Red Sox World Series Champion Saw Potential In Andrew Bailey

Andrew Bailey’s impact with the Boston Red Sox is rather evident at the start of the 2024 season.

Boston has MLB’s best staff ERA (2.68 ERA) and especially gets supreme production from the starting rotation, with a 1.92 ERA, according to Red Sox senior manager of media relations and baseball information J.P. Long.

Bailey reinforced his own values with Red Sox arms, from throwing their best stuff more consistently to challenging hitters in the zone. Boston’s pitchers continue to embrace his philosophies, working deeper into games and giving the Red Sox a chance to win.

The Red Sox got quite the find in their pitching coach, who knows what it takes to perform in Boston after taking the mound for the ballclub in 2012 and 2013. That drove him to a capable career in coaching, noting that his work with the 2024 Red Sox certainly is not his first true success.

Another former player with Red Sox ties is 2004 World Series champion Gabe Kapler. He brought Bailey onto his staff when he took over managerial duties for the San Francisco Giants during the 2020 season. From that introduction, Kapler saw true potential in Bailey for this role, which the Red Sox have now benefited from to start the season.

“Bails has two things that are essential for being a good coach (or) a good executive that are really impactful in this game,” Kapler told NESN.com. “No. 1 is a huge motor. It never stops. He doesn’t run out of batteries. It’s high-energy. It’s incredible give-a-(expletive). He’s just a genuinely fantastic person. All that pours out of him every day.”

Kapler continued: “No. 2 is he’s a phenomenal connector. There’s the motor, but if you have a bunch of motors and you don’t connect well with people, it’s hard to really leverage that motor. He connects well with people. He works well with others. All of that was evident during the interview process. During the seasons, it obviously was just reinforced. He’s super bright. It’s the motor and connection, I think, is that unique combination. It’s easy to find one in isolation. It’s more challenging to find the two of them together. Those are the things that Bails has.”

The former Red Sox players made magic together in San Francisco during the 2021 season. Bailey led the staff to the second-best ERA (3.24) in baseball. Starters such as Anthony DeSclafani, Alex Wood and Kevin Gausman elevated their games while the bullpen got excellent production from arms such as Camilo Doval and José Álvarez among several impact relievers. The Giants won 107 games to take the National League West crown with Kapler earning Manager of the Year honors in the NL.

Bailey eventually took the pitching coach job with the Red Sox this past offseason while Kapler moved on to the Miami Marlins as an assistant general manager. After both impacting the Red Sox as players, Kapler and Bailey worked together with a product that now turned the potential of Boston’s pitching staff around in a pivotal season of growth for several young arms.