Red Sox offense is covering for pitching staff's regression during playoff push

The Boston Red Sox starting rotation has shown signs of wear in recent weeks. Red Sox pitchers have posted a 5.86 ERA since the All-Star break, the third-worst in MLB.

Boston's bullpen has also been far from perfect, but the starters have faltered significantly. Tanner Houck has already passed his career-high innings pitched in a single season and Kutter Crawford is just a few frames away from his record. James Paxton struggled with the Dodgers all season and is a few innings away from throwing his most in four seasons. Brayan Bello and Nick Pivetta have been inconsistent, and there's no telling when they'll have their best stuff.

But Boston's bats have backed their hurlers nicely since the All-Star break. The Red Sox own the league's highest OPS since the second half began, and it isn't particularly close.

The Sox have clocked a .921 OPS since the All-Star break. The Yankees own the second-highest second-half OPS with a .882 and the Diamondbacks rank third with a .871. Then, the fourth-place Orioles mark a significant dropoff with a .829.

Boston's hitters have been extra-base-happy since the return to action for the second half. They've cracked a whopping 50 doubles, four triples and 28 homers in 15 games.

Red Sox own league's highest OPS since return from All-Star break

The Red Sox have produced up and down the lineup, even from unexpected sources. Dominic Smith contributed 10 of Boston's 50 doubles, tied for the most with Rafael Devers. Tyler O'Neill has mashed six homers and four doubles since play resumed and he leads his squad with an excellent 1.220 OPS — it's fair to say he's provided some of the right-handed power the Sox missed out on at the trade deadline.

Wilyer Abreu has taken to hitting homers at his fastest pace all year. He's logged four along with four doubles. Rob Refnsyder has added three homers and three doubles to Boston's total since the break. Jarren Duran has found his power swing and continues to push the limits of his hits. He's legged out three triples along with eight doubles and four homers since he brought home the All-Star Game MVP award.

If the Red Sox's pitchers continue down the path toward running out of gas, the bats need to maintain their high level of production to stay in the postseason race. Even with their recently outstanding offensive metrics, the Sox haven't spent an excess of time in the win column — they're 6-9 since July 19.

Luckily for Boston, reinforcements are coming. Chris Martin and Liam Hendriks are working toward their return — or in Hendriks' case, debut — to the beleaguered bullpen and Triston Casas is in the middle of a rehab assignment that could end on Aug. 19 at the latest.

If the Red Sox can keep their bats hot until their injured players return, they should be in a good position to take off when it matters most in September.

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