Red Sox: Predicting which relief pitchers make ALDS roster

Probable

RHP Addison Reed, RHP Austin Maddox

Addison Reed’s tenure in Boston has been a bit rockier than expected but his overall numbers are nothing to scoff at. His 3.33 ERA with the Red Sox is lower than his career average and his 0.93 WHIP is better than he’s posted in any full season.

Reed’s issues are two-fold. He walked nine batters in 27 innings for a 3.0 BB/9 and allowed five home runs for a 1.7 HR/9. Both hideous figures are well above his career norm and may be obscured by a small sample size. While those numbers may not be indicative of the pitcher Reed is, they are still concerning. Walks and home runs are the two greatest enemies of a relief pitcher. Reed will still be on the postseason roster shouldn’t be used in the highest leverage situations.

Rookie right-hander Austin Maddox doesn’t have much of a track record but he’s shown enough during his brief time in the majors to indicate he’s one of Boston’s most reliable relievers. Maddox allowed only one earned run in 17 1/3 innings this season for a spectacular 0.52 ERA. The one run came in his most recent outing, which also served as his longest when he tossed 2 1/3 innings against the Astros last Thursday.

His one weakness appears to be against lefties. While he was nearly untouchable against right-handed hitters, lefties hit .280 with a .720 OPS in 40 at-bats against Maddox. It’s a minuscule sample but with the high stakes of the postseason, it would be best to avoid using Maddox against left-handed hitters.