A losing record. An almost certain last-place finish. A staff ERA higher than it's been in decades.
There's no need to go on. You know how bad the 2020 Red Sox season has been.
The good news? The season has just a week remaining, leading to what should be a fascinating off-season as Chaim Bloom gets his first real opportunity to re-model the Red Sox with his own vision. There will be no CBT (competitive balance tax) threshold to fret over, and no surprise managerial search thrust upon him weeks before the start of spring training.
But miserable as it's been, the 2020 season is not without its positives. Honest.
One thing that Bloom has accomplished in his first season is adding to the team's depth around the edges of the roster. That's something that his predecessor, Dave Dombrowski, seemed to ignore during his tenure. While Dombrowski focused squarely on the big-ticket items (free agent stars like David Price and J.D. Martinez; blockbuster trade pieces like Chris Sale and Craig Kimbrel), he neglected the smaller depth pieces that can often spell the difference over the course of a season.
(A brief look at the Yankees smart acquisitions in the last few years is a vivid reminder about the importance of paying attention to the entirety of the roster. Luke Voit, Mike Tauchman, Gio Urshela are just three "small'' moves that Brian Cashman has made in recent seasons to bolster their depth, without which the Yankees never would have been able to withstand the tsunami of injuries they've endured the last two seasons).
So in the spirit of trying to find something, anything worthwhile about the otherwise nightmarish 2020 Red Sox season, here is some good to be found from this is-it-over-yet? season:
1-Alex Verdugo. Trading away Mookie Betts was bad enough, and the enormity of that loss will be felt for a long, long time. Brace yourself for the backlash if Betts leads the Dodgers to their first championship in 32 seasons. For the foreseeable future, it will almost impossible to see, hear or think about Betts without reflexively asking: How could they?
Now imagine the rancor had Bloom not obtained a player as good as Verdugo as the main piece in the deal, and the first to contribute to the major league team. Verdugo has arguably been the Red Sox' best player, showing five-tool potential. He's excelled in the outfield, hinted at more power to come, run the bases with aggressiveness and brought an almost incalculable amount of energy to the Sox -- to say nothing of some much-needed personality and swagger.
Nearly as important, he's shown himself immune from the sometimes self-immolating pressures that can afflict newcomers to Boston. Bloom never seemed to be obsessed with being "the guy they got for Mookie.'' In fact, he bristled at the suggestion, dismissing it as a media-created storyline and one which he paid no attention.
He's shown that he can hit leadoff, a role which he admittedly not seek. He's demonstrated that he can play either corner outfield spot, including the challenge that comes with handling Fenway's expansive and idiosyncratic right field.
And, while a lot of people weren't watching, he established himself, along with Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers, as a foundational piece of the roster going forward.
2-Martin Perez. Inhibited by payroll restrictions from his first day on the job, Bloom didn't have much to spend last winter. As such, Perez ($6 million) represented one of his two major league free agent signings (Jose Peraza was the other).
At the time, even the $6 million seemed like something of an overpay. What was it again that the Sox liked so much about a guy who had compiled a 5.12 ERA in 2019, and a 6.22 the year before that? And wouldn't they have been better off spending a little more to retain Rick Porcello, who took $9 million from the New York Mets and surely would have signed for less to stay in Boston?
Well, no.
With one start to go, Perez has pitched to a 3.88 ERA. And while he was signed with the idea that he would be the club's No. 5 starter (behind Chris Sale, David Price, Eduardo Rodriguez and Nathan Eovladi), it didn't work out that way.
Sale was lost to Tommy John surgery. Price was part of the Betts trade. And Rodriguez first contracted COVID-19 and then an accompanying heart condition that sidelined him for the season. So Perez was elevated to rotation's No. 2 slot, and when Eovaldi was lost for three weeks, became No. 1.
Perez isn't a front-of-the-rotation piece by any stretch. But in 11 starts, he's allowed more than three runs in just three starts. And in seven of the 11, he's allowed two or fewer. Ever better, he can remain under control for 2021 with only a slight bump ($6.25 million) in salary. A small, but undeniably valuable win in free agency.
3-Kevin Plawecki. Backup catcher had been a weak spot for a number of years. Sandy Leon was beloved by pitchers and controlled the running game as the No. 2 behind Christian Vazquez, but offensively, he was the equivalent of sending a National League pitcher to the plate, with slugging percentages under. 300 in both 2018 and 2019.
Enter Plawecki, whom the Sox signed as a minor league free agent in early January. He's knocked in 14 runs in 19 games, showed himself capable of big hits (.965 OPS with RISP) and done a nice job handling the staff in his occasional starts.
