The Boston Red Sox have 11 games remaining until the All-Star break as the playoff picture continues to shake out. If Major League Baseball were to put out an NFL-style graphic, Boston would be labeled as “in the hunt.”
The Red Sox are 3 1/2 games back of an American League Wild Card spot but have done little to inspire the front office as the trade deadline approaches. Every time the Red Sox go on a run, they counter with an equally awful stretch.
When asked if Boston needs to heat up to inspire the front office to buy at the deadline, Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom gave a candid answer.
“In terms of in-game decisions, (Alex Cora) talks about this a lot in terms of the game dictates what you do. I think a lot of that is true about the standings as well,” Bloom told NESN’s Tom Caron prior to Tuesday’s 10-1 loss at the hands of the Miami Marlins.
“As we sit here, there’s a big pack and it’s us and a lot of teams,” Bloom continued. “We’re going to need to pick it up a little bit if we want to separate ourselves in a good way from that pack.”
Many media members and fans alike have clamored for Bloom to make a move sooner rather than later, citing that it’ll be too late to contend if he waits until the last minute on Aug. 1.
While Bloom has heard the critique, he doesn’t seem to want to follow the aforementioned methodology.
“Most of the action, probably more so over the course of my career, has been near the end,” Bloom said. “Some of that is teams taking the time to figure out exactly what they want to do. Some of it is just, whether you’re buying, selling or anywhere in between, a lot of times it really takes until the end to know what teams are really willing to do and so that’s why a lot of the action happens there.”
While a move in the near future would be nice, and bolster an ailing club, he has a point. It takes two to make a trade, and there are only a handful of teams that already are in seller mode. The teams in that position don’t exactly have heaps of talent to give up.
If Boston was a little bit further up the standings, a push to buy early would be something I’d totally get behind. But this team is 40-40 and just does not seem to have what it takes.
Given the riches of the farm system, lack of notable impending free agents and the ability to go over the luxury tax threshold next season — it makes sense to save their bullets for 2024. It’s frustrating but true.
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