more. But Vazquez has fallen off offensively after a good start to the season. Plawecki has been getting more opportunities as a catcher, DH and pinch hitter.