Welcome to a new season of the Backstop Podcast. Major League baseball has begun opening day on April 7 but for the Red Sox and Yankees, they will wait until Friday, April 8th because of rain. The Red Sox were supposed to open at home against the Tampa Bay Rays. However, due to the MLB lockout, the season was pushed a week later.
So here we are waiting for the games to begin, an actual rivalry game between the Yankees and Red Sox. In their last meeting, the Red Sox eliminated the Yankees in the Wild Card game. Then, the Red Sox took care of business against the Rays in the ALDS before falling to the American League Champions, the Houston Astros.
This season, there are still so many questions on how the Red Sox will survive the season. Just like last year, the Red Sox were predicted to finish fourth in the American League East. This season, the Red Sox are projected to finish tied in third in the standings with the yankees and sneak their way into the playoffs. But, there are so many factors that may be an issue in the AL East. I will talk briefly about that and the outlook of Red Sox baseball.
The big issue in MLB games will be the teams that play against the Toronto Blue Jays. Because of Canada’s vaccination requirements, any player who is not vaccinated cannot enter the country. The NBA is dealing with these circumstances as they ramp up for the playoffs. In MLB, everyone will find out if the players are vaccinated or not when the team travels to Canada. In the AL East, that will be a concern because of the high competition. The division is the best of MLB. Last year, the Rays, Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays won over 90 games. The Rays won 100 regular season games. Not having a full roster to enter Canada can be a huge difference maker until Canada’s law changes. And in fact, it does not look like it will change anytime soon.
My prediction on the AL East for 2022 are
Blue jays in first place
Red Sox second
Yankees third
Rays fourth
Orioles fifth
The Blue Jays have red hot Vladimir Guierrero, Jr who batted a .311 48 HRs with 111 RBIs. Bo Bichette and the healthy George Springer can get the offense on track. Starting pitcher Kevin Gausman, who is coming from the San Francisco Giants, had an awesome season with 14 wins and 6 losses with a 2.81 ERA. Jordan Romano is the closer who saved 23 out of 24 games.
For the Red Sox, there are a lot of questions that need to be answered, similar to last season.
You can expect both All Stars Raffael Devers and Xander Bogaerts to have a phenomenal season. Both may be playing their last season with the Red Sox. Both declined an extension and can have their eyes on Free Agency.
Trevor Story is a new addition to the Red Sox this season. He played six seasons with the Colorado Rockies. He averaged .272 His best season was in 2018 when he hit 37 HRs with 108 RBIs. However, he does strike out often. In each full season, he has struck out over 100 times.
Jackie Bradley JR is back. After one season with the Milwaukee Brewers, Bradley returns to play RF. His defense was missed and could have been a difference maker if he would have been involved in the ALCS against the Houston Astros. The downfall is that Bradley cannot hit very well. He has a career batting average of .230.
JD Martinez, Kike Hernandez, and Alex Verdugo will spark up the offense. Christian Vasquez is dependable in clutch hitting and controlling the pitchers. And Bobby Dalbec, what type of player will he be this season? Can he reduce the amount of Strikeouts and pound the ball like he did in the 2020 season? He will be sharing time at first base this season.
In pitching, starting pitchers Nathan Eovaldi, Nick Pivetta, Tanner Houck return. Michael Wacha and Rich Hill are the newcomers from the New York Mets. It is a far stretch as to what caliber type pitchers they will become in this rotation. We just hope Chris Sale can return healthy as he is projected to return in June.
There is no closer for the Red Sox. One can only assume Matt Barnes will start to close. He had a strong first half season in 2021 but after he signed a new contract with the team, he went downhill. Garrett Whitlock took the reign.
Can the Red Sox surprise the league in 2022. Anything is possible with Alex Cora. Cora will be managing the Red Sox for his fourth season. He has always had a winning season. In 2018, his first season, he managed the team to win their fourth World Series of the millennium. Last season, the team lost in the ALCS against the Houston Astros. The team finished with 92 wins, 70 losses, 20 games over what was projected. Expect more surprises in 2022.
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Enjoy the season everyone. Let's Play ball.
