Red Sox Named ‘Legitimate’ World Series Threat If They Do This
The Boston Red Sox come out of the MLB All-Star break as the hottest team in baseball. Riding a 10-game winning streak, Red Sox Nation is starting to sense some magic in the air and hoping for the team’s first championship since 2018.
With the MLB Trade Deadline less than two weeks away, Boston has been connected to several high-end arms, including former NL Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara of the Miami Marlins and Minnesota Twins All-Star Joe Ryan.
On Friday, seven ESPN MLB experts broke down all 30 teams into six tiers based on playoff potential, with the Red Sox falling into Tier 3 (“Firmly in the mix”). The writers predicted what the rest of the 2025 campaign will look like for every group, with Jorge Castillo discussing Boston.
The Red Sox enter play on Friday third in the AL East at 53-45, but just three games behind the first-place Toronto Blue Jays and one game in back of the New York Yankees. Insider Bradford Doolittle provided end-of-season win-loss projections for every squad and calculated division title, playoff and World Series odds for each of them as well.
The Red Sox’s 86-76 projected record, along with their 10.1% division title odds and 2.0% championship odds, aren’t something to get too excited about, but their playoff odds are at 57.3%. Castillo wrote that Boston could get themselves into serious World Series contention if they make a few moves ahead of the trade deadline on July 31.
“Add the Red Sox to the list of contenders seeking pitching help before the deadline — both in the bullpen and rotation,” he said. “Acquiring a starter and a reliever or two could vault the Red Sox to the top of the AL East and legitimate World Series contender status. If they don’t upgrade sufficiently, they’ll need the offense to continue propelling the club for a shot to play in October, likely as a wild-card team.”
The Red Sox will take on the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on Friday afternoon in both teams’ first game out of the All-Star break.