Boston Red Sox bullpen has been unreliable since All Star Break

The Boston Red Sox bullpen has been very reliable since the All-Star break and is the main reason why they’ve been losing so much.

Before the MLB All-Star break, the Red Sox were one of the best teams’ in baseball with a high powered offense and pitching that could get the job done when needed.

Since the All-Star weekend, the Red Sox have been one of the worst teams in baseball and it’s caused them to fall in the AL East standings.

The Red Sox have a record of 12-14 and have lost 7 of their last 10 series, after losing to the Tampa Bay Rays 8-1 on Thursday afternoon since the All-Star break.

The biggest reason the Red Sox have been struggling so much after the All Star break, has been the inconsistency of their bullpen.

Boston Red Sox bullpen goes from a strength to a weakness

Before the All Star break, the Boston Red Sox bullpen was ranked 9th in the MLB with an ERA of 3.57 and for the most part was very reliable in finishing games after the starting pitcher was taken out of the game.

Since the All Star break, their bullpen production has massively declined and the statistics show it, since they’ve amassed an ERA of 5.73, which is ranked 26th in the MLB and a FIP of 4.48.

If you aren’t familiar with the statistic FIP, it’s similar to ERA but focuses solely on the events a pitcher has the most control over — strikeouts, unintentional walks, hit-by-pitches and home runs. It entirely removes results on balls hit into the field of play, according to MLB.com.

Over the last 7 days, the bullpen has been the worst it has all season and has blown multiple leads, which has caused the Red Sox to lose very winnable games if the bullpen didn’t allow the other team to come back.

Over this span, their bullpen is ranked last in the MLB with a 12.39 ERA and a FIP of 6.97. An example of this was in the game against the Blue Jays on Sunday when the Red Sox scored seven runs in 5 innings and had a lead of 7-4 going into the 6th inning.

After Garrett Richards was taken out, the bullpen allowed five runs to score in the following innings and the Red Sox ultimately lost 9-8.

The most recent example was on Tuesday against the Rays when the Red Sox had a 4-1 lead going into the 6th inning and Garrett Whitlock ended up allowing two runs in the 6th and then Matt Barnes blew the game open allowing 4 runs in the 9th inning to allow the Rays to win 8-4.

Even when the Red Sox had a 20-1 lead on the Rays during Wednesday’s game, Phillips Valdez allowed 7 runs to score in the 9th inning, but luckily got out of it. There’s a few other examples, but I’ll stop there so you don’t throw your laptop or phone out the window in frustration.

More from Boston Red Sox

• 3 Midseason Chaim Bloom Decisions That Have Killed the 2023 Red Sox
• MLB Screws Red Sox Fans With Broadcast for Mookie Betts Return
• Red Sox Continue Rollercoaster Season With Massive Win
• Mookie Betts Has Humble Outlook on Returning to Fenway
• Alex Cora Reveals What He Said to Cause NSFW Response from Justin Verlander

Even the bullpen arms the Red Sox traded for during the trade deadline have been very unreliable. Hansel Robles was traded from the Twins for Alex Scherff and since the trade, hasn’t performed how the Red Sox hoped.

Over 5 games, he’s allowed eight runs on five hits, walked four and striked out six. Austin Davis was traded from the Pirates for Michael Chavis and in 5 games, he’s allowed four runs on nine hits with two walks and six strikeouts.

Even though both players weren’t looked at as “premiere” relief arms when traded to the Red Sox and these statistics are a small sample size, Chaim Bloom, the Red Sox President of Baseball Operation, definitely hoped they’d be more reliable.

One player that has been the least reliable out of the bullpen since the All Star break has been the Red Sox closer Matt Barnes. Before the All Star break, Barnes was unstoppable and amassed a 2.61 ERA with 19 saves, which helped him be selected to the 2021 All Star game.

Since the All Star weekend, he’s been very unreliable, amassing an ERA of 7.88 in 10 games. Over this span, he’s blown 3 games: August 7 against the Blue Jays when he allowed a walk-off home run to Marcus Semien, August 8 when he blew a save allowing a two-runs to score in the 9th and most recently, as I mentioned early, when he allowed four runs to the Rays on August 10.

These mistakes can’t be happening when the Red Sox are in the midst of a tight playoff race where every game matters during these last two months of the season.

As everyone has seen in the postseason over the last few years, a strong bullpen wins championships, so if the Boston Red Sox bullpen continues these inconsistent performances, then it will cause them to have an early exit in October.