The Red Sox Just Lost A Series To The Terrible Los Angeles Angels And It Doesn't Matter - But These Things Sure Do

For some dumb reason, the Red Sox decided not to move their game on Wednesday Night. They had a 6:45 PM first pitch and kept that time, even though the Patriots were set to open their season 90 minutes later in Seattle in a Super Bowl rematch on national television. That should have made it an afternoon game. Dumb. 

But in the end, Jake Bennett's pitching and Zach Neto's bat made it very easy for Sox fans to leave Fenway early to get home to watch the Pats. Many of them didn't go home - they walked over to GameOn! to watch Hogdale's Patriots Stream. 

To be fair, that didn't end well either. What a shitty throw by Drake Maye. But this is a Sox blog; I digress. 

Anyway, the few Sox fans who came over to GameOn! that I had a chance to talk to at halftime all had a similar thought about the Red Sox sucking Wednesday and losing the series to the Angels. 

Who cares? They're going to the playoffs.

And they're not wrong. 

As of Thursday morning, the Red Sox have a 99.8% chance of making the postseason. They're six games up on the Guardians for the second Wild Card spot in the AL and seven games up on the Blue Jays for that last spot. With 15 games to go, if they win, say, five games, they're likely to be the second wild card seed. That means a date with the Yankees in New York in a best-of-three. 

So losing two of three to LA doesn't really matter. But if they're going to beat the Yankees in a few weeks, then getting this stuff figured out between now and then sure as shit does. 

Jim McIsaac. Getty Images.

Getting their stars healthy 

It starts with Garrett Crochet. He had not pitched since April, and at this point, he's coming back as a reliever. Hopefully, a multi-inning reliever. 

He started his career there, and over 73 career regular-season innings out of the bullpen, he's got a 2.71 ERA. Combine that with four scoreless appearances as a reliever in the postseason, and all of a sudden, you realize what type of weapon he could be out of the Sox pen against New York and beyond. 

"I'm not Joe Schmoe." 

Hell yeah, love that quote. They need this guy. Is he an opener? Is he a high-leverage reliever? A bulk guy? That's obviously a part of these next few weeks, too. 

Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox. Getty Images.

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Of course, you need Wilson Contreras back and healthy too. Dude has been the heartbeat of the team most of the season. He said if this was the playoffs, he could have played through the hammy issues, but the Sox did the right thing in giving him a few weeks. 

Contreras at Yankee Stadium for playoff games will be wild. 

There are some other guys - Curtis Mead, Justin Slaten - that you'd love to get back. But Crochet and Contreras are musts if the Sox have any shot at beating New York in New York. 

Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox. Getty Images.

Get Ranger Suarez locked in

Personally, I think Jake Bennett lost any chance of starting in the Wild Card round with his outing on Wednesday night. He's allowed 9 ER on five (!!!) home runs over his last two starts. He's a rookie who has never pitched this much in a season, and I can't imagine him getting the ball in Game 3 against New York. 

But Ranger Suarez? Hell yeah. 

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Ranger has outrageous postseason numbers. Saturday's seven-inning shutout outing against Baltimore was his best start since June. We finally saw signs of the guy the Sox paid $132 million for in the offseason. 

They need that guy ready to go after Sonny Gray and Payton Tolle. Because the Playoff Ranger Suarez can beat the Yankees on the road. 

Brian Fluharty. Getty Images.

Get Roman locked in, too

Game-changer for this lineup. 

Homered again Wednesday, his third in eight games. You didn't have him last year in the playoffs, and it buried you. Slotting him at leadoff for three games at the Stadium is a totally different look for this team. The Sox have three off-days over the next three weeks, so he and the offense should be primed for the playoffs. 

Four games back of the Yankees, I don't think you're getting the #1 Wild Card spot. But this Red Sox team - the one with the best record in MLB since the All-Star break - they can beat the Yankees in a best-of-three in New York. But getting key guys healthy and locked in over the next three weeks is going to be vital. 

And wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy more important than dropping two of three to the Angels. 

P.S. - Also, like, how does Drake Maye throw that ball? Seriously? Just throw the ball away, man. Same for the other pick he threw… just chucked it up to Doubs. WTF. Terrible.