Red Sox place J.D. Martinez on the COVID list

Boston Red Sox slugger J.D. Martinez has been placed on the COVID-19 list.

Things are only getting worse for the Boston Red Sox, as they had to place outfielder/designated hitter J.D. Martinez on the COVID-19 list Saturday.

Boston is 2-8 in its last 10 games and now trail the Tampa Bay Rays by 2.5 games in the AL East standings. All the while, the arch rival New York Yankees are creeping up on them, as the Bronx Bombers are only three games back of Boston in the divisional race. Only a game behind New York now is the Toronto Blue Jays, the team Boston will be going up against on Saturday afternoon.

The Red Sox are on the verge of collapsing in the early part of August, so what is going on?

Boston Red Sox OF/DH J.D. Martinez has been placed on the COVID-19 list.

The 33-year-old earned his fourth trip to the MLB All-Star Game this season. Before going on the COVID-19 list, Martinez was slashing .284/.350/.525 on the year for the Red Sox with 21 home runs and 68 runs batted in over the course of 104 games. Losing a big bat like his indefinitely against a team like Toronto that is not going away quietly could make things worse for Boston.

Given how poorly the Red Sox played a year ago, a monumental collapse in the second half of the season is not going to affect manager Alex Cora’s job. Do you really think they are going to re-hire him for a second time at some point? No, but letting the Rays run away with the AL East and allowing the Yankees and Blue Jays getting back in the race cannot sit well with their fanbase.

For the time being, the Red Sox will have to adjust to life without Martinez in their starting lineup.