Chad Tracy era showing promising signs as Red Sox climb back into contention originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Red Sox had the most dramatic change in the MLB this season when they decided to fire their entire coaching staff, and replace them with coaches from their minor league affiliates.
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It has now been 27 games since the changing of the guard, which was the exact number of games the Sox had played before the change. In it, the Sox’ offense and record has changed quite a bit.
The Tracy Sox are overall more successful
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Under former skipper Alex Cora and Co., the Red Sox were 10-17, dead last in the AL East, and a bottom three team in the MLB. It was so bad that people really thought the Red Sox might just call the season a wash and tank for the rest of it.
Then, the firings happened. After that, AAA Worcester Red Sox manager Chad Tracy took over, and the Sox started to do better. In the 27 games he’s been managing, the Sox are 13-14, but they’re also only three games out from the AL Wild Card.
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The Tracy Sox have a better overall offense
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The Red Sox’s offense under Cora and their old hitting coach Peter Fatse was atrocious. While they averaged 4.1 runs per game, they only slashed .233/.313/.354/.667 with a wRC+ of 86, which was second-to-last in the MLB.
As soon as Tracy took over, things changed. While their runs per game dropped to 3.6, their hitting became better; they’ve slashed .254/.321/.392/.713 with a 98 wRC+, which is tied for 13th in the majors.
The offense is continuing to wake up
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Wilyer Abreu, Willson Contreras, and Ceddanne Rafaela have been core bats all season for Boston. Now, some other bats have come to life, including Isiah Kiner Falefa’s and Jarren Duran’s, who have been lifeless for most of the season.
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On top of that, some of Tracy’s old guys from AAA made the jump, and have been stars as well. If the Red Sox can continue to wake up their bats, good things await them.
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