A Red Sox Fans’ Guide to the 2024 Postseason

With the Red Sox missing out on the 2024 postseason, I can understand how some might want to switch their focus immediately to hockey or football or soccer. Whatever floats your boat. But for die-hard baseball addicts, this can be a tall order. Luckily for Red Sox fans, the playoff field features no shortage of Boston connections to make October interesting. If Boston connections are your primary criteria, who should you root for? Let's take a trip down memory lane.

American League

New York Yankees
Do I think any Red Sox fans are going to root for the Yankees? No, but they might be interested in watching what happens with Alex Verdugo. After a hot start, Verdugo's season went downhill fast, to the point that Yankees fans were demanding answers from Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone about why Verdugo was starting while much-touted prospect Jasson Domínguez was languishing in Triple-A. According to FanGraphs, Verdugo put up a 64 wRC+ and -0.4 WAR from June 14 onward, making him the fourth-worst qualified player in baseball over that stretch. Eventually, Domínguez was called up, but Verdugo was still getting starts in important games down the stretch. It will be curious to see if Boone and company go with the playoff-experienced Verdugo or rely on the rookie.

Cleveland Guardians
After 11 years of managing the Guardians, Terry Francona finally retired last year. Under Francona's leadership, Cleveland boasted such former Red Sox players as Andrew Miller, Mike Napoli, Hanley Ramírez, Rich Hill, and others. Under the new Stephen Vogt regime, not a single former Red Sox appeared in a game for the Guardians this year. 

Houston Astros
Do I think any Red Sox fans are going to root for the Astros either? No, and honestly, there isn't much reason to. The only former Red Sox to make appearances for Houston were Kaleb Ort and Tayler Scott, who combined for -0.5 fWAR during their time in Boston. I remember the right-handed Ort, who made 47 appearances for the Sox between 2021 and 2023. In 2024, he managed to have the best season of his career this year, running a 2.55 ERA and amassing 0.5 WAR according to Baseball-Reference (though because of his sky-high FIP, FanGraphs had him at -0.2). He might just sneak onto the playoff roster.

Tayler Scott, on the other hand, I have no memory of whatsoever. It turns out Scott made four appearances for the 2023 Red Sox, including one start. I must have missed that game. Scott pitched an impressive 62 with the Astros this season. That is significantly more than he had appeared in over his entire big-league career up to the point, and it allowed Scott to amass 1.7 bWAR this season, which ranks 30th among all relievers (though once again, FanGraphs sees a 2.23 ERA and a 4.13 FIP and figures Scott must have gotten lucky, crediting him for just 0.2 WAR). I would assume you'll see him in the playoffs, but as he played four games for Boston, I doubt you'll care.

Baltimore Orioles
Former Boston closer, Craig Kimbrel had such a disastrous time with the Orioles that not only did he lose the closer role, but he was eventually released from the team. The only other player with any Red Sox connection to play for the Orioles this season was Yohan Ramírez. The Red Sox and Orioles are just two of the four major league teams he pitched for in 2024. He ended the season pitching 15 games in Worcester with a 2.18 ERA.

Kansas City Royals
Four former Red Sox have appeared in games for Kansas City this season. Most notable is former Red Sox starter Michael Wacha. Wacha spent 2022 with the Red Sox, going 11-2 with a 3.32 ERA. I still don't understand why we didn't keep him. In 29 games with the Royals this year, Wacha managed 13 wins and a 3.35 ERA. He is assured to be part of the Royals' postseason rotation. In the bullpen is John Schreiber, who made 111 appearances with Boston between 2021 and 2023. This year, he racked up 51.2 innings with the Royals, boasting a 2.90 ERA and allowing just one home run. He will be an important member of the Royals' plans in October.

On the hitting side, the Royals ended the season with Tommy Pham. Pham was a trade deadline acquisition for the 2022 Red Sox. He played 53 games, hitting six home runs but otherwise underwhelming offensively. Pham has now been a trade deadline pickup in three straight seasons. He went from the Mets to the Diamondbacks, and all the way to the World Series, in 2023. This season, he was a trade deadline pick-up for the Royals after starting with the Chicago White Sox and making a quick stop with the Cardinals. Pham played 23 games for the Royals, running a .228 batting average and a dreadful 59 wRC+. He started most games down the stretch, so there's a good chance you'll see him in the playoffs. Another important bat in Kansas City's lineup is former Red Sox Hunter Renfroe. Renfroe famously spent 2021 with Boston, slugging 31 homers and racking up an incredible 16 outfield assists. Renfroe was largely replacement level with the Royals this year, only hitting 15 homers. Still, he was their most-used right fielder and should be in the starting lineup for the postseason.

Detroit Tigers
This year's Red Sox featured briefly featured two former Tigers, Zack Short and Trey Wingenter. Both appeared in two games for Boston. But Detroit did not return the favor, featuring no former Red Sox. I guess that means Red Sox fans should be rooting for the Astros to beat them in the first round?

