Eloy Jiménez walked down the steps within the guests dugout at Target Field on Wednesday as Luis Robert mentioned the 2022 season and appeared forward to 2023 with reporters.
“Next year is the year,” Jiménez yelled. “Let’s go.”
All the Sox can do is look forward following a 2022 season crammed with disappointment. After making the playoffs in 2020 and ‘21, the Sox can be spending this postseason at house.
“It just seemed like everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong,” catcher Yasmani Grandal mentioned earlier than Friday’s sport in opposition to the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. “When you thought it was form of coming again, it simply by no means went again. It simply saved going flawed.
“But I guess to put it plain and simple, we just sucked. Anything else would be an excuse, and the last thing you want to make as a team, as an individual, is an excuse.”
Here’s a have a look at what went proper, what didn’t and what’s subsequent for the Sox.
What went proper
Dylan Cease put all of it collectively and put himself within the operating for the American League Cy Young Award whereas headlining the rotation.
Cease entered what could be his remaining begin of the season Saturday close to the highest of a number of pitching classes, together with rating second within the majors with a 2.06 ERA.
He got here inside one out of a no-hitter Sept. 3 in opposition to the Minnesota Twins. Earlier within the season, he had 14 consecutive begin during which he allowed no a couple of earned run, turning into the primary starter (non-opener) since 1913 to perform the feat.
“(The consistency is) huge,” Cease instructed the Tribune on Thursday. “To be able to be fairly consistent throughout the year is very important.”
The Sox signed pitcher Johnny Cueto to a minor-league deal shortly after Lance Lynn suffered a proper knee damage throughout a Cactus League sport that sidelined him till June. Cueto helped stabilize the rotation after becoming a member of the big-league workforce in May.
Cueto and Michael Kopech shined in one of many extra spectacular days of the season when the Sox swept a doubleheader in opposition to the Yankees on May 22 in New York. Kopech — who moved again into the rotation after spending most of final yr as a reliever — retired the primary 17 batters in Game 2 with Rob Brantly breaking apart the proper sport with a two-out double within the sixth.
Closer Liam Hendriks ranked among the many league leaders in saves (38) and made his third All-Star workforce.
He was joined on the All-Star Game by shortstop Tim Anderson, who was voted a starter for the primary time. Anderson was eighth within the AL in batting common on the time he suffered what turned out to be a season-ending sagittal band tear in his left center finger in early August.
While the ability numbers had been down, first baseman José Abreu discovered methods to make an impression. He ranked second within the AL in hits (180) and fifth in batting common (.304) getting into Saturday.
Jiménez has been among the many greatest hitters in baseball because the All-Star break, slashing .330/.398/.572 with 14 homers and 40 RBIs.
The Sox performed as much as their potential in early September, successful 13 of their first 19 after Miguel Cairo stepped in as performing supervisor.
But …
What went flawed
The Sox misplaced the opener of a giant collection in opposition to the Cleveland Guardians 10-7 in 11 innings on Sept. 20 and by no means recovered.
That defeat began an eight-game shedding streak. The Sox noticed the Guardians draw back to win the AL Central. Six of these losses got here at house, the place the Sox are a puzzling 35-43.
The Sox entered Saturday one sport underneath .500, with accidents being a significant component.
Core place gamers similar to Anderson, Robert, Jiménez, Grandal and third baseman Yoán Moncada had been amongst these to spend time on the IL. The rotation and bullpen additionally had been hit with accidents.
“We weren’t as consistent as we wanted to be,” Robert mentioned by an interpreter Wednesday in Minneapolis. “Too many ups and downs, extra downs than ups, and that affected the best way that we performed. When you’ve got accidents, that’s one thing you can’t keep away from. You can have your gamers taking part in, however when you’ve got your gamers coping with totally different accidents, you realize the blokes on the market usually are not 100%. That’s going to have an effect on your efficiency too.
“You can’t control that. I really believe that’s one of the main reasons why we underperformed this year.”
The Sox are wrapping up the season with Anderson and Robert on the IL whereas Moncada (.218/.282/.364) and Grandal (.200/.301/.269) struggled to discover a rhythm offensively.
Beyond the accidents, the play on the sector was surprisingly sloppy at occasions. The workforce’s 100 errors are probably the most within the AL. And baserunning miscues, whether or not it led to a triple play July 4 in opposition to the Twins or getting caught off third base following a stroll July 27 at Colorado, squashed momentum.
It’s these fundamentals one would anticipate to be cleaned up underneath Tony La Russa, who returned as Sox supervisor after the 2020 season with the hopes of taking the workforce to the subsequent stage.
They made the playoffs once more in 2021, however this season was crammed with inconsistent play. And choices similar to deliberately strolling Trea Turner with a 1-2 depend in a June 9 sport in opposition to the Los Angeles Dodgers gained nationwide criticism.
Fans voiced their displeasure with the ups and downs, together with chants of “Fire Tony” throughout an extra-inning loss to the Texas Rangers on June 11. The workforce’s incapacity to be a bigger participant on the commerce deadline additionally left many scratching their heads.
Less than an hour earlier than an Aug. 30 sport in opposition to the Kansas City Royals, the Sox introduced that La Russa wouldn’t handle that evening on the path of his medical doctors. The subsequent day the Sox mentioned La Russa was out indefinitely and would bear additional testing with medical doctors in Arizona.
On Sept. 24, the Sox introduced La Russa wouldn’t return for the 2022 season on the path of his medical doctors. Asked later that day if he had a way if La Russa, 77, nonetheless desires to handle, Sox basic supervisor Rick Hahn mentioned, “Right now the focus is on his health.”
What’s subsequent
Hahn mentioned the workforce would tackle the managerial state of affairs when “it’s appropriate to turn the page at the end of this year.”
That’s probably the most rapid query dealing with the Sox.
These may be the previous couple of video games for Abreu with the Sox. He’s a free agent after the season.
Time will inform if the Sox look so as to add a left-handed bat, whether or not they seek for a long-term answer at second base and the rotation plans with Cueto set without cost company.
Largely, the offseason can be about looking for methods to get again on monitor after the squandered alternatives this season.
“It’s a frustrating year and we know what we need to work on and we know what we don’t want to fall into next year,” outfielder/first baseman Gavin Sheets instructed the Tribune on Tuesday in Minneapolis. “We know what went nicely and we all know what didn’t work. For us subsequent yr, this season was a giant studying curve. We don’t wish to return down this gap.
“We know the talent we have and we know what it takes because last year we did what it took and this year we didn’t. We take that and we run with it and I think we’ve got some good motivation going into next year.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com