Costly Mistakes

The Sox had arguably one of the best catchers in the MLB, yet here they are on August 2nd, playing their backup catcher as a starter. Kevin Plawecki is a good catcher though he is no Christian Vazquez. Vazquez is an unmatched talent. Players thought twice before they stole second base, they knew just how easy it was for Vazquez to get them out no matter how difficult it might appear. Not only does the loss of a catcher hit home, but the fact that we lost one of perhaps the best hitters that the Sox had lately batting a 0.282 with eight home runs and 42 RBI. Catchers are not a position that tends to do well offensively and yet we had a great catcher, who was great offensively and we just traded him. It is obvious that offense is a current hole on the Red Sox. The number of times that the Sox have left people stranded on base is unbelievable and yet Bloom just traded away one of the team's best offensive pieces.

We need the key and exceptional players like Vazquez for the playoffs to remain in the picture. Is it still possible? Definitely. The Red Sox are only 3 games out of third place. The question is a matter of momentum. Can we change the tune? Perhaps shaking up the lineup and bringing some new blood will help to create a new groove. We have been in a rut for way too long with no clear cause. The slump came out of nowhere, certainly surprising the fans, and the players seem to be quite shocked as well. However, rebuilding is not the answer. A complete rebuild will not yield feasible results for a few more years. If Bloom is serious about still trying to make the postseason, then he would be wise to choose carefully what other deals are made.

I would not be surprised to see more trades made. It was reassuring to hear that both Devers and Bogarts are not being traded. I have some thoughts on Devers, but trading him right now would not do the team any good. Hopefully knowing that they are both staying will not only help them to play better, but help the team to refocus. There are many names that are currently being tossed out as potentials for trades. One of them is Nathan Eovaldi, which I think would be a grave mistake. Eovaldi easily pitched one of the worst games he will ever have a little over a week over against the Blue Jays. Despite this, I think it would be very preumptive to throw in the towel. He has recently come back from a back injury and has only pitched a few games. Was it shocking to watch him fall on his face that game? Definitely. But one horrific game is not enough of a reason to give up on Eovaldi. He pitched a stellar game against Monday night's series opener with the Astros, pitching 6 1/3 innings, giving the Sox their first back-to-back win in close to a month. Nasty Nate is not gone. Who will be your replacement ace? Sale is still out with a broken finger. There is no more time to wait around for things to magically fall into place and trading your ace makes it significantly more difficult to make it to the playoffs. The bullpen definitely needs work, but trading Eovaldi doesn't make sense. His being a free agent this year should not be our primary concern right now, righting the sinking should be the focus. Now is not the time to be worrying about the offseason.

Trades were inevitable this season, after quite a dramatic downturn, but are they trading the right people? Why isn't the talk about Dalbec or Franchy? They were experiments that have long since ended. August is not the time to be continuing with this failing experiment. We need a solid first baseman and we need one now. Does Bloom actually know what he is doing? Or is he making blind trades hoping he gets lucky and finds the solution to the problems the Red Sox are facing?