Rafael Devers is gone, Roman Anthony is here, and the Red Sox continue to frustrate

Well, that was a doozy. The Boston Red Sox entered June 4 games under .500 and 8.5 games behind the division-leading Yankees. They ended June 2025 2 games under .500, 7 games behind the Yankees. But the relative omnambulance of the standings doesn’t reflect the fact that June 2025 was one bat-shit insane month of Red Sox baseball. Here’s the OTM staff with their take on the month that was. (Check out their May and April takes here and here.)

Describe June 2025 in one word, five words, or haiku.

Last month I had fun

This month it’s the same story*

No, I’m still all set

*Should Story be capitalized? At least he’s providing more offensive pop…

– Dean Roussel

We swept the Yankees

Stuff happened on the West Coast

I am so tired

— Jacob Roy

First half of June — great

Holding a Wild Card spot

Breslow wants to sell

— Mike Carlucci

Cruel June ambushes

Squeezed spine, our team in freefall

Which causes more pain?

— Maura McGurk

I would really rather not.

— Bryan Joiner

They traded my favorite player.

— Bob Osgood

I can’t in good conscience steal Tyler Milliken’s haiku content, so I will try a limerick instead:

There once was a man from New Haven

Who fancied himself a front office maven

But a salary dump did prove

Who his moves really behooved

And now fans are contemplating a stave in

— Matthew Gross

I went on a cruise 🙂

— Fitzy Mo Peña

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Who was your favorite player in June?

Rafael Devers, until they traded him.

— Bob Osgood

Ceddanne Rafaela — and he wasn’t just my favorite player in June, he’s becoming one of my favorite players in years. The game would be much better if there were 50 more guys who played like him.

— Dan Secatore

There was a player whose name escapes me who only hit .208 from the 1st on, but had an OBP of .377 and still managed to hit three home runs, the last of which was a huge shot that put the Red Sox over the Yankees in dramatic fashion on Father’s Day. Why hasn’t he been in the lineup since, I wonder? Hmm…..

In all seriousness, without Devers’ presence on the team, it has to be Garrett Crochet, and will be most months. I hate that this team doesn’t score when he starts (DEAN’S NOTE: I WROTE THIS ON THE MORNING OF JUNE 30, DON’T COME FOR ME!) which gives even more credence to this comparison: when Pedro pitched, I would use the bathroom and eat, or perhaps do homework since I was, like, ten, during offensive halves of innings for the Red Sox. I have not done that with any pitcher since, but now, with Crochet, I do. He’s appointment viewing.

— Dean Roussel

I’m a sicko, so I’ll say Jorge Alcala. I know that’s insane, but he’s only allowed one run. He ditched his slider, moved over on the rubber (as I suggested), and throws 100 mph. He might totally lose command and flame out in a month, but it feels like a move that pays dividends.

— Jacob Roy

Ceddanne Rafaela aka Nuf Cedd. Watch out Pete Crow-Armstrong, Boston’s version has arrived.

— Mike Carlucci

There aren’t that many left! Garrett Crochet.

— Maura McGurk

Roman Anthony. We waited long enough, didn’t we?

— Bryan Joiner

Roman Anthony! Here’s here and he’s wonderful! And no, I don’t care if he hasn’t hit yet. His underlying stats are magnificent, and I remain as bullish on him as I’ve been on any prospect in years.

— Matthew Gross

Certainly not Kyle Harrison, Jordan Hicks, James Tibbs III, and Jose Bello. Any time I would think about how we acquired those four lads, I felt the urge to order another drink with my all-inclusive drink package on my aforementioned cruise.

— Fitzy Mo Peña

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Who was your least favorite player in June?

Photo by Paul Rutherford/Getty Images

Walker Buehler. A June ERA of 11.07, giving up 7 home runs in 20 innings, going longer than 4 innings just once and still succumbing to the long ball, and just having a deflating mood and letting the ump dictate your attitude rather than working on things on your own will do that to you. Given that he’s on a one-year deal, I was all set seeing him in a Red Sox uniform for good before the west coast trip, but I’m especially all set now.

— Dean Roussel

Rafael Devers. He hit .208 for the Red Sox in June, was at least somewhat responsible for the trade, and then hit a home run against the Red Sox like a week later. I don’t really blame Devers for the trade, but it’s hard not to feel slighted.

— Jacob Roy

Rafael Devers. Guy watched Triston Casas fall and break every bone in his body and said “first base for thee, not for me.” Which turned into shipping him out of town. This wasn’t Mookie or Nomar. This was something new.

— Mike Carlucci

Toss-up between Rafael Devers and Walker Buehler.

— Maura McGurk

Sam Kennedy. I’m counting him, so he counts.

— Bryan Joiner

Walker Buehler. It’s terribly misleading that his BB:K in June was 17:17 because he also hit four guys. Those count too, so I’m creating a new stat: BB+HBP:K. Over 20 ¹⁄₃ innings in June, Walker Buehler’s was 21:17; that stinks.

