Game Over: The 2016 Boston Red Sox
Sorry, Boston Red Sox, your World Series trophy is in another castle, one that’s furnished with David Ortiz’s retirement gifts.
The 2016 Red Sox put together the perfect regular season. The club not only managed to go from worst-to-first, but did so with strong performances from Ortiz and a plethora of youngsters. Mookie Betts enjoyed an MVP-caliber season, Jackie Bradley Jr. broke out and Xander Bogaerts continued to be one of the best young shortstops in the game. Combine that with David Price and a surprising turnaround from Rick Porcello, and it’s easy to see why this team won 93 games.
Unfortunately for the Red Sox, the baseball gods don’t care one bit about narrative. Ortiz did not get a storybook sendoff, as the Red Sox were swept by the Cleveland Indians in the American League Division Series.
Like we’ll do with every eliminated team in our Game Over series, we’re about to examine what went wrong for the Red Sox, what went right, what’s the best 2016 memory, what they need to fix and what the future might hold.
WHAT WENT WRONG
Pablo Sandoval’s tenure in Boston continues to be a disaster. The 30-year-old reportedly lost weight in the offseason, seemingly put it all back on by spring training and then missed basically the entire year with a shoulder injury.
Reliever Carson Smith lasted just 2 2/3 innings before his arm gave out. When healthy, Smith has been an excellent late-innings option. He’s expected to be ready by next season.
David Price had a disappointing debut with Boston. While his peripherals were solid, Price’s 3.99 ERA left a lot to be desired. From 2010 to 2015, Price has averaged a 2.97 ERA. It took a strong second half for Price to get his ERA back below 4.00.
Even that couldn’t save him in the postseason. Price once again struggled in October, giving up five earned runs in just 3 1/3 innings against Cleveland in the ALDS. (Chris Cwik)
WHAT WENT RIGHT
Where to start with the 2016 Red Sox? They knocked the cover off the ball every chance they got. Their .282 team batting average was best in baseball, and there were a lot of contributors. Betts somehow managed to improve on his first two seasons and hit .318/.363/.534 with 31 home runs. Dustin Pedroia, in what feels like his millionth MLB season, had his best year since 2008, hitting .318/.376/.449. The Red Sox finally found the right position for Hanley Ramirez (first base) and he absolutely flourished, hitting more home runs than he has since 2008 and coming to his team’s rescue more than a few times.
And of course, David Ortiz had the best season ever for a 40-year-old, retiring with numbers that any major leaguer of any age would kill to have: .315/.401/.620 with 38 home runs and 48 (!!) doubles. Even Sandy Leon hit .310 as a part time catcher. And Xander Bogaerts and Andrew Benintendi were great too!
There’s so much to say about their hitting, but the Red Sox’s pitching was fantastic, too. Rick Porcello joined Hanley on the renaissance trail and pitched to a 3.15 ERA, which is nuts considering his ERA was 4.92 in 2015. Steven Wright was the other standout star, and he didn’t expect his ERA to be 3.33 any more than you did. (Liz Roscher)
TOP OF THE FLAGPOLE (aka THEIR BEST MOMENT)
David Ortiz started his final season in the big leagues with a bang. Boston’s iconic slugger smashed a two-run shot off Cleveland right-hander Trevor Bauer in the ninth inning of the Red Sox’s 6-2 win on opening day. It was a sign of things to come, as Ortiz went on to have one of the finest years of his career, hitting 38 home runs and leading the majors in OPS. There were plenty more memorable moments for Big Papi that followed, but that first homer helped set the tone for the rest of them. Even if the season didn’t end with another World Series championship, it’ll be one Red Sox fans remember for a long time. (Israel Fehr)
CHANGES THEY NEED TO MAKE
The Red Sox have one gigantic hole to fill in their lineup and clubhouse now that Ortiz is officially retired. Fortunately, they have enough offensive weapons to again field a devastating lineup. Of greater concern will be adding some starting pitching depth. David Price had a decent season. Rick Porcello had a great season. It was a crap shoot after that, and that won’t fly again if they hope to win a World Series. (Mark Townsend)
WARP INTO THE FUTURE
Boston’s worst-to-first turnaround in 2016 was fueled by youngsters, and, amazingly, there’s still more talent coming. Both Yoan Moncada and Andrew Benintendi reached the majors in 2016, though they had different experiences.
Benintendi turned in a fine season, hitting .295/.359/.476 over 118 plate appearances. He should be a full-time starter next year.
Moncada looked overmatched in 20 plate appearances, but is 21 years old, and remains one of the best prospects in the game. He may open the year in the minors, but will be up at some point in 2017. Given his talent, it would be foolish to judge him based on his brief debut. (Chris Cwik)
PREVIOUSLY IN THIS SERIES: Minnesota Twins, Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Rays, Los Angeles Angels, San Diego Padres, Cincinnati Reds, Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies, Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago White Sox, Colorado Rockies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Miami Marlins, Houston Astros, New York Yankees, Kansas City Royals, Baltimore Orioles, New York Mets, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers.
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
