Over a week has passed since Rafael Devers’ trade. And with that, the Red Sox are seemingly going down the spiral. Now, after losing five straight games against the Giants and the Angels, questions have been raised about their hitting strategy. The pain further deepened after their final loss against the Angels by 5-2.
Boston’s last game against the Angels reflected the team’s batting struggles in the wake of the Devers trade. According to a post by BOSSportsGordo, the Red Sox, in the nine games before the Devers trade, went 7-2 with 5.6 runs per game. Now they are going 3-6 with 3.1 runs per game only. None of the batters were able to score a home run. Shortstop Trevor Story had two RBIs, while right fielder Wilyer Abreu was able to make only a walk.
Now that they dropped to fourth in the AL East, veteran outfielder Rob Refsnyder talked about the struggles the Red Sox were going through at the plate. “We did a really bad job adjusting, myself included, especially as a leadoff guy. I gotta get on base, and I did a bad job with that tonight or today.”
Taling about how Yusei Kikuchi rattled the Red Sox lineup, Refsnyder shared, “Yeah, he kept me off balance with the changeup, and you know, I think he did a really good job of starting that slider kind of middle end and he hit it for a strike on the inner half, but yeah, he kept us off balance after the second and third innings.”
Rob Refsnyder on the Red Sox’s struggles at the plate today
“We did a really bad job adjusting.” pic.twitter.com/N2jNL2CNIm
— NESN (@NESN) June 25, 2025
Kikuchi literally breathed fire with his pitches. He struck out Rob Refsnyder and eleven other batters, which was a season high. The Japanese left-handed pitcher allowed only a single hit and no walks in the six innings. According to Rob Refsnyder, Kikuchi’s slider was on point as it struck on the sides in the second and fifth innings, causing more difficulty for the Red Sox batters.
His excellent pitching was further complemented by Travis d’Arnaud, who also went 3-for-4 and blasted off a homer, eventually leading the Angels to hand the Red Sox a loss on Wednesday at Anaheim.
But in the aftermath, the manager and the team have been forced to face a harsh reality. An obvious problem with the Red Sox’s capacity to score enough runs has emerged. Probably, Rafael Devers’ exit cost them big time…
The Red Sox’s batting average has gone down to a mere .182, a .270 on-base percentage, and a .273 slugging percentage. Their OPS is just .543, while they have managed to score only one home run, that too an extra-base hit, and three more runs, eventually resulting in a 3-6 record.
Red Sox faltered big time against the Angels, losing thrice in a row
The Red Sox‘s recent struggles following Rafael Devers’ departure are crystal clear. While they defeated the Yankees, that doesn’t change the fact that they are still very much limping for the postseason run.
And the Angels’ outstanding pitching and batting performance was one reason for that. While Kikuchi went 3-6, allowing just three hits and two runs in seven innings, Jo Adell and d’Arnaud did the rest of the damage. They both posted home runs. On the other hand, Ryan Zeferjahn also picked up a two-inning save.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox’s Luis Guerrero allowed a walk to Nolan Schanuel and another one-walk out to Mike Trout in the fifth inning. But he did strike out Taylor Ward. Still, that wasn’t enough, as he soon allowed another two-out RBI single to d’Arnaud and Adell, resulting in a 4-2 lead for the Angels.
Although Boston had a chance to lead, Kikuchi was the player of the match the entire time. He got Ceddanne Rafaela and eventually increased his overall allies to 12 after the game. It’s clear that the pitching has been outstanding, but let’s face it, the Red Sox hitters haven’t really improved either.
Now, the most effective solution looks like getting Alex Bregman back in the lineup. Or, do you have any other solution, too?
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