Werner: Red Sox 'don't have enough pieces' to compete
The Boston Red Sox have taken quite a tumble in the two years since they last won the World Series, and team chairman Tom Werner doesn't like his club's chances in 2020, either.
"We expect to field a competitive team each year," Werner said Friday. "We expected to have a good offense, a relentless offense. Even our offense has not clicked the way we would have hoped. But we obviously don't have enough pieces right now to compete."
Boston's offense has sputtered somewhat this season, sitting 16th in MLB in runs scored (88) and 20th in OPS (.731). But it's the pitching staff that has struggled most, faltering without ace Chris Sale, injured lefty Eduardo Rodriguez, and the recently traded David Price. Only the Philadelphia Phillies and Seattle Mariners have worse team ERAs than Boston (5.86), while Red Sox starters lead the majors in walk rate (4.92 BB/9).
Werner's comments come days after team president and CEO Sam Kennedy said the Red Sox are actively exploring trades ahead of the Aug. 31 deadline and that no player is untouchable.
Boston is 6-14 on the season and trails the division-leading New York Yankees by 7 1/2 games. The Yankees trounced the Red Sox on Friday night by a score of 10-3. That game came on the heels of a 17-8 Boston loss that capped off a four-game sweep at the hands of the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Red Sox have three more games against the Yankees before returning to Fenway Park to open a two-game set against the Phillies on Tuesday.