Important Questions for the 2018 Red Sox

We are still in 2017-review/early-2018-preview mode at BP Boston. Other writers have looked at silver linings, potential acquisitions, and players who need to bounce back. I kept things going by homing-in on what I think are three important questions for the 2018 Red Sox: [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Rotation, Offense, Slugging, Home Runs, Manager

Manager John is Gone. Who's Next?

After five seasons, John Farrell is out as the Red Sox’s manager. The discussion about his job security went on all season long, despite the team’s success. President of Baseball Operations, Dave Dombroski was not forthcoming with his reasons for firing Farrell, other than to... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Red Sox, Manager, Leadership, Clubhouse chemistry

ALDS Preview - Pitting the Red Sox's Style Against the Astros

Ahead of the Red Sox’s American League Division Series against the Houston Astros, I have a piece up at BP Boston that dives into how the Red Sox’s style of play matches up against the Astros. Specifically I looked at how the Red Sox’s aggressive... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Baserunning, Defense, Contact rate, Offense

Getting Lots of Reps in High-Leverage Moments

The Red Sox have made an odd habit of playing extra-innings this season. Through Tuesday, they rank third in number of games that have required extra innings, but lead the way in terms of actual extra innings played, as they have had some 15- and... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Leverage, Extra-innings, Playoffs

Lacking Production Against Lefties

This week at BP Boston I took another poke at the Red Sox’s offense. They have struggled mightily against left-handed pitching this season, which is odd considering the group of strong right-handed hitters in the lineup and that they get to play in Fenway Park... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Offense, Platoon splits

Changing David Price's Role

At BP Boston I wrote about David Price again, but this time it was for onfield reasons, which is where I would rather focus. The fight with Dennis Eckersley was a ridiculous distraction and I am glad it is no longer front-page Red Sox news... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Red Sox, Pitching, Bullpen

Pushing Bags When Not Socking Dingers

This week at BP Boston I wrote about an often overlooked aspect of a team’s offense: baserunning. Simply put the Red Sox have been a bad baserunning team so far this season. At the behest of third base coach Brian Butterfield, the team has adopted... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Baserunning, Run Expectancy, Slugging

Consistent Run Scoring from the Red Sox in August

This week at BP Boston I revisited the idea of an offense’s variation in run scoring. Specifically I looked at the Red Sox’s offense strong production in August. The bats have come alive and as a result the Red Sox have been scoring in bunches,... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Offense, Coefficient of Variation

Adding Players on the Roster's Margins

The current outlook for the Red Sox making the playoffs is very good. They have a 4.5 game lead in the division, and by the playoff odds at Baseball Prospectus and Fangraphs they are the favourite to win the division, and a near-lock to at... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Roster construction, Playoffs, Speed

Variation in Run Scoring

This week at BP Boston I continued my season-long analysis of the Red Sox’s offense. I consider myself more of a pitching and defense entusiast, so it is somewhat odd that I have been writing about offense so often this year. In any case, in... [Read More]
Tags: BP Boston, Offense, Coefficient of Variation