Craig Breslow on Hot Seat? Red Sox Struggles Raise Question

The Boston Red Sox aren't where they want to be right now, but that doesn't mean they should make a hasty decision.

Dec 9, 2024; Dallas, TX, USA; Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow speaks with the media at the Hilton Anatole during the 2024 MLB Winter Meetings. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

We haven't hit May yet, but the alarm bells around ringing around Boston around the Red Sox.

Boston has played 25 games so far this season and has won just nine of them. The Red Sox are in last place in the American League East at 9-16, despite winning 89 games last year. The Toronto Blue Jays are the most injured team in baseball, and yet they're ahead of Boston at 10-14. The Baltimore Orioles are 12-13 on the campaign. The Tampa Bay Rays got no buzz heading into the season, and yet they are 13-11. The New York Yankees entered the season as the favorite in the division and just swept Boston in a three-game series and now are 16-9 on the season.

The Red Sox didn't start the 2025 season off on a good note, but it wasn't as bad as the 2026 season has been so far. There was drama left and right for the 2025 Red Sox, but they were 14-11 through 25 games. Things got worse from there and they actually were five games below .500 in June at one point, but they at least started the season off better than Boston has this season.

The offense hasn't been good, to say the least. Boston is 26th in the league in runs scored with just 92. The Red Sox's starting rotation should be among the league's best, but Boston is relying too much on it right now. Thursday's contest against the Yankees was a perfect example. Payton Tolle gave Boston a great performance in which he allowed just one run and struck out 11 batters across six innings of work. The bullpen gave up three runs and Boston was only able to muster up two runs total and the club lost, 4-2. You can have an excellent start from a starter, but if the offense doesn't score, you're playing with fire. That's been the story of the season so far, but it's early enough that we haven't seen any big changes yet, but that doesn't mean something couldn't come.

Will The Red Sox Make A Change?

Dec 9, 2024; Dallas, TX, USA; Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow speaks with the media at the Hilton Anatole during the 2024 MLB Winter Meetings. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

For example, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal joined "Foul Territory" and insinuated that if the struggles continue for Boston throughout the campaign, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow's job could be on the line.

"If they get their pitching together [and] find some offense, and they're going to need to add at some point it would seem to me, then the playoffs aren't necessarily unrealistic," Rosenthal said. "If they don't, we've seen Red Sox ownership before. What do they do? They look for scapegoats.

"Certainly, Breslow in this particular season is, if not on the hot seat, certainly it's time for them under him to take a step forward. Made the playoffs last year, which was good, but now they've taken, at least to start the season, a step back. So, there's going to be heat there if this team, indeed, figures to sputter the rest of the way."

If the Red Sox continue to struggle, Alex Cora likely isn't on the same kind of hot seat Carlos Mendoza and Rob Thomson could eventually be, says @Ken_Rosenthal. pic.twitter.com/68UdUjXMa1

— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) April 23, 2026

We've seen this trend pop up with Boston over the years in recent memory moving on from executives. The most recent was Chaim Bloom. He was tasked with trading Mookie Betts and essentially rebuilding an organization that at the time had a depleted farm system and aging veterans. Unsurprisingly, it took a few years for Bloom's work in the farm system to lead to big league success. If you look at the 2025 roster, Bloom's work was evident throughout.

The Red Sox struggled in the standings for the most part throughout Bloom's run with the organization, which wasn't shocking, as spending decreased with a bigger focus on the farm system. Eventually, Bloom was let go before the club could see the real impact of his work. Now, with Boston struggling, the buzz has already started around Breslow. If the Red Sox don't turn it around and live up to the lofty potential the club entered the 2026 season with, it wouldn't be shocking to see the club make a move yet again.