Red Sox's Craig Breslow Identifies 'Area Of Focus' For Offseason Improvement

It's good to have a plan, but can the Red Sox execute?

Nov 7, 2023; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; Boston Red Six chief baseball officer Craig Breslow speaks to the media during the MLB General Manager's Meetings at Omni Scottsdale Resort & Spa. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Wednesday night was the Boston Red Sox's official 2024 funeral in Toronto's Rogers Centre. But the preparations had already been underway for weeks.

After a profoundly disappointing second half, the Red Sox will miss the playoffs for a third straight year, which they hadn't done since 1994. More so than the 2022 and 2023 Boston teams, this group had a real shot to make it to October, and they have no one to blame for their failures but themselves.

First-year Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow had an up-and-down first year. He made some great trades (Justin Slaten). He made some terrible trades (Chris Sale). But in year two, the training wheels will be off, and Breslow will have to point to the team's success on the field to prove he's made progress.

Thursday morning on WEEI's Greg Hill Show, Breslow talked about his priorities for this offseason and harped on the need to improve the rotation for the Red Sox to get back in the playoffs at long last.

"We can never have enough starting pitching," Breslow said. "We can never have enough quality starting pitching, so I think looking at starting pitching is the other area of focus for us."

Having a priority is all well and good, but the Red Sox also need to be serious buyers for once. If it's starting pitching they want, make a lucrative offer to Corbin Burnes early in the winter. Or give up real prospects to pry George Kirby away from the Seattle Mariners. Uncertain times call for decisive actions.

The Red Sox cannot afford to pinch pennies when it comes to starting pitching. Sure, they have some depth at Triple-A, but at some point, you need a bona-fide ace. And Boston hasn't had anything close to that since Nathan Eovaldi in 2021.

Make no mistake, this Red Sox team can and should be a contender in 2025. They've proven they have the talent and moxie to hang with any team at their best. But they have to address their most obvious flaws, and the starting rotation is at the top of that list.

More MLB: