Even though the Boston Red Sox are sitting in last place in the American League East, they actually might not have it as bad as the other teams in the division.
ESPN baseball analyst Buster Olney joined WEEI’s “Middays with MFB” on Wednesday to talk about the state of the Red Sox. Olney said that even though things aren’t going so hot right now, Boston actually has “the most fixable problems and the most resources to fix them with.”
“When you look at what they have as their list of potential solutions, it’s just a lot longer than, say, a team like Tampa Bay or the Yankees, where they’re pretty much stuck with the guys that they have,” Olney said, “and it’s part of the reason why I think going forward (the Red Sox) have a chance to get better.”
While it’s not great to basically be labeled the best of the worst, Olney isn’t wrong about Boston’s ability to overcome in their weak division. The New York Yankees are sitting in first place, but they were just two games above .500 before Wednesday’s games with the Red Sox three games back.
Olney added that the AL East’s problems also give general manager Ben Cherington time to find a good deal on a starting pitcher.
“The fact that the division is so mediocre and there doesn’t appear to be any team poised to run away buys Ben Cherington time to wait to see if anything materializes that’s actually a good deal,” Olney said. “I do think at some point he’s going to strike and add a guy like (the Oakland Athletics’ Scott) Kazmir. Maybe that right guy for the right price is Cole Hamels, maybe it’s Johnny Cueto, but he doesn’t have to jump because of what’s going on with the other teams.”
Thumbnail photo via Jake Roth/USA TODAY Sports Images