— Bob Osgood

Connor Wong. I remain exceedingly angry the club chose him over giving Yasmani Grandal a shot. Now we’re stuck with a guy who still has ZERO extra base hits on the season, is 0-24 with runners in scoring position, and has just one RBI all year. He’s so terrible that other clubs have hunted him out by pitching around other at bats. As a result, Wong has the highest average leverage index of any player on the team in all their plate appearances. Other clubs have noticed how much Connor Wong stinks, but apparently word hasn’t gotten around to the Red Sox front office yet.

— Matthew Gross

It’s gotta be Walker Buehler. I’m over the reclamation projects I think. Maybe he has some solid outings here and there, and I’d gladly eat crow if he can turn it around, but his path to 270 is getting more and more narrow. God bless the guy, but he’s been getting burnt than I was getting burnt while I was in Bermuda. Did I mention I went on a cruise?

— Fitzy Mo Peña

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What do you feel better about going forward?

Photo by Paul Rutherford/Getty Images

Ticket prices.

— Dan Secatore

Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony both seem to be truly finding their groove. Trading Rafael Devers at 28 for a pitcher who’s still developing in Kyle Harrison and citing the potential pop of guys like these two, Rafaela and Campbell, and to a lesser degree Wilyer Abreu, really launched a youth movement going forward. Which, like, of course trading Devers sucks, but if there’s confidence in guys that actually perform, it mitigates the damage of a trade like that.

— Dean Roussel

Roman Anthony. It’s been mentioned a lot but his statcast bars have been bright red. His expected stats have been really good. Yes, expectations aren’t reality and sometimes a player isn’t unlucky he’s just not as good as the numbers say he might be in better conditions. But watching him a few weeks and he looks better every day. MLB is hard.

— Mike Carlucci

I can’t think of a damn thing. I’m an optimistic person, so I’ll continue to hope, and I still think that the rookies will find their groove. But I always felt that way, so there’s no way that the events of June have me feeling better in any way about this team.

— Maura McGurk

Craig Breslow. I know this is a weird thing to say given The Discourse, but I think three things are demonstrably true, each of which gives me a little hope and any port in a storm, right?

Number one, with Devers gone, he’s got as clean a slate as you could ask for.

Number two, I think it’s plainly obvious that he was set up to be a fall guy because he may be aloof and have had some bad luck, but the idea that he’s been the Great Satan of the Sox is so absurd that it’s almost a credit to him that he was set up to be lambasted for it. To be abundantly clear on this point, there is no universe were Breslow is more damaging to the team than Sam Kennedy or John Henry, and in the case of Devers, he was the only person who sniffed out the position change drama ahead of time and was overruled — for which he was thrown under the bus.

But it’s the third thing that’s most important, I think. Back Kennedy into a corner and he’ll say something along the lines of “We’ve been the best team since 2000,” which says nothing about the present. Breslow, for his part, has acknowledged he needs to be better at parts of his job. In so doing, he’s the first decision-maker to do so in long enough that I can’t remember. He may be awkward and all that, but he’s one thing that no one else in a decision-making capacity is around these parts anymore: Honest.

— Bryan Joiner

Masataka Yoshida’s dignity. Never has a man who’s done no wrong been more disrespected by a major league franchise. Last year, his defense was dubbed to be so poor that he was not allowed to step foot on grass. This year, his path to playing time at designated hitter was so blocked that he was placed on the 60-day IL because he couldn’t play the field at positions that he was also blocked from playing. The career .285 hitter with a 113 wRC+ and 13.3 K% deserves a chance to contribute to this team that desperately needs good hitters who can put the ball in play.

— Bob Osgood

Alex Bregman signing an extension. For some reason, despite all the dysfunction, he seems to love it here, which makes him a true New Englander. Extend this man now!

— Matthew Gross

My next cruise aboard a Norwegian Cruise Line™ vessel. With first-in-class amenities, five-star dining options, stunning vistas across the high seas, and international itineraries filled with fun for the whole family, what’s not to love?

— Fitzy Mo Peña

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What do you feel worse about going forward?

Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images

I fear that John Henry is going to look at the team do this poorly in a season when he actually ponied up some capital to improve the team and wonder why he spends money at all, making this past awesome offseason even more of a rarity. Years of “interest kings” labels will commence after the team realizes that fielding a decent team takes more than zero dollars, and we’ll be stuck in limbo with some valuable pieces but an owner that doesn’t spend to build a complete team.

— Dean Roussel

We’ve seen this script before: the Sox struggle, they climb back, they beg for reinforcements, and the front office shrugs and says “next year.”

— Mike Carlucci

Our long-term chances, as seen by ownership. I’m also concerned that what once looked like a step forward (offseason acquisitions) will be viewed by John Henry as a mistake he won’t make again.

— Maura McGurk

Alex Cora. I can’t choose Kennedy or Henry because I’m at my floor with them, but the degree to which Cora is pulling strings and offloading blame right now is extremely offputting. If he wanted to be the GM or CBO, I’m sure he could have done so, but the division of labor here exists for a reason and he’s too powerful to care about it. That doesn’t end well, usually.

