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Red Sox: Five candidates that could be Boston’s next closer

By Brendan Mizgala

BOSTON, MA - MAY 21: Garrett Whitlock #72 of the Boston Red Sox follows through on his delivery during the first inning of a game against the Seattle Mariners on May 21, 2022 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - MAY 21: Garrett Whitlock #72 of the Boston Red Sox follows through on his delivery during the first inning of a game against the Seattle Mariners on May 21, 2022 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) /
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Red Sox lefty Matt Strahm
BOSTON, MA – MAY 16: Matt Strahm #55 of the Boston Red Sox reacts during the seventh inning against the Houston Astros on May 16, 2022 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) /

Red Sox Closing Option #2: Matt Strahm

Matt Strahm is similar to Schrieber in that I never would’ve expected him to be as good as he has been. Cora also goes to Strahm in plenty of high-risk situations and the man with the flowing locks has been pretty damn good when necessary. Boston’s bullpen wasn’t heralded by any means coming into the 2022 season but Strahm has already replaced a lot of familiar faces in the hierarchy of relievers.

So what has he done this season? Strahm has a 3.72 ERA through 19.1 innings of work but his 1.89 FIP would lead you to believe that he’s had some bad luck along the way. his 1.138 WHIP is a little higher than I would like from a closer but just like Schreiber, he owns a 4.2 SO/W mix which more than balances things out for me.

Strahm has been given his chances to close out games for the Sox this season and does have a trio of converted saves under his belt. Granted, he has blown a pair of saves as well but his six holds also balance that out. Life is all about balance, my friends, and Strahmy knows how to walk that tightrope.

He’s shown enough in high leverage situations that I wouldn’t be upset if Cora announced this afternoon that they’d be leaning on the lefty as their closer for the time being. Obviously, we know that sentiment can change in a hurry if the results aren’t there but the groundwork has been laid enough for me that I’d hop on that ride.

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