BURNING QUESTIONS
How do they find a way to satisfy the angry masses in New England?
The Red Sox made the painful decision to go below the luxury tax threshold but created gaping holes in their lineup and rotation. They can at least slide Alex Verdugo, acquired in the trade in which they shed the salaries of David Price and Mookie Betts, into right field to fill Betts’ spot, although he will hardly remind anyone of Betts.
They have no one to replace Price in the rotation. They have Chris Sale, Eduardo Rodriguez and Nathan Eovaldi atop the rotation but little else. They could turn to Martin Perez, but he yielded a 5.12 ERA last year. They have wiggle room to sign a free agent starter, though few are available. Their best internal candidates are Hector Velazquez, Ryan Weber, Brian Johnson and Kyle Hart. It could be a revolving door all year.
How can the offense survive without Betts?
The Red Sox need Andrew Benintendi to emerge into an All-Star, resembling the player he was in the first half of the 2018 season. They need Jackie Bradley Jr. to replicate his performance the last 109 games of the season, when he hit 21 homers with a .846 OPS. And they need Verdugo, the centerpiece of their return, to live up to the hype of being the Dodgers’ former No. 1 prospect. They also signed Kevin Pillar, a right-handed-hitting outfielder with pop, speed and defensive prowess, to balance things out with the lefty-swinging Benintendi, Bradley and Verdugo. It might be impossible to replace Betts, but if everyone improves they can form a solid offense.