National League

Los Angeles Dodgers
I don't expect this to surprise anyone, but there is a LOT of crossover between the Red Sox and Dodgers. We can start with the obvious one, Mookie Betts. If not for a broken hand that cost him 56 games, the former Red Sox and future Hall of Famer could have given Shohei Ohtani a run for his money as NL MVP. Despite the missed time, Betts put up 4.7 bWAR while playing the majority of his games at shortstop.

Enrique Hernández played 2.5 seasons for the Red Sox, splitting up his two stints with the Dodgers. Ever the utility man, Hernández played seven different positions, including pitcher, for the Dodgers this season. Despite posting a 4.15 ERA over four appearances, I don't think he will be bringing his 50-mph eephus out of the bullpen unless something truly horrible has happened.

The majority of his time came at third base, but Hernández ended the season playing three straight games at first. With Freddie Freeman likely missing the first round of the playoffs due to an ankle injury, we could see Hernández playing a little first, or third if Dave Roberts starts Max Muncy across the diamond. Either way, Hernández is sure to get some playoff at-bats.

The Dodgers' bullpen also features a fair amount of Red Sox talent, with Joe Kelly and Ryan Brasier. Both pitchers spent significant time on the IL this season but they finished the season healthy. They should have roles to play in the postseason.

Philadelphia Phillies
There are two former Sox on the Phillies. Matt Strahm spent a perfectly solid 2022 season in Boston, but his career has really blossomed in the City of Brotherly Love. This season he posted a 1.87 ERA in 66 appearances. That's good for 2.5 bWAR! (His 2.29 FIP even impressed fWAR as well).

More importantly, the Phillies have Kyle from Waltham! While Red Sox fans fell in love with Kyle Schwarber during his brief stint in Boston, and he has now spent three seasons in Philadelphia. This year Schwarber led the league in walks while slugging a team-best 38 Schwarbombs. 

Milwaukee Brewers
Only one former Red Sox played for the Brewers this season and he didn't play for long. Wade Miley managed only two starts for the Brew Crew before requiring Tommy John surgery. You may recall that Miley spent 2015 in Boston, but his time there is probably best remembered for when he yelled at John Farrell for taking him out of a game in which he gave up five earned runs in four innings.

San Diego Padres
The Padres have had three former Red Sox on their roster. Austin Davis but he hasn't pitched in the majors for San Diego since July. The second is Martín Pérez who spent much of the season injured. However, he ended the season in the rotation so there is a chance there is a spot for him in the playoffs.

Then there is Xander Bogaerts, of course. Despite suffering a fracture in his shoulder, just like Trevor Story, Bogaerts's injury was less severe and required significantly less time on the IL. Bogaerts ended up playing in 111 games this season, but thanks to a bat that graded out a bit below league average, he put up 1.2 bWAR, his lowest total since 2014. Although he spent most of his time at second base, he ended the season playing shortstop, which is probably where we will see him in October now that Ha-Seong Kim is out with his own season-ending shoulder injury.

Atlanta Braves
Only one former Red Sox who matters played for Atlanta this season, and that player is Zack Short. I'm kidding, it's Chris Sale. Sale's resurgence was salt in the wound for Fenway faithful who saw Vaughn Grissom miss the majority of the season. Sale's 2.38 ERA and career-high 18 wins make him a lock to bring home his first Cy Young Award. However, he missed his crucial final start against the Mets with back spasms, making his playoff availability a question mark. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

New York Mets
The final playoff team, the Mets, boast an impressive seven former Red Sox, making them the clear World Series favorites. The major contributors you will see in the postseason are J.D. Martinez and Jose Iglesias on the batting side and Adam Ottavino on the pitching side.

Martinez came out of the gate like gangbusters for the Mets before significantly slowing down in the second half. He ended the season with a 107 wRC+, his lowest since his days in Houston (aside from the short 2020 season). His 16 home runs match the total from his final season in Boston, the one that led the Red Sox to decide to go a different direction. Despite the struggles, he played in four of New York's final five games, so there is a good chance he will be in the starting lineup this postseason.

Iglesias has gone in the opposite direction from Martinez this season. His unbelievable 140 wRC+ is the best of his career (again, except for 2020), and he managed to put up a career-high 3.0 bWAR despite playing just 85 games! Iglesias started both ends of the Mets' crucial doubleheader on Monday, and Carlos Mendoza will be relying on him in October.

Adam Ottavino spent the 2021 campaign in Boston before joining the Mets. He has been in New York for the last three years, running a combined 2.61 ERA over the first two. However, although some of the underlying numbers indicate that Ottavino has been the victim of bad luck this season, his 4.50 ERA is by far his worst as a Met. He has been roughly replacement level but managed to get into three of the club's final four games, including both ends of Monday's doubleheader. That leads me to believe that Ottavino is still a high-leverage choice for Carlos Mendoza and will play a role in October.

Who I'm Rooting For
In the end, I think I will root for the Royals in the A,L even though John Schreiber is their only player who spent multiple seasons with the Red Sox. The NL is much more tricky. It is hard not to want good things for Mookie Betts, but Red Sox fans almost instinctively root for the underdogs, and that has to be the Mets. Plus, the Mets probably have the only fanbase that hates the Yankees as much as the Red Sox do, and in the end, isn't that what really matters? It's hard not to feel an affinity for them.