Poll: Who Is To Blame For Boston’s Struggles This Season?

This poll may be slightly mistimed, coming after the first Red Sox win since July 15, but it's still a team that's dropped 13 of its last 17 and played itself into a precarious position as we approach the MLB Trade Deadline one week from today.

Plus, last night's win came at the first opportunity the Sox have had to play outside the AL East since July 3, continuing a worrisome trend of .293 baseball within the division versus a .661 clip against everyone else. Boston can win as many games as they want against non-AL East opponents and it likely won't matter in the end if they continue to be garbage in the games that actually matter.

I think it's now safe to say the Red Sox are much closer to the team we saw in April, the first half of May and July rather than the team that went 34-16 during the latter part of May-through-June.

So who is to blame for the struggles? The easy answer, if you listen to the Boston media, seems to be the guy upstairs. There have been cries all season that Bloom did not give this team enough talent to truly compete, citing struggles in the bullpen, outfield and a black hole at first base.

But is it right to let the players off the hook, when they're the ones trotting out there on a nightly basis and (prior to last night) failing as many times as they succeed?

What about Cora? No one gets more praise when things are going well and his magic wand is in play. But the fact of the matter is, most nights recently the Sox have looked like a dysfunctional Little League squad on the diamond, making one boneheaded play after another. That's got to come back on the manager, right?

Let us know what you think!

As we sit here, one week from the MLB trade deadline, will you be upset with Chaim Bloom if he sells, given the current state and standing of the team?