And the 2021 Red Sox are helping his case.
The idea is not without merit. Bloom did as much as say this is a first place team not worth investing further in.
Usage and effectiveness of the bullpen certainly plays a role in a team's W-L record.
But a lot of times you win one or two run games when the bullpen does a crappy job. Sometimes the pen turns a 4 run lead into a 1 run win. Or sometimes the pen blows the lead in the top of the 9th and you score a run in the bottom of the 9th to win.
Let me see if I have this straight:
-With "clutch", you have to prove it exists.
-With lineup comfort, you have to prove it doesn't exist.
No, I don't think that's fair, somehow. But maybe you can explain how to go about proving a negative.
If he had started playing first base after the 2 weeks, sure. But they really had no clue where he was going to play, and so we have JD playing Keystone Cops in the outfield.
But on deadline day, they were 7-3 in their last 10 games:
4-2 against the Jays
3-1 against the Yankees
And in first place by 1.5
They were not looking bad at all.