The Boston Red Sox have greatly turned things around offensively after a slow start to the season (and by "slow start," I mean they were one of the worst offensive teams in baseball basically until the end of June/start of July). And now that they have Roman Anthony and Trevor Story back, and Adley Rutschman seemingly finding his groove, they could be turning into an offensive juggernaut at the perfect time.
Boston is 3-6 in its last nine games (though it mostly has to do with its struggles on the mound; they allowed 60 runs during this stretch), but the team is still getting a huge boost offensively.
Since their returns, Anthony (.455 BA, two HRs, two RBIs, five runs in five games) and Story (.438 BA, four RBIs, one run in four games have been incredible. And Rutschman (.417 BA, two HRs, two RBIs, five runs, just one strikeout in three games) may be finding his rhythm in Boston.
Red Sox' offensive turnaround has been crucial to their playoff push
There's a little less than a month left in the regular season. A lot can happen in that time (I don't need to remind you about what happened at this time in 2011... do I?), but it seems like Boston's destined for another playoff run.
As it stands, the Red Sox are 76-65 and own the second AL Wild Card spot (4.5 games behind the New York Yankees for the first spot, 5.5 games ahead of the Cleveland Guardians for the third spot).
It seems like the division title is probably out of reach (they are 7.5 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays), but that shouldn't matter. The Red Sox have solidified themselves as one of the top teams in the AL, if not all of MLB, and their offensive turnaround has a lot to do with it.
Boston's pitching staff has been among the best in baseball all season long (well, I guess until now, apparently), but the team really started turning things around once it found its groove at the plate.
Since the All-Star break, the Red Sox rank second in BA (..264, only behind the Chicago Cubs' .266), second in runs (248), second in hits (420), third in home runs (62), first in doubles (94), third in OBP (.341), second in SLG (.449), and second in OPS (.790), according to MLB.com. They have been one of the best hitting teams during that time, and it's not a coincidence that their 30-17 record is the best in the majors during that stretch.
If Boston can figure out its pitching woes, then the rest of MLB needs to be wary of what this team can do in the postseason. They have been one of the best teams at the plate over the last few months, and given how weak the rest of the AL looks, they could be in line for a deep playoff run.
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