The best team in baseball doesn’t even need Adley Rutschman yet!

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - AUGUST 06: Caleb Durbin #5 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates with Jarren Duran #16 and Ceddanne Rafaela #3 after hitting a walk off RBI single against the Chicago White Sox during the thirteenth inning at Fenway Park on August 06, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Brian Fluharty/Getty Images) | Getty Images

For years the Red Sox hoarded prospects the way my old upstairs neighbor hoarded newspapers. Piles and piles of newspapers, each one somehow too precious to part with. But after a stunning hot streak legitimately vaulted the Sox into the playoff race, the front office flipped the script. Ownership finally remembered they’re a big-market team, and pushed their chips into the middle of the table.

Was Craig Breslow’s performance at the deadline a shock? You bet. Pre-deadline, I predicted in this very space that Breslow and John Henry would run back a tired line from recent years: they’d do some buying, some selling, and wait for reinforcements to return from the Injured List.

In my entire life, I’ve never been so happy to be wrong.

A Massive Philosophical Shift

Craig Breslow didn’t just nibble around the edges of the trade market, either; he blew up the entire narrative that Boston is afraid to make big trades. Because others have already written in depth about it, I won’t analyze what has been called the “blockbuster” trade for catcher Adley Rutschman —other than to say I’m in favor of it. I won’t lament the departure of Marcelo Mayer because personally, I never warmed up to him—but I won’t talk about that right now either. We wanted the front office to do something, and they did it. This is what doing something looks like.

And it’s glorious.

The front office and the clubhouse have turned what looked like a bad hand into a hot hand. Contrast where they were in June with where they stand now.

What a Difference a Month Makes

They recently wrapped up a sweep of the White Sox, scoring 12 runs on Thursday and coming back five times from scoring deficits to finally win in walk-off fashion in the 13 th inning. All this after having swept the Dodgers —the Dodgers! I also wrote that there was no way ( I literally wrote “No way.” ) that they could out-play the Dodgers. But the Red Sox showed it can be done. They provided such a teachable moment that the Cubs went and swept the Dodgers in the very next series; how about that?

After the 12-11 win to sweep the White Sox, they came in hot against the Athletics, kicking off that series on the following night with a resounding 13-1 win. What happened to the team that couldn’t hit to save their lives in March, April, May, and June?

They just ended a nine-game winning streak and are aiming for a tenth consecutive series victory—a feat the franchise hasn’t accomplished since 1912.

This team is historic in so many ways. Let’s revel in it for a moment (again), shall we?

15-Game Winning Streak: which tied the franchise record for consecutive wins, matching the mark set 80 years ago when the team was led by Ted Williams.

Nine Consecutive Series Wins: Boston has clinched nine straight series victories —a feat not accomplished by the franchise in 114 years, matching a stretch last seen during their 1912 World Series championship season. With Friday’s win against the A’s, they’re working on their tenth. (With Saturday’s loss, they will need to win on Sunday.)

Sweeps of First-Place Teams: The 2026 Red Sox became the first team in the modern expansion era (post-1961) to sweep six series against teams who entered the series at the top of their division. Notably, the Rays in their own AL East, the Dodgers who are heavily favored to three-peat in the World Series, and most recently, the White Sox.

Record Monthly Win Percentage: They posted a ferocious 21–4 record in July, with the highest monthly winning percentage (.840) in team history.

Historic Across Leagues: With Friday’s win, the Sox became the first team across the MLB, NHL, and NBA to win 27+ games in a 30-game stretch, while entering that stretch 10+ games below .500

And then maybe my favorite:

The @RedSox are the only MLB team in the modern era to score in 5 separate innings in the 9th inning or later in the same game.

— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) August 7, 2026

They are the best team in baseball! But they got there by relying on players who were never supposed to be out there.

Superstar IL and Other Chaos

It’s absurd that this team is succeeding despite an IL that is chock-full of players who were supposed to be real contributors. The team had expectations (to varying degrees of course) of Garrett Crochet, Roman Anthony, Trevor Story, Johan Oviedo, Triston Casas, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, Zack Kelly, and formerly Marcelo Mayer. All of them are on the shelf. Romy González began the season there too before coming back quickly, then heading back to Worcester. Am I forgetting anyone? It’s hard to keep track of.

Even newcomer Curtis Mead, who was supposed to be a timely offensive upgrade, took less than a couple of hours to sustain an injury that allowed him to claim his spot on this elite roster we now call the IL. These injuries have allowed players like Anthony Seigler, Andruw Monasterio, and Nick Sogard to shine. Payton Tolle and Jake Bennett have stepped up in a big way, but without the unforeseen depletions to the pitching staff, they may not have been given such an opportunity at this point in the season, or in their young careers. Caleb Durbin, another new hero, felt almost like an afterthought when he joined the team, a reaction to the need to fill the Alex Bregman-sized hole at third base rather than a well executed plan.

For all the chaos this club has been through—including offseason hits like Bregman’s departure, beginning the season 32-46, and the firing of Alex Cora and five coaches before the end of April—they sure have become rock-steady.

The deadline deals and the complete philosophical shift have sent a huge messa...

Indexed and credited by AIPROPX. Originating outlet: Yahoo Sports. Open at source →