Sam Kennedy’s infuriating Red Sox comments prompt response from Alex Cora

The beginning of the Boston Red Sox's 2024 campaign was a pleasant surprise — they came up on the right side of a 10-game West Coast road trip with a 7-3 record, and fans were thrilled to watch an unexpectedly fun squad.

Two months later, one-third of the way into the season, disaster has struck the Red Sox lineup multiple times. Lucas Giolito was out of commission from the jump, and then an injury ended Trevor Story's season. Rafael Devers revealed he had a shoulder injury that dated back to spring training, Triston Casas soon required a two-month absence to mend his rib, and the list goes on.

Through it all, Boston has hovered around .500 for much of the season. Somehow, that hasn't been enough for the Red Sox front office.

Sam Kennedy spoke about Boston's performance on the May 30 episode of "The Greg Hill Show" on WEEI. He praised the team for its athleticism as well as the pitching staff for crushing expectations in the early going. The positive comments ended there.

". . . Our bats have gone quiet at the wrong time, our defense has not been where it needs to be, and of course, we’ve suffered the loss of guys like Trevor (Story) and Triston (Casas) and Tyler O’Neill now going down. So, that’s not an excuse. It’s on us to stay healthy. That’s part of competing. . . I think, if anything, we've under-performed just given the talent and the competitiveness in that clubhouse.”

The 2024 Red Sox were built with the depth of a kiddie pool. Despite Boston's troubling injury history, it seems like the front office expected its original team to be indestructible. They knew for months that they would begin the season without a second baseman, and Enmanuel Valdez was never an appropriate replacement. The front office banked on Story to post a comeback season, but he fell injured almost immediately, as many fans almost expected.

Red Sox fans and players expressed their frustrations with the front office's lack of the promised "full-throttle" moves over the offseason. Kennedy claimed it's on the players to stay healthy, but it's the front office's equal, if not greater, responsibility to give its players the tools and resources to succeed. Boston's front office has failed on that front for years now.

Boston lacks star power and it's been clear that Devers needs help carrying the team. The third baseman said "Everyone knows what [the Red Sox] need" in terms of player additions during spring training. Not even the face of the franchise and the highest-paid player on the team could make the front office budge when it came to spending money.

Sam Kennedy throws Red Sox players under the bus for the front office's cheapness

Cora backed up his third baseman after his statements and supported his players after Kennedy's blatant disrespect from May 30.

“I think we’ve played OK,” Cora said. “When you’re .500 you’re OK. …Bill Parcells says you are who you are and we’re a .500 team. Injuries part of it, but we’re not the only team with injuries."

The Red Sox have been "OK," at best, but the front office hasn't given them the tools to be anything but. Boston has kept up surprisingly well despite trotting out a lineup full of mostly Triple-A and bench players almost every night — Boston's starting lineup from April 21 featured five players who have since been optioned.

Kennedy doesn't have free reign over financial decisions in the front office, and based on recent seasons' showings, he may have no impact at all. But he continues to put his foot in his mouth at every turn.

The 2024 Red Sox have absolutely not underperformed — the front office did this past winter. The men in charge had every chance to improve the team by signing Shōta Imanaga, Teoscar Hernández, Justin Turner and so many others, and with John Henry's billions, they could've signed every single one. No one is at fault for the team's mediocrity but the front office, and it's well past time they take accountability for their failings.

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