McAdam: Playoff platoons in order? First, second and third provide options

For a team that won 108 games, posted the best record in baseball and broke a 112-year-old franchise record for most wins, the Red Sox are an unsettled bunch going into the playoffs.

Two days before the start of the postseason, the Red Sox are set in the outfield, at DH, at shortstop, and, to a lesser degree behind the plate, where playing time will be less determined by left-right matchups than it will be by pairing catchers with certain pitchers.

But three of the four infield spots -- first base, second base and third base -- could be determined by who's on the mound for the opposition.

Alex Cora wouldn't tip his hand Wednesday when it came to revealing his starting lineup, or even which way he was leaning at the three positions.

"I don't know if we're looking at platoons,'' cautioned Cora. "We've got to see how we're going to maximize them with the way we're going to use pinch-hitters throughout the game. We have (Steve) Pearce, we have Brock (Holt), they've done an outstanding job coming off the bench. At the same time if it's New York (as ALDS opponent), most likely we're going to see two lefties, so Steve will play first.

"But honestly, it's probably going to be, on a daily basis, how we feel it matches up. There are certain guys who struggle with changeups or sliders, or, they hit fastballs. So we'll take a look the night before and make a decision. But one thing's for sure: that whole group is going to be very important -- not only starting the game, but in the middle of the game and how we're going to manage our offense.''

A look at the three positions and the various options:

FIRST BASE

Not unlike last year, Mitch Moreland struggled in the second half -- and, for the second straight year, a knee injury played a part in his offensive decline.

For the season, Moreland hit only four points higher against righties (.246) than he did against lefties (.242). But there was a big difference in his slugging percentage (.450 vs. .379) and that's where Pearce's opening will come.

Pearce was obtained at the end of June when the Sox were struggling mightily against lefty starters, and he immediately helped correct that issue. For the season, Peace slashed .304/.400/.559 against lefties. And if the Sox do indeed draw the Yankees, Pearce has six career homers off New York starter J.A. Happ.

SECOND BASE

With Dustin Pedroia done for the year in early June -- though that wasn't obvious at the time -- the second base position was up in the air. Eduardo Nunez was providing porous defense at the position and precious little offense and Brock Holt, as sometimes happens, saw his performance dip the more he played.

Dave Dombrowski then engineered a trade at the deadline for Ian Kinsler, and for the veteran's first games, it looked as though the Sox had a substantial defensive upgrade at the position. Kinsler was providing the kind of range that Nunez and Holt could only dream about.

But then Kinsler suffered a hamstring strain and spent time on the DL, and since his return, his mobility at second hasn't been the same. Worse, the offensive uptick that he seemed to promise -- carrying over from a hot last month with the Angels -- similarly disappeared.

Since the trade, Kinsler has slashed just .242/.292/.311 with the Red Sox, with exactly one home run.

Holt meanwhile, has shone in the last six weeks. From Aug. 15 until the end of the season, he slashed .324/.419/.554 while cranking four homers in his last 41 at-bats.

It would seem to be a gamble for Cora to go with Cora over a playoff-tested veteran like Kinsler in the starting lineup. But don't be surprised to see an occasional start for Holt, especially if Kinsler has had trouble with a particular righty starter.

THIRD BASE

This is Cora's toughest call: in Rafael Devers, Cora gets a lefty bat with power and the ability to cover more ground at third. But Devers can be notoriously sloppy with his glove work -- as evidenced by his team-high 24 errors -- and the last thing a team wants in the postseason is the nagging fear that a routine out won't be converted, leading to a big inning by the opposition.

However, Eduardo Nunez is not without his own issues. While steadier and more dependable defensively, the righty Nunez offers minimal range at third.

The choice comes down to upside vs. security, with no perfect solution at the position.