MLB Notebook: Red Sox CBO Craig Breslow says club is ‘not good enough’, Cora's job safe, danger of being sellers?, and a look around the league

The Red Sox are simply “not good enough.”

Those aren’t my words, but the words of chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. Boston’s front office leader spoke to reporters before Saturday afternoon’s game in Atlanta, addressing his team’s play over the first couple of months this season while offering a vote of confidence regarding Alex Cora’s job status.

Breslow sat in the visitor’s dugout at Truist Park less than 24 hours after the Red Sox snapped a five-game losing streak, defeating the Braves 5-1 on Friday night. He expressed his frustration with the Sox' performance in the first two months of the season, which has resulted in a record of 28-32, without mincing words. 

 “The simple answer is it’s not good enough,” Breslow said Saturday before Saturday's 5-0 shutout loss to the Braves. "It’s not the performance we expected in the offseason. I think we could point to a number of things. We haven’t really been able to sync up offense and defense. We have been sloppy in the field at times. We’ve run into mistakes on the bases. We’re going to have to play clean baseball. We’re gonna have to start getting big hits and making big pitches if we want to rattle off the wins that we need.

“It’s too late in the season, and I think the evidence is too strong to just say, ‘We’re gonna be OK tomorrow when we wake up.’"

Breslow was asked about the security of Cora, who signed a three-year, $21.75 million extension last season.

"We have a lot of confidence in Alex’s ability to lead this group,“ Breslow said. ”That doesn’t mean that we don’t have conversations every day about what we might be missing or what more we can do.

"We obviously made a commitment to Alex. We’re gonna see that through. Right now, it’s about making sure that we’re doing everything we can to enable the 26 guys on our roster to help us win as many games as possible."

Breslow hinted that the Sox will have some sort of personnel shakeup. Reporters also inquired about top prospect Roman Anthony, who is still in Triple-A purgatory and focusing on improving his performance against "breaking balls in the zone." Reporters also asked if there were trades on the horizon, but Breslow noted that the market was stagnant as other clubs around the league were trying to “figure out who they are and what direction they want to take.”

Meanwhile, the Dodgers had a need in their bullpen and went out and acquired Reds reliever Alexis Díaz. Clearly there are trade opportunities available on the market, but it seems Breslow is afraid to get uncomfortable again to try and give his club, which has spiraled out of contention, the help they desperately need.

“I think it’s easy to point to that and say, ‘Hey, maybe we need to do something to shake things up or rattle the cage a little bit,’” Breslow said. “I’m very mindful of not making a decision irresponsibly or hastily. But again, I think at this point we have to question everything that we’re doing, including me questioning the work that I’m doing as well. We’re all in this together. I think the solution is going to come from the group that we have, but I think we have to put everything on the table.

“That urgency to try and find a solution is something that I feel and something that our group feels,” he added. So if there is an opportunity to pull a lever or pull a string that we think will impact our success on the field, we need to do that. But again, I wouldn’t want some move to paper over a more deeply rooted problem."

John Henry and the ownership group have been actively involved in conversations on how the Sox can begin a turnaround and get back into playoff contention. Boston entered Saturday afternoon in fourth place in the American League East, 8 1/2 games behind the Yankees and 3 1/2 games back of the final wild card spot.

“I think everybody is in problem-solving mode,” Breslow said. “They’re incredibly engaged and invested in what’s happening on the field, and like the office, like our coaching staff and the players, they have high expectations for this season. We’re trying to put all options on the table to figure out where we go from here."

FIRST BASE OPTION CLOSE TO RETURNING

Over the last couple of weeks, Boston lost Triston Casas to a season-ending knee injury and Alex Bregman to a significant quad injury. The club has gotten nowhere with Rafael Devers playing the field. Kristian Campbell seems to be the only player willing to play first base and will start there on Sunday in the series finale against the Braves.

Romy Gonzalez is set to return to the Red Sox lineup in the coming days. The infielder has been on the injured list since May 8 with a left quad contusion.

The addition of Gonzalez gives Boston another option at the corner infield position and will likely continue to platoon with Abraham Toro.

“I think there’s a bunch of ways we can address this, and I think we need to be open to any of those,” Breslow said Saturday. “Right now, (Abraham) Toro’s playing really well there. We’ll get a look at Kristian there. Our hope is somebody will step in and be able to nail that down, but as we’ve seen on the pitching side, some of maximizing our roster is having to move some guys around.”

