The cold wind that blew over the Green Monster during Monday night’s 3-1 victory against the Mets left Fenway Park feeling more like October than May. It was postseason weather.
Unless something changes, that’s as close as Sox fans will get to October baseball this year.
With the season a third over, the 24-25 Red Sox rank as one of the biggest disappointments in baseball, a jumble of useful players who haven’t fit together well.
The odd part is the players who were acquired over the offseason — Alex Bregman, Walker Buehler, Aroldis Chapman, Garrett Crochet, Carlos Narváez, and Justin Wilson — have all performed well, but the Sox are struggling to get over .500.
Before it’s too late, they need to act decisively and change the look and functionality of the roster.
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It starts at shortstop with Trevor Story. He hit fourth, fifth, or sixth in 44 of the first 49 games this season with a .618 OPS and eight extra-base hits. His 59 strikeouts lead the American League.
Story has a .676 OPS over 208 games since he joined the Red Sox. Releasing him would cost $70 million, a big hit for ownership to take. But how long can it justify starting Story every day with Marcelo Mayer at Triple A Worcester?
And what is the cost of missing the postseason for the fourth year in a row?
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If nothing else, Story needs to hit lower in the order or be used off the bench.
Story has been a first-class teammate and person since he signed, and injuries have taken a toll, but how long are the Sox supposed to wait for him to hit? It has been four years.
In 2018, the Sox opened the season with Hanley Ramirez at first base. He started strong, then fell into a slump and was designated for assignment on May 25. He was released a few days later.
It cost the team $15.25 million, but the message was sent that the Red Sox were about winning first. That’s something that needs to be heard again.
Kristian Campbell has hit .180 with a .478 OPS his last 18 games and has one hit in his last 27 at-bats. Further complicating his life with a move to first base isn’t going to help.
The Red Sox should call a meeting with Rafael Devers and his agents and tell them he has two weeks to get ready to play first base. It should come as an order, not a request.
If Mookie Betts can change positions to help the Dodgers put their best lineup on the field, Devers can do the same for the Red Sox.
That opens a spot for Roman Anthony to come up from Worcester to DH and play the outfield.
The Sox also should consider moving Jarren Duran out of the leadoff spot. His .316 on-base percentage is lower than every regular player other than Story and Ceddanne Rafaela.
The Orioles, Pirates, and Rockies have already fired their managers this season. The Red Sox should not be thinking about that with Alex Cora, but it’s also true that Cora was 284-202 (.584) in his first three seasons and is 261-274 (.487) since.
Cora was the victim of some terrible decisions by the front office during the Chaim Bloom era, but the Sox should have a sharper focus on the day-to-day business of winning and holding players accountable for silly mistakes.
There’s often too much of an “everything will be OK” mood around the Sox. Given the results the last few years, what would lead anybody to believe that?
The Sox were fortunate to arrive at Fenway on Monday only five games out of first place and three games out in the wild card. No door is closed to them.
This team is too talented to be stumbling around under .500. Hoping that will change is not a solution. It will take action.
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