Amazing and good that a team can lose 33% of its expected starting lineup by mid April , along with a starting pitcher , Giolito, and Whitlock a little later and still be 10 over .500.
Clearly the Sox depth and foundation were undervalued, last winter.
Rotation: We've used 7 SP'ers and 3 "openers." Our #1 (Gio) won't start a game in 2024.
Houck was considered by some to be the 6th starter. Mostly 4th or 5th by others. Criswell wasn't even considered.
Pen: We've used 17 pitchers in relief. Martin was our best RP'er, last year. He's been on the IL twice and struggled for mush of the other times.
Slaten took up a lot of slack and is now on the IL.
Kelly, Weissert, Booser, Bernardino and Wink have helped.
C: have not needed depth, here, but some viewed our current tandem as both being back-ups.
1B: one area we sorely lack in depth and needed it. Smith has been doing better, of late (.934 in July.)
2B: it took a while to find a decent replacement, but the DHam/Romy platoon is doing okay.
SS: Rafaela has done better than any other back-up we've had since Iggy for one month in '21.
3B: have not needed depth.
OF: We went into the season with many OF questions, including on Duran and O'Neill. Our OF has the second best fWAR in MLB. It's hard to say who was the "depth," back in March, but whoever you think, they have done well. (Duran, Rafaela, O'Neill, Abreu, Refsnyder)
DH: Our back-ups to Yoshida have mostly done well:
PAs /Player as DH Only /OPS
51 O'Neill .825
44 Refsnyder .864
23 Devers 1.162 (when injured)
6 EValdez 2.833
(124 PAs total to Yoshida's 190 at .683)