Will an unlikely hero emerge for the Boston Red Sox during their campaign in the Major League Baseball Playoffs?
ESPN's Jeff Passan on Monday predicted Bobby Dalbec will be Boston's batter who "most-consistently hits the ball hard." Dalbec was one of MLB's most-productive batters in the back end of the regular season, and Passan believes he'll continue his hot streak, perhaps overshadowing some higher-profile teammates.
"The Red Sox batter who most consistently hits the ball hard (95-plus mph) won't be Rafael Devers, Xander Bogaerts, J.D. Martinez or Kyle Schwarber," Passan wrote. "It will be rookie Bobby Dalbec."
Dalbec struggled through the first three months of the season, but continual work on his hitting craft helped him mount an astonishing turn-around, which helped him earn the American League Rookie of the Month honor for August and finish the regular season as the first Red Sox rookie to to hit at least 25 home runs in one season since Nomar Garciaparra in 1997.
Dalbec and the Red Sox will open postseason play Tuesday at Fenway Park when they host the New York Yankees in the American League Wild Card game. NESN's coverage of Red Sox-Yankees begins at 6:30 p.m. ET on Monday night with "Soxtober: Wild Card Preview."
