Red Sox win series vs Reds. Do they need bullpen help?

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We are #live at The Dive, in Smalls Cove, at Lake Winnipesaukee, NH, for the final Roadshow of 2025! Red Sox win series vs Reds. Do they need bullpen help?

Transcript

00:00And Red Sox split with the Reds yesterday and went out, as Wiggy said earlier,

00:06got everybody fired up, won that suspended, the resumption of that suspended game,

00:10and then, unfortunately, blew a lead.

00:14And that was Shime's lead this morning, was that he is not going to be dragged back in at all,

00:19unless there's some sort of a big splash coming from the Red Sox.

00:22I refuse.

00:23But, I mean, Wiggy brought up yesterday the fact that Craig Breslow continues to,

00:30not only on this show but on Nesson, ensure everybody that they are going to improve the team for this season.

00:38Right.

00:40You believe that that indicates that he cannot not do anything at trade deadline time.

00:44Yeah, because he's been talking about it so much.

00:46And one thing he said on this show, and he's continued to say all over his kind of like press tours,

00:52is that they believe that they are a playoff team.

00:57And fortunate for them, the AL is not very good, so they are right in the mix.

01:02But in his mind, and it seems like, you know, the rest of those guys in there,

01:06that they believe that they are a playoff team, and they feel like adding to this team this year,

01:11and Courtney's been on this, this year is going to get them into the playoffs.

01:15And you know how baseball playoffs are.

01:17When you get in there, anything is possible.

01:19Like, it's like the one sport where it doesn't matter if you're the one seed or you're the lowest seed.

01:26In baseball, we've seen it time and time again, and I think that's the mindset that may be there.

01:31And you've got to hold it.

01:32And what's he going to do when we get to the deadline and he doesn't do anything?

01:35How does he walk that back?

01:37I will say, Wiggy, I mean, it's going to be interesting because no matter what,

01:39given how close we are to the deadline, they're not going to be a very good team in terms of a record.

01:44They'll probably be a game or two around .500.

01:46How they decide to handle it.

01:48But Wiggy is right.

01:49They could make the argument.

01:50I mean, I don't think they're a good team.

01:52But they have an ace, the most important thing to have in the playoffs,

01:55and they have the best closer in baseball in Chapman.

01:57So those two guys alone give you an opportunity to make a five-game series interesting.

02:04So what would be, if you were Craig Breslow, your number one need that you would want to address?

02:10The first thing I would do if I were Craig Breslow is fire myself.

02:14Craig.

02:16Start and pitch it.

02:17I'd go out and get another hog.

02:19Right.

02:20Save that.

02:21Pause.

02:22But if you have – but think about this.

02:24And Curtis is right.

02:25If you have crochet and then you go out and you get another guy.

02:29Oink, oink.

02:31Now you have two.

02:32Baio has been fine because he's given you six innings.

02:36And we've seen this Red Sox team win a World Series where they've been able to patch a rotation

02:42and a bullpen together to win a World Series.

02:45I think, what was that, 2018 where it was like David Price went to – he went to the bullpen at times

02:52and it was like they didn't have a true ace.

02:55You literally have a true ace.

02:57It does seem like you might be able to count on Giolito going forward.

03:0113 was the one true ace because Price in 18 was pretty much in the playoffs.

03:05Yeah, in the playoffs.

03:05But, yeah, I think – say it again?

03:08Giolito.

03:09I think you might be able to count on him more so than you would have thought two weeks ago.

03:12I don't feel – I don't think I'll ever be at a point this season where I see Giolito on the mound

03:16and I'm like he's going to give you seven innings and allow less than four.

03:19But what about Baio, though?

03:20Baio has passed like seven or eight starts.

03:24He's gone six innings and he's maybe given out two, three runs.

03:28But he's given you six in today's game, six innings.

03:31So if you can get six innings from him, you know what Crochet is.

03:35And then if you can get another pitcher who can give you another reliable six innings

03:40and these bats get going – in their mind, I'm just thinking they believe that they can be a playoff team because of that.

03:47Ken, give me a thumbs up or thumbs down.

03:49Crochet innings limit going to be an issue?

03:51Like if they're really going hard here?

03:52He hasn't had a big – right, yeah.

03:53So that could also – they're not going to add big at the deadline.

03:57That just popped in my head.

03:58There's no way – if Crochet can't be a hog going eight innings in the playoffs –

04:04Oink, oink.

04:05Then I don't think –

04:07They can't say they're going to add –

04:09Right.

04:10They've been doing that and not do it.

04:12But let's say it's September 15th.

04:14You're a game out of the wild card and you're playing the Yankees on Friday night

04:18and Crochet is on the mound and you have to pull him after five because he hit his innings limit.

04:23Fans are going to go apoplectic.

04:26Like I don't – if he's never had a full season and he is going to hit an innings limit,

04:31then the one thing that makes you a contender in the playoffs is removed.

04:33But what matters is what their perception of this team is.

04:39And we can ask Sam Kennedy about it at 9 o'clock.

04:43But they – I'm guessing they think this is a playoff team.

04:47Well, they're going to say that no matter what.

04:49Well, they thought it.

04:50But I think they thought – they're going to say it regardless.

04:52But they did say it.

04:53They've been beating a horn on it.

04:55Well, in spring training, I think they definitely thought that.

04:57I think that they were on the same level as Curtis, thinking that they were World Series bound.

05:01But then very quickly they were able to realize that they had some serious issues inside that clubhouse.

05:06I don't necessarily know if they believe what they're saying to us right now.

05:09Yeah, but Breslow said it again last week.

05:12I know.

05:12He said, we are a playoff team.

05:15Yeah.

05:15He believes that and he's saying – so I get you say it at the beginning of the year, Greg, right?

05:21We see it in sports.

05:23You say it at the beginning of the year.

05:24But when your manager or your GM consistently says it throughout the season that we are a playoff team,

05:34we are a playoff team, we just need to do this and this, and we're going to add to this team

05:39because we know and we believe that we're a playoff team.

05:42There's no way you could tell us all this for three weeks, a month, a month and a half,

05:46and then we get to the deadline and you don't do anything, what do you think the next interview

05:51when we ask him is like, well, why didn't you do anything when you told us you were a playoff team?

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