Just a week after the club lost Casas, Gonzalez sustained an injury. Toro and Nick Sogard have taken his place at first base during his absence. Campbell is going to make his debut at first base on Sunday afternoon.

“K.C. is playing tomorrow. Toro’s playing today. We’ll see who plays Monday. We’ll mix and match,” Cora said. “Toro is playing excellent right now. He’s swinging the bat well. He’s a quality at-bat. He doesn’t rush into the at-bat. He takes pitches, and he’s doing well.”

Campbell getting reps at first base was initially to open the door for Marcelo Mayer to play second base, but the injury to Bregman forced the front office to add their top infield prospect. Mayer looks to be the regular third baseman with Bregman out, which means David Hamilton could see time as the starting second baseman when Campbell plays first.

“It’s not a given Campbell is going to play every game over there, especially with where we’re at right now,“ Cora said. ”With Alex’s injury, Marcelo will take most of the innings at third base. We’ve still got a decision when Romy comes back. But we’ll mix and match. Having Romy available is going to help us early in the game if we have to pinch-hit and do all that stuff."

MAYER WANTS ROMAN ANTHONY IN BOSTON

As Red Sox fans continue to clamor for Anthony, Mayer thinks the top prospect is ready for the big leagues.

“I think he’s ready,” Mayer said. “Obviously, playing with him every single day for the last two years, I get to see the type of player he is and the type of person he is. I think his transition is going to be pretty smooth to the big leagues whenever that may be. I know he’s gonna be ready.”

It’s a matter of time before the front office finally adds Anthony; Breslow has identified some opportunities for the outfielder. The idea of Anthony working on hitting breaking balls is laughable when everyone knows the real reason to keep him in the minors is for the extra year of control. Breslow will never say that, but the service time manipulation is crystal clear.

“We want to make sure when he comes up, not only is he ready, but there’s runway for him to play,” said Breslow while on an appearance with WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” last Thursday. “You don’t wanna bring up a 21-year-old and have him play sporadically; he needs to be in the lineup every day.”

ROSTER DECISIONS LOOMING

The Red Sox will need to make some decisions regarding their rotation. Garrett Crochet will start on Sunday in the series finale with the Braves, with Richard Fitts, Brayan Bello, and Lucas Giolito starting against the Angels at home. Walker Buehler is currently ticketed for Friday night in the Bronx.

Hunter Dobbins will remain as a long man in the bullpen and is expected to piggyback off Fitts, who hasn’t fully been built back up since returning from the IL. The Sox would like to keep Fitts and Dobbins stretched out if they need them for the rotation.

“We’ll have Dobbins, probably, piggybacking there,” Cora said. “Then, after that, we have to make decisions based on matchups, off days, and all that stuff.”

In the next few weeks, righty Kutter Crawford (knee) and Tanner Houck (right pronator strain) could be close to returning to the bigs. Crawford threw a four-inning live batting practice session on Saturday and is expected to begin a minor league rehab assignment next week. Houck is reportedly feeling better and has begun to long toss. He could see work in the bullpen as he works his way back to the majors.

“Over the last few days, he has maybe turned the corner,” Breslow said of Houck. “He’s a really important part of this team. We saw what he’s capable of doing, especially in the first half last year. We need to get him back on track. I think he’s a potential solution to some of the inconsistency in the rotation.”

As these pitchers get healthy, Breslow and Cora will have tough decisions to make on their starting rotation to ensure they’re trotting out the best five options. Bello has scuffled over his last four outings, pitching to a 6.11 ERA, and Giolito has been serviceable with a 4.78 ERA over his last six starts.

“We expected starting pitching to be a strength, and there’s still time for it to emerge as a strength, but we need to get some guys on track,” Breslow said. “We’ve seen inconsistency from Bello and Tanner, and Garrett has been consistently excellent. But it’s not fair to count on him every five days as the guy that’s going to end a losing streak. We’ve got four other games we need to deal with in between those starts.”

SELLERS MARKET?

Breslow noted that the trade market was slowly developing as teams around the league remained in playoff contention. The Sox are sinking faster than the Titanic due to injuries and underperforming players on the roster. If the Sox fail to turn it around in the coming weeks, Breslow could look to sell off pieces rather than add at the trade deadline.

Boston was built to win this season, but instead they’ve been mediocre at best. If this team fails to improve, Breslow has a few options available for trade.

