It was an admirable run, but the Boston Red Sox saw their 2021 title hopes come to an end last week at the hands of the Houston Astros.
It took the Astros six games to send the Red Sox packing in the ALCS.
Boston vastly exceeded expectations this season, but in retrospect, it’s clear that the team had some fatal flaws.
Today, we’re going to take a look at a few of the biggest reasons the Red Sox fell short in their quest for a championship.
3. Lack Of A True Ace
It’s hard not to wonder where the Red Sox would have landed in 2021 with a true ace atop their rotation.
Typically, of course, Chris Sale fills that void for Boston, but he wasn’t available until August as he recovered from Tommy John surgery.
Once he came back, he was serviceable, but he wasn’t his best self.
Sure, he pitched to a 3.16 ERA over nine regular-season starts, but most of those outings came against weak opponents.
Moreover, in the playoffs, he got roughed up.
He allowed 10 runs over nine innings of postseason work.
Nathan Eovaldi was the closest thing the Red Sox had to an ace in 2021.
He was their horse, pitching to a 3.75 ERA and 2.79 FIP over 32 regular-season starts, but again, not exactly an ace.
In the postseason, he was largely reliable, but he actually ended up a 4.79 ERA over five playoff appearances.
The 31-year-old was solid in 2021, but he wasn’t lights-out.
None of Boston’s starting pitchers were.
2. Bullpen Implosion
Boston’s bullpen was one of the biggest reasons for the team’s demise in the playoffs.
The unit finished the postseason with a 5.23 ERA.
It was an extremely disappointing playoff showing for the team’s relief staff, especially considering the fact that the bullpen managed to post a very respectable 3.99 ERA in the regular season.
Here’s how the bullpen performed in Games 4, 5, and 6 of the ALCS — the three games in which the Astros took control of the series and clinched it:
- Game 4: 4 IP, 8 R
- Game 5: 3.2 IP, 5 R
- Game 6: 3.2 IP, 4 R
One of the biggest reasons for Boston’s bullpen collapse had to do with a pitcher who didn’t even make the ALCS roster: Matt Barnes.
Matt Barnes not on Red Sox's ALCS roster. Sawamura and Hernandez make it
— Christopher Smith (@SmittyOnMLB) October 15, 2021
Barnes was an elite relief arm for the Red Sox throughout a large portion of the regular season.
He had a 2.25 ERA and 2.08 FIP as late as August 4.
But down the stretch, the righty imploded.
He pitched to a 10.13 ERA over his final 16 appearances in the regular season.
Boston couldn’t justify putting him on the ALCS roster.
Without him, the Red Sox struggled to get the job done in the late innings of games.
1. When It Mattered Most, The Bats Disappeared
The Red Sox had a great offense in the regular season.
From top to bottom, the team’s lineup was pretty well-assembled.
Boston finished the regular season with the fourth-best run-scoring offense in baseball.
And throughout the majority of the club’s playoff run, the offense produced at a high clip.
But near the end of the ALCS, that wasn’t the case.
Boston’s bats failed to deliver when it mattered most.
The Red Sox scored two runs in Game 4 of the ALCS, one run in Game 5, and zero runs in Game 6.
Boston, of course, lost all three of those games.
Red Sox scored 25 runs in the first three games and 3 runs in the last three games.
The transformation in an offense was unlike anything I’ve seen before. They went from all looking like Barry Bonds to all looking like Adam Everett. No offense, AE.
— Jeremy Branham (@JeremyBranham) October 23, 2021
The club was eliminated as a result.
NEXT: 3 Reasons Red Sox Can Still Win ALCS