We're less than two weeks into the 2026 MLB season, but that doesn't change the fact that some teams are off to promising starts, while others are decidedly not.
As discussed on the latest episode of "Baseball Bar-B-Cast," perhaps the team in the worst position so far this season is the Boston Red Sox.
The Sox are 1-5 and 4.0games back of the Yankees in the AL East, the largest deficit in any division entering play Friday. They were swept by the Astros this week and have lost five in a row since winning on Opening Day.
"This is the team that is objectively in the worst position of any team in the sport right now," Jordan Shusterman said. "It's not just that the Red Sox have lost these games … We're already in the place where it's, 'Oh, boy, this doesn't look great.'"
As Shusterman noted, the team's offseason acquisitions, notably Caleb Durbin, Ranger Suarez, Sonny Gray and Johan Oviedo, have not played well through the first six games. Also, Carlos Narváez was benched for an unknown reason, Trevor Story is 4-for-29 to begin the season and Roman Anthony struck out four times on Tuesday.
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"As far as five-game losing streaks go, they're packing in a lot of things that are pissing off their own fans," Shusterman said.
Added Jake Mintz: "If you said to the Red Sox, you're going to win on Opening Day, and then over the next five games, we need you to make people as concerned as possible without a debilitating injury … the Red Sox said, 'Yeah, we got this.'"
As the hosts noted, it is silly to be panicking about any baseball team because it is the beginning of April. However, the AL East is not a division in which a contender can afford to fall behind early. Case in point:Boston's playoff odds at FanGraphsdropped from around 60% to around 40% in one week, as Shusterman noted.
"I am not that concerned about the Red Sox," Mintz said, "but at the same time, given the way that this team has operated in previous seasons, I think it is reasonable for fans to be frustrated."
The Red Sox begin their first homestand of the season on Friday, with three games against the Padres followed by three games against the Brewers.