About a decade ago, John Henry said the Boston Red Sox had become too reliant on analytics, and it was not good for the club. But now, in 2026, the same story is running again, and the owners are unhappy with how they are managing the team.

“The Red Sox’s intense analytical direction has disappointed Theo Epstein under Craig Breslow,” reported Boston Strong.

The losses keep piling up, the offense continues to struggle, and the frustration around the organization is growing with every game they play. Boston entered June with a 25-33 record and sitting at the bottom of the AL East despite having the highest payroll in the team’s history.

But everyone knows that this season’s struggles are not just a normal slump. It began months earlier, in the offseason when the real mess happened.

The biggest question was about how the team constructed the roster. After trading Rafael Devers midseason, the Red Sox talked openly about adding power to the lineup. But the team made no moves during the offseason that remotely even suggested “power”.

Kyle Schwarber was available and stayed in Philadelphia. Pete Alonso, who was considered a huge possibility for the Red Sox, ended up in Baltimore. The worst of all is Alex Bregman, because they decided to ignore him when he said that he had a better offer on the table and went to Chicago.

Then, in a panic, the Red Sox doubled down on pitching and signed Sonny Gray and their star $130 million signing of Ranger Suarez. They did add Willson Contreras, but with how the season has progressed, no move they have made looks good.

The Red Sox have scored only 231 runs in 58 games and carried a .696 team OPS entering June.

Roman Anthony has battled injuries after a slow start, Marcelo Mayer is still searching for consistency, and Kristian Campbell is stuck in Triple-A despite talks about his promotion. Caleb Durbin has struggled at 3 base, while veterans like Trevor Story have failed to provide the impact in the offense.

But those struggles are just a part of a larger conversation now taking place throughout the organization.

According to multiple league sources, Theo Epstein, the minority owner of the Red Sox, has been disappointed with the Red Sox solely depending on analytics to make every decision under Craig Breslow.

And this is big news because Epstein helped build the modern analytics era and used it to help end championship droughts with both the Red Sox in 2004 and with the Cubs in 2016. And they always balanced the difference.

As one former Red Sox evaluator explained, “Theo was an all-forms-of-information guy. He didn’t just live on Carmine. He listened to people.”

That is why Epstein’s reported concerns have resonated so strongly. His championship teams relied on analytics, but they also relied on scouting, communication, and understanding the people inside the clubhouse.

Former catcher A.J. Pierzynski recently described Alex Cora as “one of the best guys I’ve ever seen at mixing analytics and communication with players.”

And with Cora gone, the offense is struggling, and questions surrounding the organization’s direction are growing. If they cannot find the balance that defined Epstein’s most successful teams, this difficult season could become part of a much larger problem.

What is the difference between Theo Epstein and Craig Breslow in leading the Red Sox?

We know that the current Boston Red Sox team is failing because of roster construction. This roster is built solely on analytics, and that is why the Red Sox are failing. But what made the analytics used by Theo Epstein different from what Breslow is doing?

The Boston Red Sox leadership has changed drastically from what it was when Theo Epstein was the GM to the Craig Breslow era. But one major similarity was the fact that both of them have used analytics during their tenure, but they have used it in a completely different way.

Theo Epstein built a championship team for Boston in 2004 and 2007 using balanced evaluations. But Craig Breslow’s Red Sox approach has struggled to produce consistent production.

Understanding the difference between the two of them is easy. Just look at how they constructed the roster.

Craig Breslow inherited a Red Sox team in 2023 that had high expectations, especially after reaching all the way to the ALCS in 2022. But even after inheriting a decent team, Breslow has not been able to capitalize.

Breslow believes in not spending much on players and getting the best within a budget. So he leaned on analytics, but he has leaned so much on numbers that he seems to have lost vision.

One of the major things that a team is built on is with regard to how the stadium is constructed. Fenway Park has always been a batter’s paradise, especially if you are a batter with pop. And that is where the Red Sox have messed up.

They let Devers and Bregman go, and in the offseason didn’t try to add any power bat. With players like Jarren Duran and Roman Anthony depending on contact more than power, the team is already at a disadvantage.

And with the team at a disadvantage, this offensive problem was always going to catch up. That is why many fans are concerned that this isn’t just a normal slump, but something that the front office has messed up.

And this is the complete opposite of what Theo Epstein did at his time with the Red Sox.

Epstein combined scouting insight with analytics and didn’t let numbers guide him to the answer. And that is why the Red Sox were able to win the 2004 and 2007 World Series under him. And if you consider the same metrics as Breslow, Epstein had David Ortiz.

David Ortiz provided the power bat that Boston needed, and every season, he did what the team asked of him. Ortiz hit homers and helped the Red Sox get to the end. And in 2007, he added players like Mike Lowell to close up the gaps the team had, and they worked perfectly.

And that is why in the 10 years Epstein spent at the Red Sox, he built a team that went to the postseason 6 times. Although Breslow has been here only for 2.5 seasons, there has been nothing to show that he could build a team even close to that.

The other thing that made Epstein build great teams was the fact that he allowed the players to work on what was needed for the team. Like with Kevin Youkilis, who had a unique batting approach that was different from what the rest of the team had. Under Breslow, the team has focused on the swings on launch angles and uniform swing across the lineup.

And when it came to the offseason, Epstein knew what he had to do. After not making the postseason in 2006, he added Josh Beckett, Julio Lugo, and Daisuke Matsuzaka to stabilize the lineup and won the 2007 World Series, sweeping the Rockies. But when it comes to Breslow, it has been up and down with trades like Chris Sale for Vaughn Grissom.

While both eras rely on analytics, the major difference with Epstein was that he didn’t just depend on numbers. While today, Breslow does, and with the team not doing well since his takeover, the question is whether the Red Sox should change their approach or change their GM?