Chaim Bloom’s complacency at the deadline may have cost the Red Sox their season
Just seventeen days ago, the then first place Red Sox took three out of four against the Yankees in what was thought to be a demoralizing series for a New York team whose season appeared to be slipping away. The truth is that Boston was overachieving and would need some solid reinforcement if they were going to keep up their impressive pace all the way into October.
At the trade deadline, the Sox were in a position to go all in on this season. To forego whatever future plans they had in mind and try to win a World Series THIS YEAR because their first place record told us that was a real possibility. Chaim Bloom responded by doing nothing to improve a pitching staff that was quite obviously not built for the long-haul, and they “added” to their offense by bringing in a guy who may never see the field due to injuries. Meanwhile the Yankees, who were a laughing stock less than three weeks ago, added Anthony Rizzo and became the hottest team in baseball.
The Sox are now 2-9 since the deadline. The Rays, Jays, and Yankees are a combined 27-8. A one-game lead over Tampa has become a five-game deficit and that comfy nine-game advantage over New York has dwindled down to two. Their latest loss, blowing a 4-1 lead at Fenway, epitomized what these last couple weeks have been like for this team and their fans.
The offense has gone ice cold, pitching has become a problem all across the board, Matt Barnes can no longer close games, the list goes on. All of a sudden this once promising ball club is riddled with issues, many of which won’t be resolved any time soon.
Bloom is facing heavy criticism that will only worsen the longer this skid continues, and rightfully so. His complacency and stubbornness may have cost the Red Sox their season.