Three Dreadful Facts About the 2019 Boston Red Sox
By Manny Gómez
Fact: Team On Pace to Surrender Over 1000 Runs in 2019
Perhaps the most troubling fact about this atrocious start to the season for the Boston Red Sox is that the team has already surrendered 119 runs. Conversely, in all of 2018, the Red Sox surrendered 647.
This means that in 19 games this season, or 12% of the season, the team has surrendered over 18% of the total runs given up by the 2018 team as a whole. Extrapolate this fact, and the Red Sox are on pace to surrender over 1000 runs this season.
What’s more, the team’s run-differential is currently an MLB-worst -42.
In order to better understand why the team is surrendering so many runs, you have to take a closer look at the teams pitching staff.
Now, entering the season, upon losing Joe Kelly and Craig Kimbrel, there were many questions about the team’s bullpen. In delving deeper into the stats, however, you’ll notice the team’s pen really hasn’t really been the problem…yet.
Instead, it’s the starting rotation that’s been the head scratcher for this team. A starting rotation that features the likes of Chris Sale, who in 4 GS has already matched his loss total (4) from all of 2018.
In 2019, the Boston Red Sox (-0.1 fWAR, 6.01 ERA) rotation is akin to that of the worst team in baseball, the Baltimore Orioles (-1.3 fWAR, 6.05 ERA). In fact, not only do both rotations feature negative fWARs, their ERA is virtually identical.
You can’t blame it all on pitching, however. You see, the beauty of run-differential is that it takes two to tango, and if you find your self in the negatives, it also means that your offense isn’t scoring enough runs either.