Red Sox 2025 Season Review/Offseason Preview Thread

[moonslav59]

Alex Speier was on the latest soxprospects.com's podcast and said some encouraging things about the Sox looking to upgrade the top of the rotation with someone better than Gio, while also adding a power bat.

He talked about how the Sox could easily have a AAA 5 man rotation of capable 5th starters, and how the Sox are well positioned to make trades with teams looking to rebuild (prospects) or to compete in 2026 (Duran/Abreu or pitching depth.)

"Giant question marks:" Casas, Mayer and Campbell. We are no longer "waiting on a prospect," except maybe with pitching. We are waiting for players who already have some experience to "make the next step in their development and where are we going to chose to upgrade from outside the system."

[Nick]

17 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

Alex Speier was on the latest soxprospects.com's podcast and said some encouraging things about the Sox looking to upgrade the top of the rotation with someone better than Gio, while also adding a power bat.

He talked about how the Sox could easily have a AAA 5 man rotation of capable 5th starters, and how the Sox are well positioned to make trades with teams looking to rebuild (prospects) or to compete in 2026 (Duran/Abreu or pitching depth.)

"Giant question marks:" Casas, Mayer and Campbell. We are no longer "waiting on a prospect," except maybe with pitching. We are waiting for players who already have some experience to "make the next step in their development and where are we going to chose to upgrade from outside the system."

If Bres doesn't understand the 'it' factor that Crochet added to the Sox organization then he's learned NOTHING. You have Anthony on the positional side, you need to build around Crochet and NOT with slew of #5 pitchers, and I consider Bello and Giolito (stupid signing in my opinion, how many rehab years are we paying for this guy?) to be the latter.

Walker and Giolito salaries will pay for the Crochet's new contract. We have the sunken cost of Sandoval to take over the 'Walker' experiment. 

I would rather go with the outfield trio of Anthony, Rafaela and Password if that means we can acquire Skubal.  

Trade for Skubal, extend him and pick up a legit power bat (and I'm not talking about Bregman).

[moonslav59]

2 minutes ago, Nick said:

If Bres doesn't understand the 'it' factor that Crochet added to the Sox organization then he's learned NOTHING. You have Anthony on the positional side, you need to build around Crochet and NOT with slew of #5 pitchers, and I consider Bello and Giolito (stupid signing in my opinion, how many rehab years are we paying for this guy?) to be the latter.

Walker and Giolito salaries will pay for the Crochet's new contract. We have the sunken cost of Sandoval to take over the 'Walker' experiment. 

I would rather go with the outfield trio of Anthony, Rafaela and Password if that means we can acquire Skubal.  

Skubal has one year left and will take an extension much higher than Crochet's. I'm not sure I'd so a trade for him, unless he extends, first. You rarely see those deals anymore.

Crochet had 2 years left and was able to be extended at a reasonable rate.

[Randy Red Sox]

On 10/19/2025 at 10:31 AM, moonslav59 said:

I have mentioned the Devers dump and short term Breggie deal as keeping the spending doubts alive, but we cannot deny the fact that spending habits have changed in the last year or two.

We went several years after the Nate & Sale extensions/re-signings seeing very cheap spending trends. The Story and Yoshida signings were not all that large or long, and paled against the backdrop of losing Betts, JD, Price, Porcello and then Bogey with no comparable replacement spending.

I'm not projecting more spending. None of us know what JH will do next, but a change has happened, and in my opinion, it began with the Devers extension and a one step up signing of Giolito to 2 years after only 1 year deals for years. There were also extensions given to Rafaela & Bello that we had not really seen in that manner, before. The Crochet deal was the biggest since the Sale trade, and his extension cannot be overlooked. He's making near Price money and for 5 years. Yes, the Devers dump undid much of what looked like a major step up, and the Bregman opt out clause could easily have just been a sham signing to quiet the knowledgeable Sox fans that were getting angry and vocal, but there was more spending than just Bregman and Devers. Buehler's $21M/1 deal was double the $10M/1 trend we had seen, and it was done in light of Gio still being on the books and a second significant signing of Sandoval to $19M/2- another non one year signing. While we stepped down on pen spending by replacing higher costing Jansen and Martin with Chapman & Wilson, we actually got more from them. To me, the extensions to Anthony and Campbell solidifies the position that a clear change has taken place, regardless of the Devers and Bregman losses.