Buehler and Giolito will be free agents in the winter, and of the two, Buehler could net the Sox a bigger return. As starting pitching remains a prized commodity around the league, the club could capitalize on cleaning the cupboard of a contender in need of a veteran like Buehler. Giolito likely wouldn’t net a giant return but will fetch the Sox something back from a team that is desperate after missing out on a key pitcher around the deadline.

Patrick Sandoval is set to return around the middle of the year, which will make someone expendable. The lefty, who is signed through next season, could potentially contribute to the rotation this summer or serve as a bulk reliever.

Aroldis Chapman is the most obvious trade candidate and will be highly coveted by a contender. Justin Wilson has been brilliant this season and could fetch a pretty decent haul of players back. Liam Hendriks has struggled, but the veteran would be serviceable for a contending club.

Trevor Story has struggled both offensively and defensively. He hasn’t been the impact player the Sox were hoping for this season. He likely holds little to no trade value and is an obvious DFA option if he scuffles further. If the Red Sox decide to let Story go, they will be responsible for covering the remaining $46.7 million on his contract, in addition to his salary for this season.

If the Sox want to make room for Anthony, someone will need to be moved in the future, and Jarren Duran and Wilyer Abreu will be extremely valuable in the trade market. The Padres have been reportedly looking for outfield help, and if Breslow decides to punt, San Diego is an intriguing trade partner. The Padres aren’t flush with prospect capital like they were in years past, but they do have interesting young controllable players like shortstop Leo De Vries, infielder Cobb Hightower, and pitchers Kash Mayfield, Boston Bateman, and Humberto Cruz.

AROUND THE LEAGUE

- Dodgers star Mookie Betts suffered a freak toe injury while at home. He was walking to the bathroom when he stubbed his fourth toe on his left foot, when he bumped into a piece of furniture.

Betts ended up breaking his toe, but the Dodgers don’t anticipate they’ll lose their superstar for an extended period of time.

“It’s a fracture at the tip of the toe,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, “so it’s basically kind of what he can tolerate. And the last couple of days, it's been hard for him to even put on a shoe.

“But I still don’t believe it’s going to be an IL stint. I think day-to-day is fair right now.’’

- Shohei Ohtani pitched to hitters for the second time since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2023 on Saturday afternoon. He faced minor league hitters, throwing 29 pitches over two innings, and suffered no setbacks.

“I think the thing that's most impressive is his ability to compartmentalize," Roberts said. "I mean, he's essentially doing the work of two players. And to still go out there and perform on the offensive side, it's pretty remarkable.”

- MLB has given a 24-hour security detail to Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. after receiving online death threats directed at his family.

McCullers Jr. returned to the mound in May after missing nearly two years due to an injury, told the Associated Press that his 5-year-old daughter overheard a conversation he had with his wife about the threats.

“She asked me when I came home: ‘Daddy like what is threats? Who wants to hurt us? Who wants to hurt me?’” McCullers said. “So, those conversations are tough to deal with."

The Astros contacted MLB security and the Houston Police Department about the threats, and team owner Jim Crane hired 24-hour security for McCullers’ family.

McCullers Jr. began to receive threats after he gave up seven runs in the first inning while recording just one out during a May 10 start.

"There are people who are threatening his life and the lives of his kids because of his performance tonight," Espada said. "It’s very unfortunate that we have to deal with this—after all he’s done for this city, for this team. … I’ve got kids, too. And it really drives me nuts that we have to deal with this."

- Reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Chris Sale became the fastest pitcher in major league history to reach the 2,500-strikeout milestone, breaking the record previously held by Hall of Famer Randy Johnson.

Sale also became the 38th pitcher in modern history to reach the milestone.

"I appreciate it for what it is, but I try not to get too caught up in stuff like that right now," Sale said after the Braves' 9-3 win over the Phillies. "I know what our job is here. And no matter whether you have a good one or a bad one, the next one is the most important one."

- The Rays made a surprising roster decision this week, optioning speedy Chandler Simpson to Triple-A Durham after they reinstated outfielder Jake Mangum from the 10-day IL.

Simpson made an immediate impact on the Rays' lineup, slashing .285/.315/.317 with a team-leading 19 steals —the third most in the majors—in 35 games.

“They're all tough decisions,” manager Kevin Cash said. “Certainly this one was right at the top of the list.

“He was a pro. The way he carried himself the entire time he was down here was really, really appreciated and impressive, so no different from our conversation today.”