Lack Of Depth Exposing Red Sox
The Red Sox could use some help up the middle, where injuries are beginning to derail the team.
Trevor Story, Adalberto Mondesi, Kiké Hernández, and Christian Arroyo may have sounded like somewhat of a reliable group to man the middle infield back in January. Unfortunately, the first two were already on the shelf before the season began, and the latter two couldn’t hit water if they fell out of a boat at the moment.
The Red Sox talked about how they intended to add middle infielders to shore up their roster before the start of the season. But all they did was sign Yu Chang, who has a 0-for-13 start to the season, and Adalberto Mondesi, who they knew would start the season on the injured list after tearing his ACL last April.
Adam Duvall Injury Causing Problems
The fact is Boston was dealt a huge blow with the wrist injury to Adam Duvall that will sideline him for roughly two months. Not only did they lose a key player who was essentially carrying their offense, but it disrupted the team’s roster and highlighted their overall lack of depth. Without Duvall, the Red Sox are forced to shuffle around their defense and rely on guys who should not be starting in the major leagues. (Yu Chang, Rob Refsnyder, Bobby Dalbec, etc.)
GM O’Halloran Not Ruling Out Early Season Trade
So now, with the injuries piling up, the Red Sox may be forced to look at external options to try and get by until Adam Duvall can return sometime in June.
Before Thursday’s game, general manager Brian O’Halloran claims to be open to adding to the roster via trade.
“We’re always looking to find ways to improve the roster,” O’Halloran told MassLive’s Chris Cotillo. “Especially when you have injuries — and significant injuries. That’s even more heightened. We’re obviously looking for those opportunities.”
Okay, But Why Did You Wait?
During the offseason, many Red Sox fans were left scratching their heads at the lack of action taken by Chaim Bloom and Brian O’Halloran to address the team’s glaring need for infield depth. With Trevor Story sidelined due to elbow surgery and Xander Bogaert’s departure, the team was left without many reliable options to plug in at shortstop.
As the offseason progressed and it became clear the Sox wouldn’t land any of the top free agent shortstops, many fans were clamoring for the addition of names like Elvis Andrus, Jurickson Profar, or even Jose Iglesias to provide some much-needed support going into the season (depth!).
So instead of getting an able-bodied player ready to start the season, the Red Sox front office decides to make a trade for a player who is currently sidelined due to ACL recovery. Doesnt make much sense when you could have, at the very least, gotten Jose Iglesias on a minor-league deal. Just another puzzling decision – Go figure.
