3 Boston Red Sox on thin ice if they miss the playoffs

Joe Jacques’ future is in doubt with the Red Sox after a tough beginning to the second half

Joe Jacques appears to be almost everything that a team could want in terms of a lefty specialist relief pitcher. He throws from a low, funky arm slot and throws a sweeping slider that should terrorize lefties. However, the truth is far different than what many would think. In fact, Jacques hasn’t been good against lefties, he’s been terrible against southpaws.

On the season, left-handed hitters hold a slash line of .448/.467/.793 while also totaling 5 extra base hits in less than 30 at bats. According to Baseball Savant, his sweeping slider is allowing a batting average of .429 on the year. These numbers are completely unheard of for lefty relievers and potentially defeats most of his role on any team unless he gets this under control.

Since July 18, Jacques has allowed 7 earned runs in 7.1 innings, leading to an ERA near 9 in that stretch. He’s likely playing the rest of the season on incredibly thin ice, especially considering that he’s already been moved to Triple-A this season. If he gets another shot with the Red Sox this season, it’ll come with a ton of pressure to perform or else he may not get the call back up to the big leagues for the foreseeable future.