As Red Sox get ready to choose 25 players for ALDS, some veteran players will be left out

John Farrell noted Sunday that some tough decisions resulting in exclusion for some players would be made later this week when the Red Sox formalize their American League Division Series.

“There are going to be some guys who are disappointed – plain and simple,’’ said Farrell prior to the season-ending loss to Houston, 4-3. “Guys who have been contributors. We’ve got 36, 37 players (in the clubhouse) and there’s going to be 11 (or 12) who are not active. I wish they all could be, but I think guys get it. There’s different degrees of decisions when it comes to who’s active and who’s not. Those guys (deserve) explanations and we’ll provide those.’’

Eleven position players are assured of making the cut: Christian Vazquez, Sandy Leon, Rafael Devers, Eduardo Nunez, Xander Bogaerts, Dustin Pedroia, Hanley Ramirez, Mitch Moreland, Andrew Benintendi, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Mookie Betts.

With the Sox leaning toward an 11-man pitching staff – four starters and seven relievers – that means they can carry 14 position players.

Brock Holt is almost certainly on the roster, both as a lefty bat off the bench and the ability to play seven different positions.

It would seem that the Sox would also want Rajai Davis, both as a capable center field backup and a pinch-runner.
That would leave Chris Young on the outside looking in.

Young’s specialty is supposed to be hitting lefthanded pitching, which he did extremely well a year ago, posting a .999 OPS. But this season, he’s struggled mightily, with a .200/.310./.280 slash line and one homer and five RBI against southpaws. Frankly, his play against righties hasn’t been anything overwhelming either: .258/.333/.468 with six homers and 20 RBI. He’s lost a step or two in the outfield, so his only value is off the bench as a pinch-hitter. That’s not as important as Davis’s speed.

It was thought that Deven Marrero could also be in jeopardy of missing out. But concern over the health and durability of both Nunez and Pedroia likely means that Marrero is now part of the 25-man roster.

If a team wishes to take a player off the roster in the middle of a series, that player is automatically ineligible to play in the next series. In the event that either Pedroia or Nunez experience some soreness or difficulty playing two days in a row, the Sox could use Holt to fill in for Pedroia and someone else to replace Nunez as, say, the DH, without taking them out of the picture should they advance to the next round and still having Marrero available off the bench.

As for the pitching staff, figure there will be four starters: Chris Sale, Drew Pomeranz, Rick Porcello and Eduardo Rodriguez. That leaves room for seven relievers: Craig Kimbrel, Addison Reed, Joe Kelly, David Price, Robby Scott, Doug Fister and Carson Smith would seem to be certain.

In turn, that leaves four righties out of the picture: Matt Barnes, Austin Maddox, Heath Hembree and Brandon Workman.

The toughest omission here may be Barnes, whom, before the Red Sox obtained  Reed as their primary eighth-inning set-up man and shifted Price to the pen, was the team’s chief late-inning high-leverage reliever.

After some uneven performances in recent weeks, Barnes finished strong, retiring all five hitters he faced Sunday in the 4-3 loss to Houston, including the final four by strikeout.

But the math would seem to be too much for Barnes to overcome.

Maddox is another probably deserving to be included. Until he gave up a solo homer to Brian McCann Thursday night, Maddox had gone 12 major league appearances without allowing a run.