Pitching will determine Red Sox's fate in '22

For the Red Sox, there are big expectations heading into the season as they try to build off a gratifying thrill ride in 2021, which ended with the upstart squad just two wins shy of a trip to the World Series.

The addition of two-time All-Star Trevor Story to an already potent lineup should help manager Alex Cora's team in its quest to reach those expectations.

While the lineup looks loaded from 1-6 and potentially deep all the way through, the pitching staff comes in with question marks in both the rotation and the bullpen.

How well the Red Sox pitch will likely determine if they can play deep into October and perhaps the first week of November.

What needs to go right?
Chris Sale and James Paxton need to get healthy and pitch effectively by the summer months. For the third straight season, Sale will open on the injured list. But this time he is recovering from a stress fracture in his right ribcage rather than Tommy John surgery, so he should be in better position to hit the ground running when he returns. The Red Sox moved Sale to the 60-day injured list on Monday, meaning he won't be back on the mound for the club until at least June.

Meanwhile, Paxton, a veteran who was one of the top lefties in the American League not so long ago, is making strong progress from Tommy John surgery. Paxton has expressed hope of pitching for Boston by June. A front three of Nathan Eovaldi, Sale and Paxton would give the Red Sox a strong look heading down the stretch.

Great unknown
Can Matt Barnes regain the closer's role? The hard-throwing righty was so dominant in the first half that he made the All-Star team. In the second half, the 31-year-old struggled so mightily that he was not only pushed out of high-leverage situations, but he was left off the American League Championship Series roster. Barnes worked hard in Spring Training to straighten out his mechanical flaws and he has expressed confidence in being able to do so. How well the bullpen can come together is perhaps the biggest question mark for this team.

Team MVP will be ...
Rafael Devers. The star slugger enters his fifth full season for the Red Sox at just 25 years old. Last year, Devers was an utter force, ripping 38 homers to go with 113 RBIs. Cora senses that Devers is on the verge of taking his game to an even higher level. If that's the case, Devers will not only be his team's MVP, but could be a front-runner for the American League MVP Award.

Team Cy Young will be ...
Eovaldi. The hard-throwing righty was a bulldog for the Red Sox last season, and his confidence seems to grow each year. Eovaldi's command and health are both in a good place, and when he has both of those elements, he is tough to hit.

Bold prediction ...
Bobby Dalbec is going to be the 35-to-40 homer slugging monster that many people felt he would be a year ago. In his rookie year, Dalbec endured his lumps and still went deep 25 times. Now he knows the rhythms and the adjustments it takes to succeed at the highest level. If Dalbec does consistent damage in the seventh spot in the batting order, the Red sox are going to be a team no pitching staff will want to face.