Rangers closing out World Series could be twist of the knife for Red Sox

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1970-01-01 08:00

The Texas Rangers are one win away from their first ever World Series title. But if they win it tonight, it will be a painful reminder of what could have been for a certain AL East team.

Wednesday night, the Texas Rangers have a chance to do something that has never been done in franchise history; win the World Series.

They were a strike away twice in 2011 before the St. Louis Cardinals came charging back to win the final two games.

Texas has a chance to put those demons to rest. No other teams in the American League will be able to do that, especially not the Boston Red Sox.

How do the Red Sox fit into all of this you ask? Well, it's going to require some explaining.

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This year, the Red Sox finished 78-84, matching their record from last season. And like last season, Boston finished in last place in the American League East.

There were glimmers of hope for the Red Sox. They were in the hunt as late as September, but fell apart in the final month. And it all can be traced back to last offseason.

Almost every free agent the Red Sox tried to sign ultimately went elsewhere. Andrew Heaney was one such free agent. Boston was hot on the left-hander, but he ultimately chose Texas over them.

Nathan Eovaldi was also a free agent after the 2022 season. Boston made no effort to re-sign the veteran right-hander.

To make matters worse for the Red Sox, Heaney got the win in Game 4 on Tuesday night, pitching five innings and allowing just one run. Eovaldi is set to start Game 5, and if he wins, the Red Sox will have let the winning pitchers in the final two World Series games slip through their fingers.

"That's what we want," Heaney said of Eovaldi starting. "He's our guy."

Eovaldi has a chance to put the nail in the coffin for Texas and send the Diamondbacks home. And if he can do that, it'll certainly stick in the Red Sox faces.

Boston ultimately fired Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom, but it couldn't save them from finishing at the bottom of the AL East. Their inability to sign Heaney forced them to make bargain deals for pitchers such as Corey Kluber, who did not pan out this year.

Letting Eovaldi walk has proven to be a major mistake as well, which will be amplified tonight if he delivers the clinching victory for the Rangers.