The Boston Red Sox just finished one of their craziest comebacks of the season against the Atlanta Braves, with little to no help from their top players.
The Red Sox held out the majority of their top end power, with Mookie Betts only coming in for one at bat. The Red Sox gave some of their younger players an opportunity to show what they are capable of, and they delivered in a special way.
Andrew Benintendi did his part, but the majority of the contributions were from players that will struggle to get playing time in the playoffs.
Brandon Phillips delivered the game winning home run, immediately after the Red Sox almost blew their stunning comeback with six runs in the top of the eight inning. Phillips made sure the magic kept coming, and all the efforts immediately before were not wasted.
The Red Sox also saw both Ian Kinsler and Blake Swihart deliver two RBIs. The game looked lost, and the Red Sox needed the bottom of their lineup to come up with something special, and they delivered.
Everyone knows how special the top end talent of the Red Sox is. They have two legitimate MVP candidates, with more balance than anyone else in the league. They have the most complete offensive lineup in the MLB, and they have a bench that is showing how much injury insurance they actually have.
The Red Sox will have starting caliber players in pinch hitting situations, and there may not be any single injury that would be detrimental enough to ruin their chances in the playoffs.
The Red Sox were able to do this against a good team that looked like they were at their best. They continue to prove that there is no game they cannot win, and they will turn things around and take over no matter who is going to be at the plate.
The Red Sox saw how well their offense can make up for a lot of pitching struggles, because it was an utter disaster in this one. On top of the brutal deficit early on, they allowed the Braves to get another go ahead home run.
The unfamiliar bats bailed out the team in a special way this season, and this could mean they get a lot more opportunities before the season comes to an end. The Red Sox are establishing a cushion, but they know how important that number one seed is.
The only was the Red Sox will be able to make sure the health of their top players is the top priority, without any real risk of losing that number one seed, is if the depth continues to step up like this.
Then, come playoff time, depth can be an incredible asset. The Red Sox can have an edge over anyone else when their depth plays like this, and they just made it clear that they will not be scared of any kind of pressure or seemingly insurmountable situation.
These are all players that are ready to have a real impact with the Red Sox, but the most important thing will be establishing consistency and proving that the kind of thing that happened against the Braves, is not as much of a fluke as it may appear to be at first.
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