Boston Red Sox: Bats need to come alive after opening series sweep

Boston Red Sox fans were excited about the return of baseball but sadly the 2021 season didn’t get off to the best start for the team. Boston was swept in the opening series and most of the blame has to go to the bats.

Being swept by the Baltimore Orioles is bad enough, but this was a truly historic start to the season in all the wrong ways. This is just the second season in history that Boston started 0-3 at Fenway.

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While Garrett Richards and Josh Taylor didn’t have a fun Sunday afternoon combing for 10 earned runs, Boston got some quality pitching performances in the two prior games.

Nathan Eovaldi looked strong only allowing four hits and one earned run on Opening Day while Tanner Houck had a particularly stellar outing striking out eight batters in five innings.

So how did Boston end up losing three straight games even though they got quality performances on the mound? The problem lies at the plate.

Boston Red Sox bats went silent against Baltimore

The Red Sox could not produce a lot when it came to getting players across the plate. Boston’s bats didn’t do a lot against the O’s.

The Orioles outscored Boston 18-5. That is just absolutely unacceptable if a team wants to win ball games.

Boston’s bats are supposed to carry the team. Guys like Alex Verdugo, J.D. Martinez, and Rafael Devers need to perform on a nightly basis. If not the Red Sox could be in trouble.

Verdugo has yet to register a hit this season. While he seems to be hitting the ball well, it doesn’t matter if you can’t get on base. The same goes for Xander Bogaerts who has yet to register a hit as well.

So far Boston has only been able to rely on Martinez. He has a .500 batting average along with a home run and three RBIs. That is the type of performance that the Red Sox need if they are going to be successful.

Things don’t get easier for the Red Sox moving forward. Their next opponent is the 2020 AL Champion Tampa Bay Rays.

With Tampa racking up 14 runs in their first three games, Boston’s bats will need to do much better. If not the Boston Red Sox could be without a win in their first six games of the season and on their way to the bottom of the AL East once again.