Red Sox schedule a grueling test down the stretch
3 things that must go right in order for the Red Sox to make it to the postseason
If you've been following the 2023 Boston Red Sox closely, you know that this season has been full of euphoric highs and frustrating lows.
They're up, they're down; they're up, they're down. That's been the story of the Red Sox this season. They'll get hot and win five straight, and suddenly things will implode and they'll lose five straight. The Red Sox have subjectively failed to take advantage of the schedule and have, at times, played down to their competition.
May and June featured a handful of winnable series that went to the opposition. Boston opened the month of May with a four-game sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays but then proceeded to get swept by the St. Louis Cardinals at home, swept by the Los Angeles Angels, and swept in a two-game series by the Cincinnati Reds. June brought its own frustrations as Boston dropped series to Tampa Bay, Cleveland, Colorado, Minnesota, Chicago [White Sox], and Miami. July was a much better month for the Red Sox as they closed out the month 15-8, however, that .652 winning percentage could have likely been higher had the Red Sox not dropped the series to Oakland and lost seven of their last 11 to close out July.
The skid continued as the Red Sox went on to get swept by the Toronto Blue Jays in three at home, which many Red Sox fans and even analysts referenced as the death note to the 2023 Boston Red Sox season. It's been a roller coaster month of August as Boston followed up that sweep with consecutive series wins against Kansas City and Detroit, respectively. Now, the real test begins. The daunting remaining schedule for the Boston Red Sox is staring them down, and could be what keeps this team from October.
Remaining in August, Boston heads on a 10-day road trip where they'll face Washington, New York [Yankees], and Houston. With no off day in between, the Sox then return home for a six-game homestand against the NL West-leading Dodgers, and another go-around with the Astros which wraps up 16 consecutive games without an off day. The rest of August will be an absolute grind for the Red Sox, and September doesn't let up.
The Red Sox open the month of September with a six-game road trip against the Royals and the Rays before returning home to face the Orioles and Yankees. September also features road series against Toronto, Texas and Baltimore. If the Red Sox have any hopes of making it to the postseason at all, they'll have to play exceptional baseball for these last seven weeks.
3 things that must go right in order for the Red Sox to make it to the postseason
1. Starting rotation and bullpen needs to execute
With the return of Chris Sale last week, Garrett Whitlock added to the bullpen, and the return of Tanner Houck just around the corner, the Red Sox pitching staff is adding reinforcements at the right time. However, a few Red Sox starters have also been taking slight steps back recently. Bryan Bello was credited with the lone loss in the series against Detroit, going 4 2/3 giving up nine hits and four earned runs. Kutter Crawford was charged with a loss in the series prior when he went 3 1/3 giving up seven hits and three earned runs against the Royals.
James Paxton had an impressive last outing against the Royals throwing 5-1/3 scoreless innings and punching out six and will take the mound Tuesday when Boston opens up a two-game road series against the Nationals. With Sale still getting settled in and Houck likely being stretched out and limited upon his return, the Red Sox are absolutely going to need their bullpen and guys like Josh Winckowski, Chris Martin, Nick Pivetta, and Brennan Bernardino to step up when called upon.
2. Take advantage of the schedule
As noted, the remaining stretch for the Red Sox is anything but light, however, there are more than a few winnable games and series that the Red Sox will have to capitalize on if they have hopes of securing that third and final Wild Card spot. The next two series for Boston feature a pair of last-place teams. Washington is 13 games under .500 but are winners of seven of their last 10. The Yankees also find themselves at the bottom of the American League East and have lost four out of their last 10. Make no mistake of it, Washington and New York are anything but guaranteed wins and will give the Red Sox all the trouble they can handle, but, the Red Sox have a very good chance to walk away with back-to-back series wins if they play to the strength of their schedule.
After a grueling 10-game stretch the rest of August, seven of which are against the Astros, and then a three-game series against the first-place Dodgers, the Red Sox square off against another last-place team when they head to Kansas City over Labor Day weekend. With three of the Red Sox's next series opponents currently at the bottom of their divisions, Boston must capitalize on the schedule and take advantage of golden opportunities to climb in the Wild Card standings.
3. Wear yellow
OK, this one is a little more light-hearted, but nonetheless, Boston is 12-2 this season when wearing their signature yellow City Connect uniforms and 26-6 all-time. Whether by happenstance or not, the Red Sox find success when they take the field in yellow and blue and may want to consider their wardrobe choices as they enter the final stretch.
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