In a dreadful 2015 season for the Boston Red Sox, the bullpen was a weak spot, and President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski acknowledged that. The bullpen had a dismal 4.24 ERA, the third worst in the American League and the fifth worst in all of baseball. 

Dombrowski's first offseason brought big trades

In Dombrowski's first offseason with the Red Sox, he made a couple of big trades, strengthening the big gap. On November 13th, one of the first big trades of the offseason, he acquired Craig Kimbrel from the San Diego Padres in exchange for four elite prospects, most notably Manuel Margot. Kimbrel is regarded as one of the best closers in baseball, as he was the fastest player ever to record his 200th save. 

As well as signing David Price to a massive contract to try to pitch deep into games, Dombrowski wasn't done yet. He made a trade with the Seattle Mariners, dealing Wade Miley and Jonathon Aro for relievers Carson Smith and Roenis Elias. Smith was the huge get for the Red Sox, as the 26-year-old had a 2.31 ERA in 70 innings pitched for the Mariners in 2015. 

The entire league witnessed the Kansas City Royals rely on their bullpen to dominate all the way to a World Series title, and the Red Sox now had a solid backend of the bullpen in Smith, Koji Uehara, and Kimbrel. 

Well, here we are on July 24th, and all three of those guys are injured. Smith was the first to fall, dealing with an elbow injury all year, then finally undergoing Tommy John surgery on May 24th. Smith had made just three appearances for the Red Sox, leaving opponents scoreless in 2.2 innings of work. 

Shortly before being named to his fifth all-star team, Kimbrel went down with a knee injury. He would undergo surgery on July 11th, and was initially expected to miss 3-6 weeks. However, a bit under two weeks later, Kimbrel is scheduled to toss his first bullpen session since his operation. The All-Star has been solid this season, converting on 17 of 19 save opportunities with a 3.55 ERA, but opponents are hitting just .178 off him. 

Recently, Uehara was the latest to go down. He injured his shoulder while pitching on July 19th, and was immediately placed on the DL. Although the Japan native said he'd only be gone for about a month, the Red Sox are uncertain if he will return at all in 2016. 

So now, here they are, and the bullpen looks completely different than what it was expected to be. The team acquired Brad Ziegler from the Arizona Diamondbacks in a trade during the season, and he is now serving as the closer. Robbie Ross Jr. and Matt Barnes have also been bright spots as of late, as they have an ERA of 1.08 and 2.08 in their last seven appearances, respectively. 

But other than those three arms, there is no other reliable option for the Red Sox to count on while Kimbrel and Uehara are injured. Saturday night was another example of that, as the bullpen gave up six runs in just 3.1 innings of work. David Price lasted 5.2 innings, and the Red Sox turned to former starter Clay Buchholz, who got shelled for three runs in just an inning of work. Tommy Layne was the next pitcher to come in, but gave up two hits, two runs, and a walk without even recording an out. Heath Hembree was the next to greet the Minnesota Twins hitters, but continued his struggles, as he gave up three hits and a run while recording just one out. After the game, Hembree was optioned to Triple-A Pawtucket, as nine of the last 13 hitters he had faced reached base. 

Heath Hembree will look to fix his recent struggles down in Triple-A Pawtucket. (Photo: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images North America)
Heath Hembree will look to fix his recent struggles down in Triple-A Pawtucket. (Photo: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images North America)

The Red Sox may go another two weeks without Kimbrel, and may not even see Uehara back this season. The starting pitching has not been strong enough to make up for the bullpen's struggles, even against teams like the Twins. John Farrell will not be able to use Ross Jr. and Barnes as much as he has been recently, and other guys will need to step up. 

Is a trade on the horizon?

There is just about a week until the trade deadline, and the Red Sox have already made three trades. Along with Ziegler being acquired from the Diamondbacks, Aaron Hill was acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers, and Michael Martinez was traded to Boston from the Cleveland Indians

The Red Sox may be looking at relief pitchers, but there hasn't been any specific names on who they may be looking at. The New York Yankees have been looking to deal Aroldis Chapman, but there has been no indications that the Red Sox have been active in negotiations with their rivals. 

David Robertson of the Chicago White Sox has also been tossed around trade rumors, but there is no signs that Chicago is anxious to deal him. 

As of now, there has been no rumblings on any relief pitchers who could be packing their bags to Boston, but never count out Dombrowski on making another big move. 

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About the author
Oliver P. Gold
A Providence, Rhode Island based sports journalist and blogger with expertise in baseball and basketball. Includes MLB, NBA and NCAA College Basketball. New England sports fan of Boston Red Sox, Boston Celtics and Providence Friars.