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5 Biggest surprises on and off the Red Sox ALDS roster

By Gabrielle Starr

BOSTON, MA - SEPTEMBER 22: Matt Barnes #32 of the Boston Red Sox looks on in the clubhouse before a game against the New York Mets on September 22, 2021 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - SEPTEMBER 22: Matt Barnes #32 of the Boston Red Sox looks on in the clubhouse before a game against the New York Mets on September 22, 2021 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) /
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The Red Sox ALDS roster has some notable names missing

The Boston Red Sox released their ALDS roster ahead of the first game on Thursday, and there were a few surprises on and left off the list.

Thankfully, the Red Sox have a break from do-or-die games, but that doesn’t make the postseason any less stressful. They’ve already seriously outperformed expectations and projections for this year and shown everyone what they can do. Can they keep it going?

Here are five surprises from the ALDS roster…

Matt Barnes is not on the Red Sox ALDS roster

This one is somehow shocking, not at all shocking, and extremely troubling all at the same time.

Barnes was Boston’s ace closer for a significant portion of the season, even taking home AL Reliever of the Month honors early in the season. In the first half of the season, he held opposing lineups to a .174/.238/.280 line and .518 OPS in 38 games. By midseason, the Sox announced that they had signed the first-time All-Star to a lucrative extension.

However, Barnes struggled to a 13.50 ERA over 11 August appearances and only made six appearances in September, due in part to a stint on the COVID IL during the team outbreak. Over those six appearances, he threw a total of five innings, struck out six, and allowed two earned runs. The Red Sox still won the games in which Barnes allowed runs, but it certainly didn’t help his case.

By season’s end, Barnes’ numbers were nearly identical to the three full seasons before the pandemic. Between 2017-2019, he had an ERA between 3.65-3.88, pitching between 62-70 appearances in each of those seasons. This year, he had a 3.79 ERA over 60 appearances, though he finished a career-high 44 games and earned an impressive 24 saves.

What’s notable about Barnes’ absence from the postseason roster is his numbers against the Rays batters this year and his playoff experience. Over four appearances, he allowed four earned runs on three hits, but Tampa Bay bats only managed to hit .188/.350/.250 with a .600 OPS against him.

Barnes has made 11 career postseason appearances between 2017-2018. All but one of said appearances were shutout. In 2018, he only allowed three total hits in ten games, and never more than one hit in an appearance.

With these numbers, it feels like there’s more to Barnes being left off the roster than just a slump.

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