Red Sox Links: Kutter Crawford To The Rotation

Who is to blame for the dreadful defense the Red Sox have been playing lately? Alex Cora tried to take responsibility, but the other Alex — Verdugo — says it’s all on the players. (Gio Rivera, NESN)

Either way, the hope is that the defense will improve with the imminent returns of Christian Arroyo, Adam Duvall and Yu Chang. Cora has already said that Arroyo will be getting some innings at short stop to relieve the struggling Kiké Hernandez. (Chris Cotillo, MassLive)

On the other side of the ball, Triston Casas is stabilizing as a hitter, but still struggling to really make an impact with the bat. Meanwhile, Bobby Dalbec is on an absolute tear down in Worcester. Despite this, the Red Sox don’t seem particularly interested in making a roster move (and let’s be honest: we’ve seen this movie from Dalbec before, so it’s understandable.) (Peter Abraham, Boston Globe)

Regardless, it’s the pitching that’s most concerning with this team, particularly in the wake of Chris Sale’s trip to the IL. For now, it’s Kutter Crawford who is going to get the call to replace Sale in the rotation. Corey Kluber and Nick Pivetta probably aren’t happy, but Jacob. Roy probably is. (Brady Farkas, SI.com)

With surprise contributions from guys like Jarren Duran and Raimel Tapia, Rob Refsnyder hasn’t necessarily been as big a part of the season so far as some people might’ve thought. But the Sox showed how much they value the lefty-killer by signing him to a one-year deal covering 2024 with a team option for 2025. (Jen McCaffrey, The Athletic)

speaking of surprise contributions, Steve Pearce is back in town — and he’s getting yelled at by Fenway Park security guards who don’t recognize him. (Stan Grossfeld, Boston Globe)