Again, JH might revert back to the 2020-2023 philosophy, and I will not be shocked. Upset, yes, but not surprised. As Frank Zappa would say, "I figure the odds be 50-50." on JH's winter budget plans. I'm holding out hope we spend at least up to the tax line, which might be $40-45M, and if we can somehow dump some salary from Yoshida or Hicks, or gain a few millions by trading Duran ($8M,) Campbell ($7.5)  and or Rafaela ($6.3M) maybe we can spend over $50M and pay no tax.

I would not be shocked if we spend up to the second line, since I have to think JH & Co. must recognize we have a wide open window for 2026 and beyond. A few targeted and successful additions could additions could get us to the top and for more than just 1-2 years.

Some of us will be very angry, if they drop the ball.

the true fact of the matter no matter how you slice and dice the Sox were once in the top 3-4 in MLB payroll and are now somewhere between 10-14 in MLB payroll. Most fans feel the Devers extension was simply as a result of letting Mookie get away. Yes it turned out that Devers had a poor attitude but if Bregman leaves the Devers dump will hurt everywhere except JH's pocketbook. Had Bregman not been brought in Devers likely would not have gone off the deep end as he did.

It has been JH's strategy for a few years now to build the roster from the strong group of prospects and add a few 1-2 yr FA signings along with taking gambles on rehabbing SP most if not all that have failed miserably. How much $$ were wasted on P who never made a contribution ?  The trade for Crochet was brilliant and it was important to lock him up long term and I applaud that move. Still we need at least 1 more TOP SP if we are truly going to contend. We are also going to need AT LEAST 1 power bat and 2 if Bregman leaves.

[Larry Cook]

On 10/23/2025 at 1:04 PM, moonslav59 said:

The betting odds favor a guy named Tristan Casas as our 2026 1Bman with Romy/KC as depth.

The odds favor Yoshida/Romy at DH for 2026.

The odds favor Mayer at 3B or 2B for 2026.

The slot that is wide open is the one Mayer does not play: 2B or 3B.

Bres-slow says he wants to improve the infield  defense! 
can we really keep story at short?  Seems like in 2024 story was less a liability at 2nd base! 

defensively Mayer looks good at 3b. Yes he was rushed to the majors, but if he improves the strike out rate, he could be an answer  

I believe Casas has 1 remaining option if he were to start the 2026 season at Worcester. Which may be best thing for him long term. 
 

 

[Larry Cook]

On 10/24/2025 at 11:01 AM, moonslav59 said:

Skubal has one year left and will take an extension much higher than Crochet's. I'm not sure I'd so a trade for him, unless he extends, first. You rarely see those deals anymore.

Crochet had 2 years left and was able to be extended at a reasonable rate.

The Detroit reporters said skubal will not sign an extension and is focused on entering free agency

[moonslav59]

2 hours ago, Randy Red Sox said:

the true fact of the matter no matter how you slice and dice the Sox were once in the top 3-4 in MLB payroll and are now somewhere between 10-14 in MLB payroll. Most fans feel the Devers extension was simply as a result of letting Mookie get away. Yes it turned out that Devers had a poor attitude but Bregman leaves the Devers dump will hurt everywhere except JH's pocketbook. Had Bregman not been brought in Devers likely would not have gone off the deep end as he did.

It has been JH's strategy for a few years now to build the roster from the strong group of prospects and add a few 1-2 yr FA signings along with taking gambles on rehabbing SP most if not all that have failed miserably. How much $$ were wasted on P who never made a contribution ?  The trade for Crochet was brilliant and it was important to lock him up long term and I applaud that move. Still we need at least 1 more TOP SP if we are truly going to contend. We are also going to need AT LEAST 1 power bat and 2 if Bregman leaves.

All true. I've been saying we need 3 top quality players for a long time- a SP and 2 power bats (1B, 2B/3B.)

I have never defended JH & Co. for spending less than other teams, especially since 2020. I've never denied that he CAN spend more but has chosen not to do so, for the most part. I have been known to point out that his past was full of ups and downs in spending. There was some complaining, but as long as the rings kept coming every 3-5 years, we were pretty much okay with it. Now that 7 years have ticked away, and we've watched all our biggest stars walk away or be traded, we have rightfully become angry or frustrated. The lack of spending only multiplies that anger.

