Red Sox: Xander Bogaerts joins Ted Williams in record books
On Tuesday, Boston Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts established himself as a contender for the 2019 AL MVP award. Here’s how.
Boston Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts has been on an absolute tear in the month of July. He has five home runs, 17 RBI, and is batting .405 through 37 at-bats.
So far, the Red Sox are 7-4 this month, and their improved performance is largely due to Bogaerts’ recent hot streak which continued into Tuesday night when he became the first shortstop with a hit, a run, and an RBI in 8 straight games since RBI became an official statistic in 1920.
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He is only the second Red Sox player, at any position, to do it, joining Ted Williams (8 in 192, 11 in 1950).
This is elite company for the 26-year-old shortstop. Bogaerts was named an American League All-star for the second time in his career this season.
He is currently hitting .312 with 21 home runs, and 74 RBI. He is two home runs short of his tying his career-high in home runs that he set last season.
His OPS is .974, which is only second to Mike Trout in the American League. He trails only Trout in RBI as well.
If the Red Sox and Bogaerts both stay hot, the shortstop will be a heavy considerate for the AL MVP. As of now, Trout seems to be the leader for the accolade, but if Bogaerts can carry the Red Sox to the playoffs he will get a lot of votes and support.
Not only has Xander Bogaerts shown that he can hit for immense power in 2019, but he has also established himself as the best shortstop in baseball. He has the best slash line amongst all shortstops in the game and is currently in the lead for runs scored, doubles, and RBI.
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He has been the most productive player in the Boston Red Sox lineup and is trying to do whatever he can to take the reigning world champions back to the postseason.