— Bryan Joiner

The Red Sox ever playing for “this season” again. The perpetual kicking of the can down the road and making deals for the betterment of the franchise long-term is getting stale fast. When the “winter sports” playoffs end and the team is once again sitting at .500, the casual fan chooses to take their family to the beach or the pool over a day at Fenway Park.

— Bob Osgood

Ownership actually spending money and making a real commitment to winning. The Devers salary dump was such an earth-shattering moment, and until that money gets reinvested elsewhere on the field, everybody has a right to question how serious they are about winning championships at this stage of the operation.

— Matthew Gross

Why, not taking advantage of Norwegian Cruise Line™’s Freedom Sale™, of course! For a limited time, you can get upwards of $1,000 off your next sailing, plus an unlimited drink package and additional goodies! With deals this good, you’ll be declaring YOUR independence from the boredom of everyday life! Don’t wait—book now!!!!!!!!

— Fitzy Mo Peña

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What was your favorite game or moment?

The aforementioned Rafael Devers home run on Father’s Day. Truly the day couldn’t get worse from there, right? Right?

— Dean Roussel

The sweep of the Yankees. I was trolling so hard on Twitter after they closed out that third win:

Then the Devers trade happened 90 minute later and the mood changed real quick.

— Matthew Gross

The Rafael Devers trade. Hear me out. From 2022 until today, being a Red Sox fan has felt like being a hamster on a wheel. Now, I don’t think trading Devers was a good thing, but for once, it was something new. Maybe favorite moment of the month is a little far, but as someone trying to cover the team and keep up with what was going on, it was pure chaos and actually kinda fun. As a fan, it sucked. As someone who has a reputation for being a big Red Sox fan, it was a great way to connect with people I haven’t heard from in a while.

— Jacob Roy

June 30th. Wilyer Abreu’s inside-the-park homer and a grand slam. Game of the year.

— Mike Carlucci

Every one of those sweet, sweet Aaron Judge strikeouts.

— Maura McGurk

When Roman Anthony came up. Took long enough.

— Bryan Joiner

The Friday night opener at Fenway against the Yankees (6/13). Eight shutout innings from Garrett Crochet, complete with three strikeouts of Aaron Judge. The electric atmosphere of seeing Crochet come out for the ninth to try to finish the job in less than 100 pitches. While Judge got the best of him in the ninth, Aroldis Chapman and Garrett Whitlock shut things down from there on out, and Carlos Narvaez delivered a walk-off single off the Wall. Fenway was so back (for a total of 48 hours).

— Bob Osgood

Probably when we clinched the Yankees sweep on Father’s Day. I was at a cookout with my old man himself, and we were in our glory. To sweep our hated rivals—to go 5-1 against them in the span of just a few days in June—was wonderful. We felt like we were truly back. What happened soon after, though, was much different……………………because a week-and-change later we climbed aboard Norwegian Cruise Line™’s ship in Southie before embarking to Bermuda.

— Fitzy Mo Peña

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After three months, are you going to change your preseason prediction?

I will remind everyone again that I was sour grapes going into 2024, but still foresaw the Red Sox playing in October with a line of 86 wins in a lackluster AL. I kept that prediction until probably mid-May, when I still figured the Red Sox were on the line for about 83-84 wins. I will again adjust ever-so-slightly by a couple games and pivot my prediction to …. 81-81. Perfectly mid, as all things must be.

— Dean Roussel

I predict that the next Norwegian Cruise Fitzy books doesn’t take on as much water as this Red Sox season.

— Matthew Gross

They aren’t going to win the World Series like I predicted, but what if they do? I can’t be the guy who went back on his prediction.

— Jacob Roy

I’m writing this assuming they win on Monday, but the math is similar. They’re 42-44 with 76 games left. I’ll put them down for one more win in the Reds series. Then sweep the Washington Nationals and Colorado Rockies. They’re 49-45 and have 68 games remaining. They need 38 wins. That’s a .558 pace or 38-30. I’m not giving up on 87 yet.

— Mike Carlucci

The month of May already had me revising my preseason prediction, saying that I no longer thought they were a playoff team. I didn’t put a number on it then, but I will now. I think they’ll finish just below .500, at 79-83. Sigh.

— Maura McGurk

I don’t remember what it was, and no.

— Bryan Joiner

The Red Sox removed a 5-win player from their team this month, so I’ll remove 5 wins from their final record and bring 90-72 down to 85-77.

— Bob Osgood

I don’t know about my preseason prediction, but I can tell you that I’d certainly like to change my personal plans for three months from now—as I’m gettin’ ready to book another trip with Norwegian Cru—[NOTE: THIS AUTHOR’S ACCOUNT HAS BEEN PERMANENTLY DELETED. SIGNED, VOX MEDIA, INC.]

— Fitzy Mo Peña