Red Sox Surge In Latest Power Rankings Despite Recent Rocky Stretch
The Red Sox continue to gain respect
The Boston Red Sox are among the biggest threats to contend for a World Series trophy despite their season-long struggles against American League East opponents.
That point was emphasized on CBS Sports’ Mark Snyder’s latest Major League Baseball power rankings, which ranked the Red Sox as the sixth-best team in the league.
“They had lost eight of their last 11 before the two comeback wins over the Yankees (on) Saturday and Sunday,” Snyder wrote Monday. “Given how bad so many teams competing for the six spot have been in the last several weeks, those two wins were enough.”
The Red Sox currently hold the top wild-card spot and appear on paper to be well positioned for a postseason birth. However, Boston is just 11-21 against AL East opponents, and will play 44 of their remaining 75 games (59%) inside the division. Amid a stretch of 14-straight games against AL East foe, the tides do not appear to be turning around. They stand at 3-5 just over halfway through said stretch.
While Snyder seems to think the Red Sox will prevail, oddsmakers are not so sure. Boston has the ninth-best odds to win the World Series at +2800 on DraftKings Sportsbook. A $100 bet for the Sox to claim a title would payout $2,900.
The Red Sox trail two divisional opponents, the 61-25 New York Yankees at +400 and even the 45-42 Toronto Blue Jays at +1500. If Boston cannot clean it up and start to defeat their rivals, Vegas might have an edge over the power rankings.
The Red Sox will have a chance to turn their misfortunes around quickly, as they play the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on Tuesday night for the second part of a four-game series. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET following an hour of pregame coverage, and you can watch it all on NESN.
