Red Sox Strut: Jackie Bradley, Matt Barnes earn top honors this week

Apr 22, 2017; Baltimore, MD, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (19) runs the bases after hitting a two-run home run against the Baltimore Orioles in the third inning during a game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Patrick McDermott-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 22, 2017; Baltimore, MD, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (19) runs the bases after hitting a two-run home run against the Baltimore Orioles in the third inning during a game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Patrick McDermott-USA TODAY Sports
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The weekly article series where we examine two players who deserve to strut their stuff for the Boston Red Sox. This week – Jackie Bradley, Matt Barnes.

Apr 22, 2017; Baltimore, MD, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (19) runs the bases after hitting a two-run home run against the Baltimore Orioles in the third inning during a game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Patrick McDermott-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 22, 2017; Baltimore, MD, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. (19) runs the bases after hitting a two-run home run against the Baltimore Orioles in the third inning during a game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Patrick McDermott-USA TODAY Sports

If you want to fully understand what the Red Sox Strut is, it means to have reason to walk with a confident, proud air around you. Some people mistake it for vanity, arrogance, or being pompous. This incorrect assumption is not what we mean. The Strut is about knowing that your deeds showed off your amazing skills to the baseball-loving public.

The performance of the Boston Red Sox continues to be maddeningly inconsistent.

Boston started their latest road trip by taking both games of a short series in St. Louis against a Cardinals team that was leading the NL Central at the time. While one would expect to build some momentum off of that, the Red Sox instead followed by dropping three out of four games in Oakland to help the A’s climb out of the basement of the AL West.

If there’s a silver lining to the week it’s that the Red Sox ended the trip by breaking out the bats for an impressive 12-3 victory on Sunday to push them back above the .500 mark. Now they return home for six games at Fenway Park this week where they can try to make up some more ground in the division.

The team’s performance overall may have been inconsistent, but there were still some players that put up the type of numbers this week worthy of consideration to Strut.

Schedule