Lingering Flaw Playing Major Role In Red Sox's Frustrating Start
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The Boston Red Sox were a good team last year, winning 89 games and making the playoffs.
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However, they were also a flawed team. They struggled to hit for power and struggled in close games, going 23-27 in one-run games during the regular season. That record was particularly bad early in the season before the Red Sox started pitching better and playing better baseball in June.
That issue came back to haunt them during the postseason, however, as they lost Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series to the New York Yankees by one run. Boston failed to close out the series after winning Game 1, then ultimately lost it after getting shut out in Game 3.
So far, it's continued to be an issue for the 2026 Red Sox, who are 0-3 in one-run games to start the season. That's accounted for half of their losses thus far, playing a big role in their disappointing 2-6 start.
One-run games often come down to relief pitching, timely hitting and defense, three key areas where Boston has struggled so far.
Red Sox relievers are 0-3 with a 3.60 ERA to begin the year. They've gotten lucky with a .216 BABIP and an 85 percent strand rate, ranking second and third in the Major Leagues, respectively. However, their peripherals and advanced stats are concerning given their 5.78 xERA, 5.42 FIP and 31:16 K/BB ratio in 30 innings.
Boston's lineup also keeps falling short in clutch situations, batting .167 with runners in scoring position, .194 with RISP and two outs, .208 with men on base and .208 in late and close situations.
The Red Sox's defense has been a problem as well. They've committed the fifth-most errors and have the sixth-worst fielding percentage in baseball.
Boston needs to improve these areas if it wants to start winning tight games, especially at the plate. The Red Sox's offense has scuffled in general this year, but getting more production in high-leverage situations will be critical to start flipping some of these close losses into wins.
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