These are fact, too: we cut over $20M from 2009 (1/7th) and from 2012 to 2013 (1/9th). We made a massive cut from 2019 to 2020, but that wasn't the end of it. What has been overlooked a little is that the Sox also upped spending by $20M+ from 2021 to 2022 and from 2024 to 2025, but since so many other teams had jumped their spending significantly, we have not been a top 10 spender since 2022. (Yes, we were #6 in 2022.) Had we stayed the same as 2022 spending in 2023, we'd have still dropped out of the top 10. That's no excuse, but it does show that a major reason we have dropped in the rankings is more about other teams spending way more than JH spending way less. Another example that emphasizes this is that JH spent $23M more in '24  than '25 but we only went from #13 to #12. He followed that up with a $22M uptick and went from #12 to #11, according to Steve the Ump.

Again, I am not defending JH & Co. The team makes a ton of revenue- more than 27 other teams! We should be a top 3-4 spending team, of at least a top 6 team. There is no excuse. I'll never agree that it's okay not to spend top 6. (There is a big drop from #6 to #7.)

According to cots, our CB Tax line for 2025 was $246M, which ranks 7th, but with Devers, Bregman, Buehler, Gio and a few smaller deals off the books, this winter, we are right back to square one- wondering what the hell JH is going to do. I have zero expectations that he will spend a lot. I'm hoping he at least agrees to spend up to the tax line, and that might be just enough to barely meet our biggest needs, but I won't be shocked if he doesn't.

I'd love to see us spend up to the second line, but that would be at a year two tax rate. Horrors!

I agree that we have wasted money trying to go cheap on pitching, although we did spend $40M on Buehler + Sandoval, which is 3-4 times what we've spent on pitching since the Sale & Nate extensions.

We need to do better, and I think we have to follow the Crochet, Sale, Schilling and Pedro model- trade for one, then extend him. Use the budget space to sign 2 big bats. Forget the 4-5 mediocre additions: go bold and just add 3 of the highest quality players we can get vis trade and $pending.

[moonslav59]

13 minutes ago, Larry Cook said:

The Detroit reporters said skubal will not sign an extension and is focused on entering free agency

Then, a resounding NO on trading for him. If we want him that badly, sign him next winter.

[moonslav59]

16 minutes ago, Larry Cook said:

Bres-slow says he wants to improve the infield  defense! 
can we really keep story at short?  Seems like in 2024 story was less a liability at 2nd base! 

defensively Mayer looks good at 3b. Yes he was rushed to the majors, but if he improves the strike out rate, he could be an answer  

I believe Casas has 1 remaining option if he were to start the 2026 season at Worcester. Which may be best thing for him long term. 
 

 

Casas has 3 options, according to sp.com.

I'm sure Cora believes Story is the best defensive SS in MLB, so I'm not sure how Brez gets Story to 2B. He couldn't even get the no brainer Devers to 1B done.

I'd be fine with Mayer at SS and Story at 2B, too. I'm not so sure about Story at 3B, but if we traded for KMarte, I'd be okay with Story at 3B, Mayer at SS, K Marte at 2B and someone new at 1B. Hopefully, we get a bid power bat at 1B, but that would require outbidding everyone for Alonso or Suarez.

[Larry Cook]

1 minute ago, moonslav59 said:

We need to do better, and I think we have to follow the Crochet, Sale, Schilling and Pedro model- trade for one, then extend him. Use the budget space to sign 2 big bats. Forget the 4-5 mediocre additions: go bold and just add 3 of the highest quality players we can get vis trade and $pending.

The most viable option for us is to develop our own pipeline of starters. We have a bunch of quality arms in the pipeline, Tolle, early, Witherspoon, fitts and dobbins just to name a few. 
 

Trading quality veterans with something in the tank, but on short contracts is the least expensive way to give the prospects extra time to develop, and keep us a playoff team! 
 

we need to stay away from expensive huge free agent contracts for starters that we pray can still pitch by the end of their contract. 

[Randy Red Sox]

7 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

All true. I've been saying we need 3 top quality players for a long time- a SP and 2 power bats (1B, 2B/3B.)

I have never defended JH & Co. for spending less than other teams, especially since 2020. I've never denied that he CAN spend more but has chosen not to do so, for the most part. I have been known to point out that his past was full of ups and downs in spending. There was some complaining, but as long as the rings kept coming every 3-5 years, we were pretty much okay with it. Now that 7 years have ticked away, and we've watched all our biggest stars walk away or be traded, we have rightfully become angry or frustrated. The lack of spending only multiplies that anger.

