The Red Sox were supposed to finish last again. Fans knew it, media knew it, and ownership definitely knew it. The only people who refused to accept it were manager Alex Cora and his "why not us?" clubhouse.
So now the conversation has changed. The Red Sox officially ended the first half on Sunday with the kind of victory that has typified their season: a solid start from Brayan Bello, a monster home run from Rafael Devers, contributions from some unexpected corners of the roster, a big defensive play by Ceddanne Rafaela, and a save from Kenley Jansen, all leading to yet another series victory.
This one came against the Kansas City Royals, their closest wild card pursuers, and gave the Red Sox a two-game lead heading into the All-Star break at a season-high 11 games over .500. With the trade deadline looming and the Sox finally signaling they'll add to the roster for the first time since 2021, it's time to ask a question that wasn't supposed to be on the table until 2026: Just how good can they be?
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And the answer is really good -- like, get out of the American League good, if they find the right help.
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Certain seasons represent rare opportunities, and this is one of them. There are no super teams in the American League. The Guardians own the best record in the AL by a half game over the Orioles, who sit just 4.5 games ahead of the Red Sox. Neither of them terrifies you. The Guardians lack the resources to make meaningful additions (along with the rest of the mid-major AL Central), and the Orioles have scuffled while their talented young core develops.
In a year or two, the O's might be unstoppable, but they've lost seven of 10 behind an inconsistent offense that was just shut out on consecutive nights by the Cubs. The Red Sox have made up seven games on them in the last month.
"So far so good, but we have bigger goals than having a good first part of the season," Cora said after Sunday's 5-4 victory. "We're 4.5 games back from the lead in the East. That's what we're shooting for. The whole talk about the Wild Card and all that, it should be in the past. Let's think big and see what happens."
The rest of the AL contenders with maybe one exception are equally non-threatening. The Twins are surviving injuries and ripe to be overtaken. The plummeting Yankees may need to fire manager Aaron Boone. The Mariners don't hit much. The defending champion Rangers remain sub-.500 and could be deadline sellers. The scariest team left might be the Astros, who have overcome a wretched start to pull within a game of Seattle.
So out of that pile, why not the Red Sox? They have a better chance of winning the AL than the Diamondbacks did the NL at this time last year, and we know how that season ended – with Arizona in the World Series. That should be all there is to say.
The Sox have officially earned help, no matter what happens in the next couple of weeks. Enough with the whole, "they need to keep winning games" thing. We need no further proof. They've lost one series since June 1 and they're beating good teams now. Do the right thing.
During Sunday's NESN broadcast, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow gave his strongest signals to date that they'll add. The front office has belatedly wrapped its head around how good its team actually is. Welcome to the party.
We all know what the Red Sox need. The starting rotation lacks depth and could be upgraded at the fourth and fifth spots, which could bring the added benefit of moving Nick Pivetta to the bullpen, where he was a weapon last year. Keep an eye on the Rangers, who sit four games under .500, but with an easy schedule. If Nathan Eovaldi became available, he'd be a natural fit and could even credibly start Game 1 of the playoffs. It's asking a lot of Tanner Houck and Kutter Crawford to continue carrying the staff as they blow past their respective career-highs in innings.
On the other side of the ball, they're an incredible 20-1 in their last 21 games against right-handed starters, but left-handers continue to flummox them, as Kansas City All-Star Cole Ragans reminded them on Friday night.
They need another right-handed bat for the infield and DH, whether it's injured Angels utilityman Luis Rengifo or old friend Justin Turner. The Yankees are the only AL contender currently starting two lefties (Carlos Rodón, Nestor Cortes), but Houston's Framber Valdez is still out there, and we'll see if a rival contender acquires a southpaw like Toronto's Yusei Kikuchi or Miami's Jesus Luzardo.
One conversation we're no longer having is whom they might trade. The answer is no one, including closer Kenley Jansen. Long considered their most obvious asset, he's now untouchable.
Just look at Sunday's Orioles-Yankees game. O's closer Craig Kimbrel is a heart attack and he blows it. Yankees counterpart and fellow cardiac risk Clay Holmes blows it right back. Meanwhile, Jansen goes two innings for the first time in his regular-season career and is now 19 for 20 on saves. That could be the difference as the AL East race tightens.
It would've been hard to imagine having this conversation when the season began in March, but here we are. The Red Sox are legitimately good. In the second half, we'll get to see how far they can go.