The Boston Red Sox didn’t go out with a bang to end their 2025 season, but that doesn’t change this team’s legacy, which is one of a fighting spirit in the face of constant change and a pile of injuries. Losing Lucas Giolito was just the most recent injury-related mountain that Boston had to climb in 2025, and Connelly Early met the task admirably.
But Giolito was far from the only key Red Sox player who missed crucial time during 2025. The list is too long to go into detail about, but it's still important to acknowledge: Triston Casas, Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, Hunter Dobbins, Richard Fitts and Liam Hendriks all missed large portions or all of the campaign due to injury.
Boston also had to overcome Walker Buehler’s failures, Kristian Campbell’s post-April downfall (though his future remains bright), and the endlessly fatiguing ordeal that was the Rafael Devers drama and subsequent trade.
When you really think about it, manager Alex Cora and this Red Sox group — what was left of it in the end, anyway — deserve a ton of credit for their fight. With all that happened, even making the postseason should be considered an achievement.
While reflecting on 2025, Red Sox’s Alex Cora indicated that Boston’s front office has a job to do
As Cora fielded questions following his club’s final game of the season, he appeared understandably disappointed, but this emotion seemed mixed with an aura of quiet satisfaction, probably stemming from Cora’s valid belief that he and the 2025 Red Sox left it all out on the field. While Boston’s defensive miscues in the ALWC will haunt them to an extent, no one can question the team’s overall effort this season.
Cora talked about this while responding to a query about how losing Anthony affected Boston’s chances.
“Offensively, we know how capable he is and what he brings to the equation,” Cora said, per WEEI’s Tom Carroll. “But throughout the season, we lost a lot of guys, and we kept grinding. I think the guys did an outstanding job battling, put us in a situation to win games.”
Alex Cora was asked how losing Roman Anthony to injury shaped the last month of the season for Boston:
— Tom Carroll (@yaboiTCfresh) October 3, 2025
“Offensively, we know how capable he is and what he brings to the equation, the at bat. But throughout the season, we lost a lot of guys, and we kept grinding. I think the guys… pic.twitter.com/y0zUVrg80H
While Cora wishes he were preparing for the Toronto Blue Jays right now, at least he’ll get to embark on a much-deserved resting period after a rollercoaster season. Now, it’s time for Boston’s front office, led by chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, to accept the torch from Cora and make the correct roster decisions this offseason to ensure that 2026 builds upon the progress of 2025.
Breslow will have his hands full in that regard. Besides facing the potential losses of veterans like Alex Bregman and Giolito, who were instrumental to the Red Sox’s 2025 success, Breslow is still staring at an outfield logjam and plenty of first base questions.
Alex Cora on the 2025 Red Sox: “We took a step forward in certain areas, we are not a perfect team but we are improving. Let’s see what the offseason brings.”
— Boston Strong (@BostonStrong_34) October 3, 2025
Cora is well aware that Breslow and Boston’s brass must pull their weight this winter for the franchise to keep advancing on the road to another World Series berth. Not surprisingly, during his postgame presser, the manager made a subtle remark that reminded the front office to do its job.
“We took a step forward in certain areas … we are not a perfect team, but we are improving,” Cora said, before dropping the low-key challenge. “Let’s see what the offseason brings.”