Yankees and Red Sox playoffs: The AL East in shambles

The Sun Also Rises

There is a bright side in this dark time for the Yankees, though; I am not sure that is true for the Sox. And that’s the real difference in what we are seeing.

Boston is fielding a win-now team. They’ve traded all of their prospects and spent their free-agent cash.

But some young Sox are looking less like superstars and more like competent regulars (Bradley, Jr., Bogaerts). And some of those prized free agents are already breaking down (Hanley Ramirez, Price).

They might still have the resources to get J.D. Martinez this off-season, but that will not solve their postseason pitching problems. Or make Dustin Pedroia’s knees not feel every bit of his soon-to-be 35 years.

Unless the Dodgers want to buy all of the Sox’s free agents as they did a few years ago, enabling the Red Sox to rebuild faster than they deserved to, this is the team Boston will put out on the field for the next few years. That can’t be a comforting thought on Yawkey Way.

New York, meanwhile, is fielding a win-soon team. They still have young upgrades coming—Torres, Andujar, Florial, Acevedo—with enough left over to trade with. Also, the team will be shedding huge salaries (A-Rod, Sabathia, Holliday) and will add important free agents this off-season.

Whether or not their young stars will elevate or return to earth remains to be seen. Either way, Boston has probably completed its run as the best team in the AL East. And they know it.