Things are just going from bad to worse for the Boston Red Sox, so with the second half of the regular season now up and running, we look at if they can turn their season around and stage a remarkable recovery and reach the 2022 playoffs.
The Boston Red Sox season wasn't going great, but in recent weeks it seems to have gotten even worse. Heavy defeats to local rivals the New York Yankees would have been hard enough for the Fenway Park patrons to suffer, but just when the Red Sox fans thought things couldn't get any worse, they went and lost 28-5 to the Blue Jays.
The Blue Jays pounded the Red Sox 28-5 with 29 hits, including an inside-the-park grand slam by Raimel Tapia.
Fans at Fenway Park had one reason to cheer, at least: a successful scoreboard wedding proposal with the home team trailing 25-3.
by @khightower https://t.co/IZNV7EUHx4
— AP Sports (@AP_Sports) July 23, 2022
Quite rightly, Red Sox fans have been asking what is going on? And as yet, it's fair to say they haven't had an acceptable answer.
The Blue Jays' defeat should have been a Turning Point
Many thought the record defeat to the Blue Jays would spark a reaction, but sadly for Red Sox fans, this hasn't materialized.
That defeat was last Friday, and in the following four matches the Red Sox have lost three and won one - the latest, an 8-3 defeat at home to the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday night.
In their last 10 matches, the Red Sox are 8-2. Go back a bit further and they are 10-2.
This run has seen them slump to the bottom of the AL East, and in the betting, they are +1800 to win the American League, and they are +4000 in the betting to win the 2022 World Series.
Latest World Series Betting
The latest betting to win the 2022 World Series has seen a change at the top. Yes, the Yankees are no longer leading the way. They have been replaced at the top of the betting by the LA Dodgers.
The Dodgers did start the season as the favorites, but a combination of a bad start for Dave Roberts' team along with a flying start for the New York Yankees, saw LA repalced as favorites by the best MLB betting sites. In this market, the Red Sox is a long way outside the betting picture at +4000.
| 2022 MLB World Series; Winner Betting |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| New York Yankees | +350 | +350 |
| LA Dodgers | +350 | +350 |
| Houston Astros | +500 | +550 |
| New York Mets | +750 | +800 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | +1100 | +1200 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | +1100 | +1100 |
| San Diego Padres | +1200 | +1200 |
| Atlanta Braves | +1200 | +1200 |
| Boston Red Sox | +4000 | +4000 |
| Minnesota Twins | +3300 | +3500 |
| St Louis Cardinals | +3500 | +4000 |
| San Francisco Giants | +2500 | +2500 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | +3300 | +3300 |
| Chicago White Sox | +3300 | +3300 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | +3500 | +4000 |
Injuries Have Had An Impact on the Red Sox
The main reason the Red Sox have struggled of late has got to be down to their crippling injury list.
The #RedSox today placed C Kevin Plawecki on the COVID-19 Related Injured List. To fill Plawecki’s spot on the active roster, the club recalled C Connor Wong from Triple-A Worcester.
— Red Sox (@RedSox) July 11, 2022
At some stage this month the Red Sox have been missing one of Rich Hil, Chris Sale, J.D Martinez, Trevor Story, Christian Arroyo, Matt Barnes, Rafael Devers, and Matt Strahm.
Such is the length of the list, I may have missed someone off there. And the way things are going for the Red Sox this season, there's always the chance someone else will have stubbed a toe or suffered a paper cut to a finger on their throwing hand before I've finished writing this piece.
Can Alex Cora Perform A Miracle?
The manager has credit in the bank after leading the Red Sox to the World Series in 2018. He also won the World Series with the Astros in 2017. Cora knows how to win, that is an undoubted fact. This makes removing him a risk, and as we've alluded to with the injuries, he is coaching with one arm tied behind his back.
YOUR BOSTON #REDSOX ARE THE 2018 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS! #DAMAGEDONE pic.twitter.com/ax05nkT8k7
— Red Sox (@RedSox) October 29, 2018
His suspension due to the 'sign stealing' controversy led to his removal as Red Sox manager. Once all that was out of the way, John Henry and Tom Werner were more than happy to rehire Cora. That faith in Cora from the Red Sox hierarchy shows not only that he has time on his side, but they think of him very highly and are likely to believe in him to turn things around. The suspension seems to have bought Cora more time if anything.
To Make The Playoffs Betting
To have a chance of making the playoffs, the Red Sox need to arrest the slump and also get some of their injured players back. Can they achieve both in time to make the postseason?
The current MLB betting odds suggest the best MLB betting sites don't think they can. Alex Cora's team is shorter to not make the postseason than they are to make it.
At the moment, just stopping the rot sounds like a big ask, never mind making the playoffs.
But it is fair to say the Red Sox is in a false position. They are unlikely to finish bottom of the AL East, and some sort of upturn in form sounds inevitable.
If they can turn their season around and make the MLB playoffs, they are unlikely to have the quality to mix it with the likes of the Yankees and the Dodgers. But with Alex Cora in charge, a Red Sox side in the postseason could be an interesting floater. And, as we've already mentioned, Cora knows how to win World Series titles.
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