These are fact, too: we cut over $20M from 2009 (1/7th) and from 2012 to 2013 (1/9th). We made a massive cut from 2019 to 2020, but that wasn't the end of it. What has been overlooked a little is that the Sox also upped spending by $20M+ from 2021 to 2022 and from 2024 to 2025, but since so many other teams had jumped their spending significantly, we have not been a top 10 spender since 2022. (Yes, we were #6 in 2022.) Had we stayed the same as 2022 spending in 2023, we'd have still dropped out of the top 10. That's no excuse, but it does show that a major reason we have dropped in the rankings is more about other teams spending way more than JH spending way less. Another example that emphasizes this is that JH spent $23M more in '24  than '25 but we only went from #13 to #12. He followed that up with a $22M uptick and went from #12 to #11, according to Steve the Ump.

Again, I am not defending JH & Co. The team makes a ton of revenue- more than 27 other teams! We should be a top 3-4 spending team, of at least a top 6 team. There is no excuse. I'll never agree that it's okay not to spend top 6. (There is a big drop from #6 to #7.)

According to cots, our CB Tax line for 2025 was $246M, which ranks 7th, but with Devers, Bregman, Buehler, Gio and a few smaller deals off the books, this winter, we are right back to square one- wondering what the hell JH is going to do. I have zero expectations that he will spend a lot. I'm hoping he at least agrees to spend up to the tax line, and that might be just enough to barely meet our biggest needs, but I won't be shocked if he doesn't.

I'd love to see us spend up to the second line, but that would be at a year two tax rate. Horrors!

I agree that we have wasted money trying to go cheap on pitching, although we did spend $40M on Buehler + Sandoval, which is 3-4 times what we've spent on pitching since the Sale & Nate extensions.

We need to do better, and I think we have to follow the Crochet, Sale, Schilling and Pedro model- trade for one, then extend him. Use the budget space to sign 2 big bats. Forget the 4-5 mediocre additions: go bold and just add 3 of the highest quality players we can get vis trade and $pending.

i agree with pretty much all of what you have stated.

[Larry Cook]

3 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

Casas has 3 options, according to sp.com.

I'm sure Cora believes Story is the best defensive SS in MLB, so I'm not sure how Brez gets Story to 2B. He couldn't even get the no brainer Devers to 1B done.

I'd be fine with Mayer at SS and Story at 2B, too. I'm not so sure about Story at 3B, but if we traded for KMarte, I'd be okay with Story at 3B, Mayer at SS, K Marte at 2B and someone new at 1B. Hopefully, we get a bid power bat at 1B, but that would require outbidding everyone for Alonso or Suarez.

Do we need a power bat at DH or first base. 
 

the albatross yoshida is the contract we need to move this offseason 

[moonslav59]

18 hours ago, Larry Cook said:

The most viable option for us is to develop our own pipeline of starters. We have a bunch of quality arms in the pipeline, Tolle, early, Witherspoon, fitts and dobbins just to name a few. 
 

Trading quality veterans with something in the tank, but on short contracts is the least expensive way to give the prospects extra time to develop, and keep us a playoff team! 
 

we need to stay away from expensive huge free agent contracts for starters that we pray can still pitch by the end of their contract. 

I'm not for signing a FA, pitcher this winter, and not just because none jump out at me as sure fire SP'ers. I've mentioned Merrill Kelly on a 2 year deal as an option, but I'd like to see us trade for Greene, Lodolo or maybe Ryan.

Spend on big bats. I'm with Drew and others on letting the defense take care of itself, except that I do not think signing a DH only bopper as the best idea. (Better than nothing, though.)

If all we have is $40-45M to spend this winter, I'd do this...

Alonso (1B/DH) or Suarez (3B/1B)

2B: Torres, B Lowe, Castro, Rengifo (3B?) or Moncada (3B/2B) If no 1Bman from line one, then maybe Hoskins, Naylor, O'Hearn or Bell

Matz or the like.

I guess I'd be okay with Bichette and Hoskins, but it's no big upgrade on power.

I doubt we can get Bichette & Suarez for under $45M AAV, unless we defer a bunch of cash. 

 

[Dirtywater433]

On 10/25/2025 at 4:20 PM, moonslav59 said:

Casas has 3 options, according to sp.com.

I'm sure Cora believes Story is the best defensive SS in MLB, so I'm not sure how Brez gets Story to 2B. He couldn't even get the no brainer Devers to 1B done.

I'd be fine with Mayer at SS and Story at 2B, too. I'm not so sure about Story at 3B, but if we traded for KMarte, I'd be okay with Story at 3B, Mayer at SS, K Marte at 2B and someone new at 1B. Hopefully, we get a bid power bat at 1B, but that would require outbidding everyone for Alonso or Suarez.

