The 2026 Red Sox were the story of the Boston summer thanks to a 32-5 run that rescued their season. But the year ended in the Bronx for the second straight fall, and the flaws that sank the club in 2025 surfaced again. With that mix of peaks and valleys under manager Chad Tracy, the roster's report card includes some impressive grades and some close to failing. This first installment covers position players with at least 50 games played.
At catcher, Adley Rutschman earns a C. Boston gave up a haul of top pitching prospects to land the 28-year-old from Baltimore in early August. He ranked in the 96th percentile in caught stealing above average and the 93rd in pitch framing, but he hit .222/.278/.410 with five home runs and 13 RBI in 32 games with the club. Connor Wong gets a C-. He improved on a .190 average in 2025, but only to .233 with four homers and 25 RBI in 77 games, and his defensive problems continued.
The infield has the best marks on the team. Willson Contreras earns an A+ after slashing .275/.386/.516 with a career-high 27 home runs and 81 RBI in 130 games. His .902 OPS ranked third in baseball, behind only Yordan Alvarez (1.033) and Pete Crow-Armstrong (.942). He did fade late, batting .220 over his final 24 games while playing through several injuries. Mickey Gasper gets an A for a 16-game stretch after his late August recall in which he hit .378 with a 1.525 OPS, eight homers and 15 RBI. He finished with 10 homers and 24 RBI in 67 games.
Nick Sogard earns an A- for hitting .255 with five homers, 14 doubles and 19 RBI in 66 games, worth 1.4 WAR, along with defensive versatility. Caleb Durbin gets a B+. He started at .163 with one homer through 48 games, then hit .283 with 12 homers and 48 RBI over the next 105 while dealing with a dislocated pinky. He also led all AL third basemen with 13 defensive runs saved.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Andruw Monasterio each earn a B-. Kiner-Falefa hit .277 over his first 47 games, then managed just .143 in his final 19 after returning from a stress reaction in his right forearm. Monasterio hit .315 with an .882 OPS from July 1 to August 18, then batted .100 over his last 21 regular-season games, with shaky defense. Trevor Story earns a D-. Injuries limited the shortstop to 63 games, and he hit .235/.271/.351 with five homers and 29 RBI. With one year left on his contract and prospect Franklin Arias close to the majors, his future in Boston is uncertain.
In the outfield, Ceddanne Rafaela earns an A+ for elite defense and his first All-Star appearance, hitting .283 with 16 homers, 70 RBI, 22 steals and a .761 OPS. Wilyer Abreu gets an A. He played 157 games, hit .248 with career highs of 24 homers and 78 RBI, led the AL with 38 doubles, and hit .295 against left-handers. He is the favorite to win a third straight AL Gold Glove in right field.
Roman Anthony gets a D. A lingering wrist and finger injury, which flared up again in the playoffs, derailed his season, and he hit .229 with one homer and 33 strikeouts in his first 109 at-bats. Boston is counting on a rebound in 2027, but the report warns against assuming a young player with injury concerns can anchor the lineup. Masataka Yoshida earns a C+ with a .274 average and .347 on-base percentage but only five homers in 87 games. The 33-year-old enters the final season of a five-year, $90 million deal in 2027.
Jarren Duran closes the list with a D-. He hit 20 home runs, stole 21 bases and played strong defense in left field, but batted just .207 with a .266 on-base percentage and produced 0.4 WAR. That follows seasons of 9.0 WAR in 2024 and 4.9 in 2025, and the report calls Boston's decision not to trade him earlier a costly miscalculation. San Diego reportedly offered Dylan Cease and catching prospect Ethan Salas for him last year. Grades for the rest of the roster follow over the next two days.
