When the Boston Red Sox compete in the American League Wild Card Series next week, what will their roster look like?
The Red Sox will most likely face the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in the best-of-three series, barring any improbable scenarios that could knock them down to the No. 6 seed.
And here's a good idea of what their roster will probably look like in the first round:
Catchers (3)
Adley Rutschman
Connor Wong
Mickey Gasper
There was some talk earlier this month about not carrying Wong and having Gasper as the backup catcher, but that doesn't appear likely anymore. The Sox clearly prefer Gasper as a pinch hitter against right-handed pitching and carrying three catchers makes playoff management – like using pinch hitters and pinch runners – much easier.
Infielders (5)
Willson Contreras
Nick Sogard
Trevor Story
Caleb Durbin
Isaiah Kiner-Falefa
Andruw Monasterio has only played five times since September 6, and he doesn't have a hit. He's not even getting starts against left-handed pitching sometimes. That said, he won't make the playoff roster. Meanwhile, Romy Gonzalez and Franklin Arias are good enough to play Major League Baseball, but if they were part of the Red Sox playoff plans, the team probably would have called them up by now.
Outfielders (6)
Roman Anthony
Ceddanne Rafaela
Wilyer Abreu
Jarren Duran
Jahmai Jones
Braiden Ward
The outfield is a real strength for the Red Sox this season. They play good defense and even someone like Duran, who isn't having a great year, has 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases. The reason they'll carry so many outfielders is that it gives them a DH in Roman Anthony, a pinch hitter against left-handed pitching in Jahmai Jones – who might DH against a lefty – and a pinch runner/defensive replacement in Braiden Ward. Ward stole 61 bases for the Worcester Red Sox this season.
Nate Eaton won't make the playoff roster because he doesn't have Ward's speed and he's hitting .146 in 23 games this season.
Starting Pitchers (3)
Payton Tolle
Sonny Gray
Ranger Suarez
This one isn't hard. It's just their three best starting pitchers because the Wild Card round is a best-of-three series. Brayan Bello has generally performed better in relief this season, Patrick Sandoval has struggled mightily in his last several outings, and Jake Bennett has a 4.65 ERA in 11 second half starts. Definitely go with the two highest-paid pitchers and the team's former No. 1 prospect.
Bullpen (9)
Aroldis Chapman
Garrett Whitlock
Tyron Guerrero
Greg Weissert
Jake Bennett
Brayan Bello
Tanner Houck
Garrett Crochet
Alec Gamboa
I could be wrong here, but hear me out.
Bennett dominates left-handed hitters (.158 batting average, .379 OPS), so he's legitimately a great bullpen option; that also makes it easier to leave Jovani Moran off here. If they're healthy enough to pitch, it's hard to see the Sox leaving Houck and Crochet off the roster because they're All-Star-caliber arms. Crochet, at his peak, is a Cy Young contender, so both are potentially dangerous multi-inning weapons.
For all the flak Weissert gets, he has a 3.08 ERA in nearly 200 appearances in his Red Sox career. Meanwhile, Bello has been great as a long reliever this season, and Tyron Guerrero throws over 100 miles per hour. Chapman and Whitlock are self-explanatory.
But I put Gamboa over Miller. Miller has allowed runs in his past four outings. Miller is struggling with control and even he's frustrated right now. Maybe he'll turn things around in his last couple of regular season outings, but until we see it, you can't count on it. Meanwhile, Gamboa, a lower-leverage arm, has a 1.16 ERA in 20 outings this season.
