I was lucky enough to have the chance to interview Boston Globe journalist Peter Abraham. Mr. Abraham has covered profesionall baseball since 2002 and has worked for the Globe writing about the Red Sox since 2010. I talked to Mr. Abraham about the current version of the Red Sox, as well as what he thinks the future holds for Alex Cora’s team. I learned his views on the Red Sox’s defensive struggles, Rafael Devers’ confusing season, and what he believes the Sox should do at the trading deadline.
Jonathan Traub: Do you think that the Red Sox should be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline?
Peter Abraham: They should be sellers. I don’t think they have the pitching to make the playoffs. They also have a number of older players on short-term contracts who would suit contending teams. They could build toward 2024. The worst thing they can do is what they did last year.
Jonathan Traub: Do you believe that any Red Sox players got snubbed by not making the All-Star Team?
Peter Abraham: Not really. No Sox players did well in the fan or player voting. Perhaps Verdugo might have been a better choice than Jansen but the league office decided the team needed a pitcher. Last-place teams can’t really complain about All-Star selections.
Jonathan Traub: If you were to grade Chaim Bloom’s offseason, what grade would you give him?
Peter Abraham: C-. Turner, Martin, and Jansen were solid additions. Kluber was a terrible mistake as was Mondesi. Yoshida is a good player but I’m not sure he’s a $90 million player. It was mostly standing in place. They needed far more starter help than a No. 4 starter type in Kluber.
Jonathan Traub: What is your feeling right now about the development and improvement of Triston Casas?
Peter Abraham: Casas needs a lot of work defensively and he strikes out a lot for a player with a supposedly good command of the strike zone. I think he has a chance to be a good player but perhaps not the All-Star some fans envision.
Jonathan Traub: Which Red Sox player has had the most surprising season in your eyes and which player has had the most disappointing season?
Peter Abraham: Duran is easily the most surprising. Been a complete turnaround on both sides of the ball. I’d say Devers has been the most disappointing given the expectations. But he has a lot of pressure on him and that takes time to get used to. I think he’ll be fine but he’s not nearly the player he can be and he knows that. It’ll happen in time.
Jonathan Traub: What do you need to see from the Red Sox in order to believe that they can contend this season?
Peter Abraham: It’s all pitching and between the injuries and the young starters building up innings, I’m not sure they can figure it out in time to contend.
Jonathan Traub: The Red Sox continue to lose games because of defense. Do you think that the manager should be doing anything to send a message to his players about the importance of defense? For example, benching a player who plays incredibly poor defense.
Peter Abraham: They’re doing a lot of pre-game drill work to improve and Story’s return will help. “Sending messages” sounds good but that’s mostly radio talk-show sort of stuff. Showing up players for making mistakes doesn’t accomplish anything. You can bench a player for not hustling as Verdugo was. But the defensive issues aren’t about hustling. It’s more about a roster with a lot of pieces that don’t fit and injuries.
Sox Watch 