baseball

At quarter pole, Red Sox employ pitching, missing middle-order power

Yahoo Sports

Handcuffed by injuries and early-season slumps, Boston needs its current crew to step up before the MLB trade deadline.

At quarter pole, Red Sox employ pitching, missing middle-order power originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . The Boston Red Sox employ an awkward roster.

With a quarter of the season complete, the Red Sox remain puzzling. Do they, as currently composed, appear capable of making a run at the AL East-frontrunning Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees without entering the trade market this summer? At the 47-game mark, the Red Sox appeared to be missing consistent middle-of-the-order power.

They also need to upgrade the third base position. Take Monday's series-opening 3-1 win over the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Impressed or dismissive, the outing proved to be typical 2026 Boston baseball.

Starting pitcher Sonny Gray allowed one earned run on five hits in six innings, striking out nine. And the offense did just enough, securing their objective, three runs. Upon reaching that pedestrian milestone , the Red Sox improved to 18-8.