2 trades Red Sox must make this offseason after early exit

The Boston Red Sox were unable to sustain the hot streak that lifted them from the depths of the American League to the third-best record in the league. They won 32 of 37 games in the middle of the season, sweeping series against multiple first-place teams, including the Los Angeles Dodgers on the road and the Tampa Bay Rays.

But the surge did not survive the summer. Their inability to hit in the clutch in August and September cost the team badly, and the early exit exposed a roster that does not have the power in the middle of the lineup to lift the team to the level of the Rays or the Yankees.

The Red Sox rarely got the offensive production they needed at catcher, second base, shortstop and left field. They did not have a full-time designated hitter either. Masataka Yoshida had a couple of hot streaks, but he has never been the power source the Red Sox had expected him to be — he hit 15 home runs his rookie season in 2023 and 10 in his second year, then failed to reach double figures the last two seasons.

If the Red Sox are going to overcome these issues in 2027, they are going to have to make trades in the offseason. Heat is on Craig Breslow to add power to the roster.

THE NUMBERS BEHIND THE STRUGGLE

The numbers lay it out plainly. The Red Sox finished the season with 163 home runs, ranking 26th in Major League Baseball.

It is true that the Milwaukee Brewers finished 29th in that category and had the best record in either league, but that kind of result is unexpected. The Red Sox cannot count on that outlier.

The gaps were specific. They rarely got the offensive production they needed at catcher, second base, shortstop and left field. They did not have a full-time designated hitter either.

Masataka Yoshida had a couple of hot streaks, but he has never been the power source the Red Sox had expected him to be. He hit 15 home runs his rookie season in 2023 and 10 in his second year. He then failed to reach double figures the last two seasons.

The roster simply lacks the middle-of-the-lineup thump to lift the team to the level of the Rays or the Yankees. That shortage is why the hot streak in the middle of the season could not carry into August and September.