Days continued passing at the end of September, and the Boston Red Sox somehow miraculously kept hope alive.
On Wednesday night in Toronto, that hope was finally, mercifully, extinguished.
With a 6-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays, shortly following wins by the Kansas City Royals and Detroit Tigers, the Red Sox (80-79) were officially eliminated from playoff contention. Boston will miss out on October for the third straight year, the first time that has happened since 1994.
The problem with these Red Sox has become that a .500 season with no playoffs can be construed by some as a success. It’s not supposed to be a success for a franchise that’s won four World Series this century. Rebuilds in big markets aren’t supposed to take four years. And in reality, this one has been going on for closer to six.
Manager Alex Cora laid his frustrations bare after the loss to Toronto, and to his credit, he nailed the tone of the statement.
“At one point, it felt like we were (a) playoff-caliber team, and then it just, we missed the opportunity,” Cora said, per Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald. “We had it right there and we blew it.”
Not only were these Red Sox a playoff-caliber team at their best, but they didn’t need to be their best to make it to October. At the All-Star break, they were 53-42. Had they gone 32-32 since then, they’d be in playoff position. If they’d gone 36-28, they’d already have their playoff spot clinched.
Instead, the bullpen imploded. Then the lineup started striking out at an exorbitant rate. And before long, a great chance to gain playoff experience in a year with no dominant team in the American League was completely out the window.
Think about all the winnable games the Red Sox blew that could have made the difference. There was the Joely Rodriguez game in Seattle. The extra-innings games in Los Angeles and Colorado where the bullpen couldn’t convert two-run leads. The three-run blown lead at home against Texas.
In a season that showed so much promise, the prevailing emotion at the end of the road is once again disappointment. And unless the front office makes meaningful changes this winter, that’s how 2025 will finish as well.
