If I had to guess, the Boston Red Sox are going to make the playoffs this season. They’ve had a solid year and hold a lead in the division. With that in mind, here’s a look at what their playoff roster could look like:
Rotation
Chris Sale — AL Cy Young contender. Great No. 1 starter.
Drew Pomeranz — 3.15 ERA in 30 starts this season. Could argue he has outpitched 2016 Rick Porcello.
Rick Porcello — 4.00 ERA in the second half. Overall, he’s having a pretty average year but can eat innings.
Doug Fister — Inconsistent, but not a bad back-end starter. Plus, he has excelled in the postseason.
Bullpen
Craig Kimbrel — Arguably the top closer in baseball.
David Price — $31 million bullpen arm. Better here than in a postseason rotation.
Joe Kelly — Throwing gas has made him a solid reliever.
Matt Barnes — Leads the Red Sox with 67 relief outings.
Carson Smith — He exists. Remember, he struck out over 90 batters in 70 something innings for the Mariners in 2015.
Brandon Workman — 2.41 ERA in 30 outings. Was on the Red Sox 2013 playoff roster.
Eduardo Rodriguez — The Sox need another lefty reliever and Robby Scott and Fernando Abad ain’t reliable.
Catcher
Christian Vazquez — Arguably the hottest bat in the lineup.
Sandy Leon — Need a backup catcher.
IF
Mitch Moreland — Having a poor second half, but he’s gonna keep playing.
Dustin Pedroia — .300 hitter. Game-changing defense.
Xander Bogaerts — Another dude who basically fell off of a cliff. He has at least been average these past couple weeks.
Rafael Devers — Talented young bat. No comment on his glove.
Hanley Ramirez — They pay him too much to leave him off the roster.
Eduardo Nunez — He should be healthy–and hitting everything he sees once again.
Brock Holt — The Red Sox can’t get over the fact that Holt was a 2015 All-Star.
OF
Andrew Benintendi — If it wasn’t for Aaron Judge, he’d probably win Rookie of the Year.
Jackie Bradley Jr. — 20-home run pop and gold glove defense. Not bad.
Mookie Betts — Best defensive right fielder in baseball. Also third in the league with 44 doubles.
Chris Young — John Farrell seems to like him for some reason.
Snubs
Heath Hembree — Doesn’t pitch in high-leverage moments.
Fernando Abad — Doesn’t pitch like ever.
Robby Scott — Faded in the second half.
Deven Marrero — Doesn’t play much.
Rajai Davis — Serviceable pinch-runner, but he doesn’t get much play time.
Sam Travis — The Red Sox don’t want to win a World Series. Or