Plawecki is likely not going to be a No. 1 catcher. But finally, he made good on his offensive potential in the big leagues and the Sox have him under control for two more (affordable) seasons.
4-Yairo Munoz. Munoz was the very definition of an under-the-radar move when the Sox signed him as a free agent in late March, two weeks into the shutdown. To say his acquisition didn't register a blip is an understatement.
There was risk involved in his signing, too. Weeks earlier, he had mysteriously jumped the St. Louis Cardinals, heading home in the middle of spring training. They released him soon after.
Was Munoz some malcontent? Were the Red Sox rewarding his behavior? To his credit, Munoz has been, by all reports, a good teammate. Moreover, he's been a nice addition in an admittedly small sample size, with a .844 OPS.
He's shown that he can play either corner outfield spot, and in the past, has played all over the infield. In today's game, where versatility is coin-of-the-realm, he shows promise as an athletic player with some pop who could conceivably contribute as six different spots. And, of course, he's controllable for four more seasons.
5-Christian Arroyo. Again, as is the case with Munoz, it's important not to go overboard with a player who's had a nice September for a team playing for absolutely nothing. The game is littered with players who shine as a late-season callup, but faceplant the following season.
But it just may be that when Bloom claimed Arroyo off waivers from Cleveland in mid-August, he landed himself the team's next starting second baseman. That won't be Peraza (sure to be non-tendered) or Rule 5 pick Jonathan Arauz (needs additional development). So why not Arroyo?
Bloom has always liked him, making sure he was part of the deal coming back from the San Francisco Giants when the Rays shipped out Evan Longoria. Like many others young players, Arroyo was the victim of some injuries and poorly-timed underperformance when he got an opportunity to contribute. Sometimes, it takes talented young players a second or third chance before things click. It seems Arroyo fit that description.
Bloom thought Arroyo unlocked some power at Triple A Durham last year, and his play in recent weeks suggests that was indeed the case. He's got three homers in nine starts and has driven the ball hard with some consistency. Second base isn't his natural position and there have been some occasional growing pains there as he gets more comfortable with the pivot on the double play.
But in Friday's extra-inning loss to the Yankees, Arroyo raced out to almost medium-depth right field to haul in a popup over his shoulder, suggesting he may have a future at the position after all.
6-Phillips Valdez. Admittedly, there's been a lot of flotsam and jetsam to Bloom's many forages into the bargain basement for pitching.
Matt Hall? Zack Godley? Dylan Covey? Andrew Triggs? No, no, no and no. But that's the nature of dumpster diving for pitching. Most of what you find is not going to be worthwhile.
The trick is to come away with something salvageable and Valdez, Bloom may have found a keeper.
A late February waiver claim from the Seattle Mariners, Valdez has had his moments. True, he's had issues coming into games with runners on base and the last two weeks have seen a dip in his results, likely the result of some overuse, born of necessity.
But he's shown a lively arm, a changeup that can be a nice weapon and some durability. He doesn't have the frame to start or perhaps the stuff to close, but dependable middle-inning arms are always welcome.
Not bad for a $50,000 investment in the middle of spring training.
__________________________
Some random thoughts as the season winds down:
- The postseason has always been a war of attrition when it comes to pitching, but figures to be even more so this October. With games in neutral sites, there will be no travel past the Wild Card round. But that will be more than canceled out by the fact that in the Division Series (best of five) and ALCS (best of seven), there will be no scheduled days off between games. Thus, say a Division Series goes the distance -- even the Game 1 starters would be going on short rest for Game 5. Depth will be more important than ever. There's a difference of opinion as to which portion of the staff might be most challenging -- rotation or bullpen? Either way, the workloads will be prohibitive in some cases. And yes, teams will be going into the postseason after a regular season schedule of 60 -- not 162 -- games. But they'll also be asked to play more games (potentially as many as 22) in a shorter period of time.
- Prospective Mets owner Steve Cohen hasn't yet been approved by MLB owners -- that will come next month or the month after -- but already, there is speculation about the splash that he might try to make. The estimable Joel Sherman of the New York Post wonders whether Cohen might make a run at Theo Epstein to run baseball operations. Hard as it might be to believe, Epstein has now been with the Cubs nearly as long as he was in Boston (he finishing his eighth year on the North side, after nine in Boston) and could be ready for another undertaking. Making the Mets relevant again and, with Cohen's deep pockets, potentially overtaking the Yankees in New York might appeal to Epstein's need to constantly challenge himself. But I've always believed that before he's done in the game, Epstein would like to prove he can win with a small market team with far fewer resources.