The Boston Red Sox once again failed to pick up a win on Tuesday, falling 7-6 to the Atlanta Braves. The team’s ongoing offensive slump has seemingly broken its back. Despite that, Boston is still trying to rebuild its offensive rhythm, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa is right at the center of it.

With Trevor Story sidelined due to injuries, the veteran utility man has been getting a lot of opportunities. On Sunday against the Twins, Isiah narrowly missed a walk-off three-run homer before going 2-for-3 with a homer, three RBIs, and a walk against the Braves.

When asked to comment on his recent performances, Falefa highlighted the struggles, “I’m fighting for my career, I’m fighting for my life, I’m scrapping for every at-bat I can get.”

“Understanding I’m getting older and my playing time has been cut, I’m not even playing at all, so I’m in there fighting for my life, fighting for my career, and this is a situation I’ve been in most of my career when I wasn’t playing every day, and it’s kind of the same answer it’s been. So it’s nice for them to give me an opportunity and I’m helping the team, but I wish I could do more,” he added.

Since joining the Boston Red Sox, the veteran utility man has been given limited opportunities to show his potential. Through the team’s first 53 games, he has logged just 54 at-bats. Despite that limited opportunity, Isiah is averaging .278 with a .720 OPS.

Still, the Red Sox can’t be blamed entirely for not giving him opportunities, as he started April ice-cold at the plate. However, he has since turned things around, recording seven hits in his last 13 at-bats.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa Sounds Off on Red Sox Managerial Shake-Up

The Red Sox made a major managerial change this season after firing long-time skipper Alex Cora back in April. Following that, Chad Tracy was promoted to take over as interim manager, while John Soteropulos was named the team’s new lead hitting coach.

Although the team is yet to find any momentum, Falefa believes that the new coaches can change the team around.

“The new hitting coaches have been doing a great job at trying to elevate the ball to left field, so to get some results is showing that all the work that I’ve been putting in is working,” Kiner-Falefa said. “They understand where I’m at in my career, and I’m giving them the full leeway to help me develop."

“That’s the reason I signed here, to develop as a hitter. I wanted to be like Marcus Semien when he turned 31, he started hitting pull-side homers,” he continued. “So I’ve got a long way to go, but it’s just a start, and I feel like I’m still at the right place, I just, you know, we just need to win more ballgames.”

Will there be any change, or will the slump continue? Well, time will tell. With that said, what are your thoughts on the team?

Read more at the New York Yankees Community!

Written by

Suryakant Das

Edited by

Koushik Biswas