Spring training is coming to an end and the Red Sox season is about to begin. A lot can be taken from the Red Sox 2017 spring training, however, like every team, there are still a handful of questions coming into April for the Sox.
There has been plenty to talk about in terms of the Red Sox late-season push for the playoffs. Thier offense has been red hot and starting pitching has been more reliable than ever giving the team a chance to win on a nightly basis. However, one thing that needs more attention is how the Red Sox are building up a dangerous bullpen heading into October.
I know there are many great things to talk about in terms of the Red Sox’s performance during the first half, but I’m going to talk about the weaknesses that the team needs to focus on improving in the second half. If they fix some key issues and continue doing the things they are doing well, we could be very happy come playoff time. But, the issues are not small.
The Red Sox bullpen has been on the wrong side of some recent breakdowns and has been providing some tough performances to watch. However, they did pitch well on Saturday against the Blue Jays.
Coming into the 2016 season, the Red Sox had a bunch of “what if’s” that needed to fall into place in order for Red Sox fans to feel comfortable with this year’s team. Before the season even got underway, the “what if’s” seemed even more formidable when Eduardo Rodriguez and Carson Smith landed themselves on the disabled list before opening day.
The countdown is now at six days until the Red Sox open up their highly anticipated 2016 campaign.They are finalizing their roster and four players are officially on the opening day disabled list. While you never want to see anyone start off your season on the DL, we are lucky the timetables of the injured shouldn’t be too long. Let’s take a closer look at what this means for the 2016 Red Sox in the early months or longer down the road.
The Red Sox bullpen could prove to be a much different bullpen from last year. Despite the fact that it can’t get much worse, we can be assured that there is a real reason for excitement. This offseason we obtained Craig Kimbrel from a prospect-packaged deal from San Diego on November 13th. Then, less than a month later, on December 7th, we acquired a right-handed setup man Carson Smith and lefty Roenis Elías from a trade with Seattle, that sent Wade Miley packing. I hope he likes his Starbucks because Dunkin Donuts may be hard to come by over there in Seattle. Here is a breakdown on the relievers that are going to be a staple in our bullpen:
The Loyal Bostonian 