It’s a shame that such a stacked team is going to start the season with such a trash bullpen.
If the Sox hadn’t just won the WS, I think DD would be getting a lot less deference and people would be way more up in arms about this.
But the fact is that the Sox won the WS largely because AC deftly augmented his bullpen with starters. Without the use of starting pitchers, which of course isn’t much of an option over the course of 162, the Sox probably would not have won.
And rather than augment the pen, DD has lost the closer and the best pure reliever in October(and really for a few stretches during the season).
In their place we have closer by committee/audition and several maybes.
It’s really quite mind boggling that they think this is (a) going to work, (b) not going to result in potentially distracting panic among the fans and media when the team blows a few early leads, (c) not going to cost them some games in the standings and (d) not something even the Midas touch Cora will be able to navigate.
I hope I’m being too pessimistic but this reminds me of equipping an expensive, high performance sports car with cheapo tires that you know are going to blow early and often.