Chaim Bloom has high hopes for the offense of the Boston Red Sox in 2021.
The Red Sox are slated to feature a well-balanced batting order in the upcoming season. Boston newcomer Kiké Hernández and Alex Verdugo are in line to be the table setters for the Red Sox, while Christian Vazquez and budding slugger Bobby Dalbec are expected to anchor the lineup. And good luck getting through the middle of Boston’s order, which includes proven, complete hitters in Rafael Devers, J.D. Martinez and Xander Bogaerts.
Bloom, who’s entering his second season as Red Sox chief baseball officer, believes Boston’s bats have a chance to give opposing arms nightmares on a nightly basis.
“Yeah, we’re hopeful that it will,” Bloom told WBZ’s Dan Roche. “That’s been the norm here for many years, well before my arrival — that this team can score, especially at Fenway Park. Hopefully this year’s going to be no different. What I like about it is I hope we are set up not to give opposing pitchers any breaks. We need to force them to be on their game one through nine. If we can do that, grind at-bats, we’re just going to be very difficult to play against. That’s going to wear down the opposition and hopefully benefit us as games go on.”
Unfortunately for Boston fans, they’ll have to wait for their first true glimpse at the offensive potential of the 2021 Red Sox. Boston’s Opening Day matchup against the Baltimore Orioles slated for Thursday at Fenway Park was postponed and rescheduled to Friday at 2 p.m. ET.
