The Boston Red Sox have been one in every of MLB’s worst groups up to now in 2026, and there are not any indications that may change any time quickly.
Boston is now 9-16 on the season after getting swept by the New York Yankees in its three-game sequence at Fenway Park. That’s the third-worst report in MLB, behind solely the Philadelphia Phillies (8-17) and Kansas City Royals (8-17).
The lifeless Red Sox offense totaled solely three runs and 13 hits in the sequence. They stay tied for final in the league with 14 homers, solely three greater than Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez has hit by himself this season.
None of this is a shock to those that criticized Craig Breslow and the Red Sox entrance workplace for their offseason strategy.
After failing to re-sign Alex Bregman, the Red Sox redirected these assets towards Ranger Suarez. Breslow emphasized “run prevention” because the crew’s identification getting into 2026, a strategy that was simple to purchase into given what seemed to be one of many league’s strongest rotations.
Through 25 video games, that strategy has backfired.
The rotation ranks twenty fifth in MLB with a 4.88 ERA. Garrett Crochet, final yr’s American League Cy Young runner-up, has seen his ERA balloon to 7.88 after permitting 15 earned runs over his final two begins. Sonny Gray landed on the 15-day injured record following an up-and-down begin, whereas Brayan Bello has struggled mightily after an encouraging 2025. Suarez has begun to settle in after a tough opening stretch, however that is hardly been sufficient to stabilize the group.
This roster wasn’t constructed to win with out an elite rotation. Leaning on pitching as a power is one factor; relying on it to hold you for 162 video games is one other.
Boston’s lineup has left little to no margin for error for its beginning pitchers. This was predictable. Too a lot strain was placed on 21-year-old Roman Anthony to hold the offense, and he is hitting .225 with only one homer in 22 video games.
No one has hit nicely exterior of Wilyer Abreu and Willson Contreras. Jarren Duran, Trevor Story, Caleb Durbin, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and Andruw Monasterio are every hitting under the Mendoza line (.200), with Marcelo Mayer (.203) simply barely above the edge.
There’s a justifiable share of blame pie to go round. Manager Alex Cora deserves a big slice, as do hitting coach Pete Fatse and pitching coach Andrew Bailey. But trying on the points that persistently plague this Red Sox crew, it is apparent Breslow’s roster-building is the most important drawback.
The most obtrusive mistake? Failing to resolve the outfield logjam. Five gamers — Roman Anthony, Jarren Duran, Masataka Yoshida, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Wilyer Abreu — are competing for 4 lineup spots. That has compelled Anthony, Duran, and Yoshida to separate time because the designated hitter, and though he is solely performed in 9 video games, Yoshida has been one of the best hitter of the three.
Breslow additionally ought to have added at the very least one slugger to the lineup after primarily changing Bregman’s bat with Contreras’. With a painful lack of energy, the Red Sox have relied on small ball to place runs on the board. As a outcome, they rank twenty sixth in MLB with 92 runs scored and lifeless final in slugging share at .331.
Sox catcher Carlos Narvaez, whose homer was one of many membership’s solely highlights in the sequence vs. New York, voiced his frustrations after Thursday’s loss.
“We’ve been saying, ‘I know it’s early,’ but we cannot have that mentality,” he stated, per Ian Browne of MLB.com. “It’s time to go. We got to flush it. Of course, it doesn’t feel right, but we got to flush it. We got six important games on the road. We cannot be stuck in the mindset like, OK yeah, we gotta be better. No, of course we know we gotta be better.”
Boston should play with a way of urgency when it visits Baltimore (12-13) for a three-game sequence beginning Friday evening. If that sequence is something just like the final three video games vs. New York, we could also be calling this a misplaced season earlier than the calendar flips to May.
