Editor’s Note: On April 8th, while at my car dealership waiting for them to fix my headlight, I wrote about half a blog critiquing Craig Breslow’s moves. It was right when James Tibbs III was hitting a home run every night, and the team itself was playing poorly. I started writing, and about halfway through it, I realized something. He has more good moves than bad moves. I self-reflected for a moment and realized that the outside noise (Red Sox Twitter “Creators”) was beginning to cloud my judgment. I deleted the blog and became more open-minded to Breslow’s plan.
Over the last six months, Boston Red Sox fans have been on a roller coaster. Through it all, I have tried to stay positive. I freaking love watching Red Sox baseball. Yeah, when they are losing in embarrassing ways, it could be a little depressing.
But I would rather be watching Red Sox baseball, win or lose, over anything else in the world (along with Batman: The Animated Series and Seinfeld).
So, yeah, having to go on Twitter and see people CONSTANTLY being negative put a damper on following the team. If you go to my Twitter account, you will see one person who thinks I am specifically talking about him. I am not. I am talking about dozens of Red Sox content creators who have been a miserable sight on my timeline this season. Why this one person (whom I don’t even follow on Twitter) has decided to target me is beyond my comprehension. Just got to pray for them, I suppose.
(Editor’s Note: Let me be clear, I have no problem with people being critical of the team. I have been in the past as well (Cora). It just hit a point this season where it was unbearable and also felt inauthentic to get more clicks and likes.)
That all brings me to Craig Breslow. Have I loved every move that Craig Breslow has made? Nope! Do I think the team's current structure is a little hectic? Yep! But I can also sit here and recognize that he has also made some great moves that deserve applause.
(Editor’s Note: A lot of internal thoughts in this blog. If you watch the Netflix Documentary about the team “The Clubhouse,” you will see there was a clear power struggle between Craig Breslow and Alex Cora. Carry on.)
Like most of my blogs, I am going to break it down into “What I Loved”, “What I was Mid About,” and “What I Didn’t Love”
(Editor’s Note: Me again, this might look like a Breslow burner account. But look me in the eye and tell me these moves haven’t worked out.)
What I Loved
Payton Tolle
Tolle was drafted by Breslow in the 2nd round of the 2024 MLB Draft out of TCU. He rose up the minors and has been an integral part of this 2026 squad.
Jake Bennett Trade
Bennett came over in a December trade that no one gave a second thought. Coming off Tommy John, he was great in the minors for the Nationals in 2025. After some great starts in Worcester and a cup of coffee at Fenway, Bennett is now entrenched in the rotation.
Garrett Crochet Trade
No explanation needed.
Ranger Suarez Deal
Right now, you have to put Suarez in the loved section. Unlike Gray, he has a longer deal, so we will see how I feel in two years.
Slight damper on things as he hit the IL right before the All-Star break. Doesn’t seem to be a long-term issue, and I imagine we'll see him within ten days.
Sonny Gray Signing
Gave up Richard Fitts and Brandon Clarke, but got Gray and $20 million on top. Gray never found his Minnesota form with St. Louis, but he sure has with Boston this year. Now that Boston is right in the playoff race, I would be surprised to see him moved.
Caleb Durbin Trade
A month ago, maybe Durbin wasn’t in the loved section, and you can argue now he shouldn’t be with his sub-700 OPS. But when Durbin got hot, the whole team followed. He is also a superb defender.
Aroldis Chapman Signing
Along with Mason Miller, Chapman has been the best closer in baseball over the last two years. People are quick to forget his 1.17 ERA last year—a few hiccups here in 2026, but still an absolute dog.
Willson Contreras Trade
When Contreras was swapped for Hunter Dobbins, I was definitely hurting a little. I was a big fan of Dobbins, mainly because he commented on one of my posts, but he tore his ACL last year and was a ways away from coming back.
I attribute 70% of the team’s success to Contreras. Besides being their best hitter, he is the team's heartbeat. An absolute psycho (respectfully) who will fight anyone and do anything to light a fire in the team. Even when Boston was in the complete gutter, he was playing like it was the World Series. Couldn’t ask for anything more.
Move To Chad Tracy
This one is a biased pick for me. Personally, I was never a fan of Alex Cora as Red Sox manager. Some reports surfaced about extra tension in the clubhouse, and, frankly, watching the Netflix documentary, it was clear that the Cora/Breslow relationship wasn’t going to work. I don’t think it is worth debating who was at fault, but I think Cora wants to be a GM, and he wasn’t.
Tracy, on the other hand, has slid into a very difficult position and turned the team around.
Trading Alex Verdugo
One of Breslow’s first moves was to trade Verdugo to the Yankees for Weissert and Richard Fitts. Richard Fitts was flipped for Sonny Gray.
Sonny Gray is an All-Star, and Weissert is part of the best bullpen in baseball. Feels like no one talks about this deal.
Letting Alex Bregman Walk
Alright, here is where I know a lot of people are going to get upset. Durbin is better than Bregman this year. He is younger, costs less, and they will have him for three years at minimal cost.
Whenever this is brought up online, Bregman fans will jump in and say, “You can’t quantify the veteran presence.” You can, and it’s not worth almost $200 million.
Kyson Witherspoon, Anthony Eyanson, and Justin Gonzales
All three are Top 5 prospects for Boston, with Eyanson and Gonzales both cracking MLB's Top 100—all are Breslow acquisitions. Don’t be shocked to see Eyanson called up in September.
What I Was ‘Mid’ About
Handling of Marcelo Mayer, Kristian Campbell, and Roman Anthony
If I am going to give Breslow so much praise, I need to point this out. “The Big Three” have been a mess so far. How much of that is Breslow’s fault? At least some.
Quinn Priester Trade
I liked Nick Yorke, and then I liked Quinn Priester, and now I don’t know who I like. It is too early to say anything about the players the Red Sox got from the Priester trade. They used the pick on Marcus Phillips, their #8 prospect. John Holobitz is their #12 prospect, and Yophery Rodriguez doesn’t crack the Top 30 at the moment.
What I Didn’t Love
Rafael Devers Trade
There is a real argument that freeing up the money was the right move. There is a real argument that Devers was no longer a fit in the locker room. But I am never going to say trading a franchise cornerstone is the right thing to do.
Chris Sale Trade
Hindsight is 50/50, but with a similar thought process as above, Sale was such a foundational piece of the team. For him to go out and immediately win the Cy Young was just the cherry on top. (The term doesn’t really fit there, but I can’t think of the opposite of a cherry on top.)
Inability To Express Himself
Sam from Discuss Baseball gave me this idea, and it is dead on. Breslow is a robot at times and not great at expressing his thoughts both inside the organization and to fans. Kind of an important role in his position.
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