Are the Red Sox back? Breaking down Boston’s hot streak ahead of crucial Mets series

The 2026 Boston Red Sox: it’s so over, we’re so ba — no, it’s still so over. Wait, are we actually so back?

In the midst of a less-than-stellar season, the Red Sox just won 11 of their last 13, with three sweeps in four series and now look poised to head into the All-Star Break riding as high as you possibly can be. They have pulled within 2.5 games of the Wild Card and are playing legitimately better baseball. But here’s the cool part: they’re turning that better baseball into wins. 

The Red Sox are finally turning runs into wins. It only took until July

Boston has pitched well all season, but has struggled to hit. But they’ve actually had good offensive stretches this season, but have thus far failed to convert them into, ya know, wins. Here’s a good way to look at it: in terms of run creation, the Red Sox have been seriously up and down: they were actually 10th in MLB in wRC+ in May … but went 13-14. Then they were 27th in June … and went 12-14. Maybe it’s unlucky, maybe it’s bad nights stacked on top of each other. Whatever the reason, the math was not mathing to create success. 

That’s all changing. Boston is still well below its Pythagorean win expectation, but its getting there. They have essentially cobbled together a lineup of competent hitters and has pitched the lights out for the past two weeks. Willson Contreras has been incredible for them, and utility players are producing everywhere. The biggest story? Once-unfixable hitting black hole Caleb Durbin has been slugging. 

Durb never had to hit 30 home runs or hit .325 — he just needed to be average and play amazing third base defense. He is, at the moment, achieving gloriously average results and careening towards a Gold Glove at third in the American League. He’s got some power back in his bat too, and is exactly the player Boston needs him to be. Great stuff.

Craig Breslow's much-maligned moves may be paying off

I shudder to say this, but a lot of the decisions that Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow has been deep-fried for in Boston media (trading Rafael Devers for Durbin and some other stuff, signing Ranger Suarez instead of Alex Bregman and replacing that hitting with Contreras) have kinda … worked? Bregman has been utterly mediocre in Chicago, Suarez has been excellent, Contreras has been elite. Do I need to fill out an apology form? 

Even some random moves that nobody noticed have paid off. The decision to trade for and invest in Jake Bennett is looking like money in the bank, as is a timely call-up for Anthony Siegler. It’s not going how Boston thought it would a year ago — Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell carrying everyone into the future — but it’s … it’s going. It’s going somewhere! 

The vibes are just up. It’s not like I haven’t covered the Red Sox this year: “Finding hope for the Red Sox,” “The Red Sox suddenly look way more dangerous than their record,” “Jarren Duran just lit the match on the Red Sox fire sale,” “Red Sox epic sweep of the Yankees might turn their season around”; is a mostly complete list of my columns about the 2026 Boston Red Sox. The vibes were all over the place.

But it appears said epic sweep of the Yankees may have actually turned their season around. Between improved offense, improved … winning, and consistently solid pitching, there’s something cooking in Boston’s kitchen. A good series against the Mets into the All-Star Break? Boston might stumble themselves into becoming a buyer at the deadline. Fingers crossed.

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