Whether it's the much-discussed, so-called "World Series hangover" or something else, the Red Sox have gotten off to a dreadful start in the 2019 season. They lost Monday to the Orioles, 8-1, to fall to 6-11 on the season. They didn't lose their 11th game last year until May 9 last season, when they had 25 wins.
Reigning AL MVP Mookie Betts hit .346/.438/.640 (186 OPS+) with 47 doubles, five triples, 32 homers, 80 RBI and 129 runs last year.
So far this year? Betts is hitting .222/.324/.413. His walk rate is down and his strikeout rate is up. He's obviously not solely to blame for the terrible team start, but he's beating himself up as if it is. Via redsox.com:
"Basically, what I'm doing is unacceptable," Betts said. "I have to figure out a way to get something done and help the team."
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"I wouldn't say it's more pressure, but I know I'm definitely -- there have been many times where I can help score runs or do something and I haven't done it," said Betts. "I take full ownership of that."
In Betts' last eight games, he has gone 3 for 25 with six strikeouts, so it's definitely a slump.
Here's the thing, though: Slumps happen to everyone. Even the best players, as Betts is certainly one of the best players in baseball. The best players break out of them and we can fully expect Betts to break out relatively soon.
Something else we can probably say with certainty is that Betts is likely far from alone when it comes to being incredibly frustrated right now. The defending champs have yet to win a series this season. They lost three series on the road before coming home to face what should've been easy competition in the Blue Jays and Orioles and they split both of those series.
They'll now head to the Bronx to face another struggling AL East titan in their top rival, the New York Yankees. Red Sox fans can catch Tuesday's 6:35 p.m. ET game streaming regionally on fuboTV (try for free).
