Our final preview of the American League East’s landscape belongs to the Boston Red Sox.
Boston was a mediocre 81-81 in 2024. However, most don’t think that record was indicative of the talent the Red Sox had.
After a quiet 2024 offseason, the Red Sox front office made a statement in 2025, setting the team up for what should be a very fun campaign.
Key Additions: LHP Garrett Crochet, INF Alex Bregman, RHP Walker Buehler, LHP Aroldis Chapman, LHP Patrick Sandoval, LHP Justin Wilson, C Carlos Narváez, LHP Matt Moore
Key Subtractions: OF Tyler O’Neill, C Danny Jansen, RHP Nick Pivetta, RHP Chris Martin, RHP Kenley Jansen
Offensively, the Red Sox are a juggernaut. Jarren Duran, Rafael Devers and Alex Bregman just might be the best 1-2-3 in baseball. Wilyer Abreu, Triston Casas and Connor Wong are also bats that will help balance out their lineup.
And while his Red Sox tenure has been brutal, to say the least, Trevor Story has looked very comfortable this spring, and if he can stay healthy, he could be a huge X-factor for the Sox.
We haven’t included farm systems in any of our team previews, but we’re making an exception for Boston. Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell and Marcelo Mayer are all listed as top 15 prospects, according to MLB Pipeline, and all three of them could make their big league debuts this season.
Campbell is already favored to be the Opening Day second baseman, and if Story’s struggles do continue, the Red Sox won’t hesitate to give those at-bats to Mayer. Anthony’s path is a little tougher, but he’s too talented to rot in Triple-A.
The pitching side for Boston is a little more dicey.
Garrett Crochet is obviously the headliner whom they acquired from the Chicago White Sox over the offseason. Obviously, his stuff is some of the league’s best, but he’s had huge problems staying on the field. We’ll have to see how Crochet holds up with a second consecutive starting pitcher workload.
Tanner Houck was fantastic in 2024 with a 3.12 ERA, but he did struggle in 2023, and his 2025 spring has been abysmal. Houck has a 9.95 ERA and 2.29 WHIP with just seven strikeouts in 12.2 innings pitched.
Walker Buehler, Kutter Crawford and Brayan Bello are who we expect to round out the rotation. There is potential there, but all three had ERAs over four, with Buehler’s being over five.
It wouldn’t be a surprise if this rotation put it together and was an underrated unit. However, the injury risk, combined with guys who haven’t had a lot of big league experience, could become a nightmare quickly for Boston.
The bullpen is the glaring problem with Boston. The Sox were 24th in bullpen ERA in 2024 at 4.39, and we don’t expect it to improve much in 2025.
Aroldis Chapman is a downgrade from Kenley Jansen at closer, and even with Liam Hendriks finally seemingly healthy, he’s not a needle-mover anymore. Simply due to regression to the mean, the Sox pen might see statistical improvement, but this is a below average unit.
STRENGTHS
This one is easy, as the biggest Red Sox strength in 2025 is going to be their offensive production.
Boston had an OPS+ of 104 in 2024, which was already impressive, but they then went out and signed Alex Bregman, who himself had a 118 OPS+ last season.
Add in a fully healthy season from Triston Casas, who missed 99 games last year, Kristian Campbell taking over at second base and Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer waiting in the wings, and we could be looking at the very best offense in baseball. Playing in Fenway Park (107 Park Factor) definitely doesn’t hurt either.
WEAKNESSES
Boston’s major weakness in 2025 is going to be their bullpen.
As mentioned earlier, the unit was not good last year and doesn’t look much, if any, better at all. Although, a sneaky weakness for Boston could ultimately be the durability of Garrett Crochet.
The last four seasons for Crochet look like this: 2021 – 54.1 IP, 2022 – DNP (TJ Surgery), 2023 – 12.2 IP (dealt with shoulder inflammation), 2024 – 146 IP (first year as starter)
You can’t predict injuries, but it wouldn’t be shocking if Crochet missed at least a portion of 2025. If that’s the case, the rest of the Red Sox rotation will face a huge uphill battle filling that void.
PROJECTED RECORD: 94-68 / DIVISION FINISH – 1st PLACE
Boston has a lot of hype this year, and for good reason. They have a fun team and should be very much in the mix for a postseason spot and potentially a division title.
Personally, I am not as high on the Red Sox, but many of my Baltimore Battery co-writers are, so I’ll reluctantly make these predictions.
With all of this being said, The Baltimore Battery’s final projection is for the Boston Red Sox to finish first in the AL East with a win/loss record of 94-68.
What are your thoughts on the 2025 Boston Red Sox? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, X, Bluesky and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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