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3 reasons why the Red Sox offense is struggling to begin the 2022 season

By Sean Penney

BOSTON, MA - OCTOBER 6: Xander Bogaerts #2 of the Boston Red Sox follows through on a home run against the New York Yankees during the AL Wild Card playoff game at Fenway Park on October 6, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - OCTOBER 6: Xander Bogaerts #2 of the Boston Red Sox follows through on a home run against the New York Yankees during the AL Wild Card playoff game at Fenway Park on October 6, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images) /
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Red Sox 3B Rafael Devers, SS Xander Bogaerts
NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 8: Rafael Devers #11 of the Boston Red Sox and Xander Bogaerts #2 of the Boston Red Sox walk to the dugout after the seventh inning of the 2022 Major League Baseball Opening Day game against the New York Yankees on April 8, 2022 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) /

The Red Sox lineup has stumbled out of the gate this season

The lineup was supposed to be the strength of this team but the Boston Red Sox have been slumping at the plate to begin this season.

Though 16 games, Boston is tied for 19th in the majors with 58 runs scored. Their average of 3.6 runs per game is down significantly from last year’s 5.1 runs per game. The Red Sox also rank 19th with a collective .225 batting average and .350 slugging percentage. Most concerning is a pitiful .276 on-base percentage that sits 27th in the majors.

The offensive ineptitude was on display in the last two series against division rivals. Boston dropped two out of three at home to the Toronto Blue Jays, scoring no more than two runs in any of those games. A four-run effort to win the first game of the series in Tampa Bay was their highlight of the week. The Red Sox lost the next two games in which they managed only two runs in each. One of those losses was a heartbreaker in extra-innings in which the Red Sox failed to collect a single hit until the 10th inning.

This is far from the production we expected from a lineup loaded with star power. Sure, there are some holes near the bottom of the order but the same can be said for almost every team. Any lineup featuring Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, Trevor Story and J.D. Martinez shouldn’t be this bad.

So, what’s wrong with Boston’s bats to open this season? As it turns out, the issue isn’t limited to the Red Sox and there are a few reasons to explain the dip in offensive production.

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