It doesn't really matter what Cora believes though. It's up to Breslow. The reason why Devers moved to DH last year and wasn't at third base to start the year last year was because of Breslow. The Red Sox front office rightly put a stop to Devers running and ruining this organization because of his pride. He got out of control and got traded because of it.

Story is a guy who follows orders. He wanted to play short stop, but it won't take long to explain to him that he isn't that guy anymore. He's probably aware of it because of age and injuries. I think he'll take a lot more self awareness than Devers did. Hell, any player with a brain would.

f***ing Devers. The Sox are looking to get a guy like him, he played first base with a positive DRS and defensive numbers at first. What an ahole. He sabotaged the whole 5 year plan for the organization. Now the Sox have a s*** Jordan Hicks contract and Harrison. 

The Sox have to wait for Bryce Harper to finally get available and hope the Phillies take Yoshida in a deal back.

[Dirtywater433]

5 minutes ago, Dirtywater433 said:

It doesn't really matter what Cora believes though. It's up to Breslow. The reason why Devers moved to DH last year and wasn't at third base to start the year last year was because of Breslow. The Red Sox front office rightly put a stop to Devers running and ruining this organization because of his pride. He got out of control and got traded because of it.

Story is a guy who follows orders. He wanted to play short stop, but it won't take long to explain to him that he isn't that guy anymore. He's probably aware of it because of age and injuries. I think he'll take a lot more self awareness than Devers did. Hell, any player with a brain would.

f***ing Devers. The Sox are looking to get a guy like him, he played first base with a positive DRS and defensive numbers at first. What an ahole. He sabotaged the whole 5 year plan for the organization. Now the Sox have a s*** Jordan Hicks contract and Harrison. 

The Sox have to wait for Bryce Harper to finally get available and hope the Phillies take Yoshida in a deal back.

Also I don't know why Casas keeps being brought up. He's going to be 26. He's an unathletic slow moving DH at this point. A guy who needs to slug his way to playing time. He's hardly hit in his time in MLB. He has a career .241 batting average. One hot stretch in 3 years. He's injury prone and he's coming off a knee injury similar to the John Valentine injury.

I don't expect anything from Casas ever again. He's a folk lore legend at this point.

[moonslav59]

23 minutes ago, Dirtywater433 said:

Also I don't know why Casas keeps being brought up. He's going to be 26. He's an unathletic slow moving DH at this point. A guy who needs to slug his way to playing time. He's hardly hit in his time in MLB. He has a career .241 batting average. One hot stretch in 3 years. He's injury prone and he's coming off a knee injury similar to the John Valentine injury.

I don't expect anything from Casas ever again. He's a folk lore legend at this point.

BA is so out of style.

Casas has hit way more than one hot streak.

He's been over .766 in 3 of his 4 seasons, although 1 of those 3 was just 27 games (the .766 season.) However, the oner season he did not hit over .766 was 29 games long.

He's hit over .800 in his two longest seasons. Both of those seasons, he had OBPs above .337 and SLG above .462.

Those two seasons combined totaled 745 PAs with an .838 OPS w 37 HRs. I'll take the .256 BA or even .240, if he hits 30+ Hrs and has an OPS over .800. You should, too. (127 OPS+)

So, one hot streak?

2022: .441 in first 14 games and 1.069 in last 13 games- 1 hot streak

2023: .580 in first 29 games and .931 last 103 games- 2nd hot streak and 103 games long! (Over 3 x as long as the cold streak)

2024: .682 in first 11 games and .828 in last 52 games- 3rd hot streak and way longer than the cold one.

2015: .466 in first 21 games and .800 in the 8 games right before going on the IL. I won't count that as hot streak #4, and it was shorter than the cold streak, but basically...

Casas has had 4 cold streaks of 14, 29, 11 and 21 games long. That's 85 out of his 251 game career. Sure, he might be the next Dalbec, but Bobby D didn't have 251 games within hot streaks.

Look, he may never hit well, again, but we don't have to pretend he was a streaky hitter with long cold snaps.

 

[Behindenemylines]

On 10/25/2025 at 3:59 PM, Larry Cook said:

Bres-slow says he wants to improve the infield  defense! 
can we really keep story at short?  Seems like in 2024 story was less a liability at 2nd base! 

defensively Mayer looks good at 3b. Yes he was rushed to the majors, but if he improves the strike out rate, he could be an answer  

I believe Casas has 1 remaining option if he were to start the 2026 season at Worcester. Which may be best thing for him long term. 
 

 

A number 2 starter is top priority as the wild card playoffs showed. I think trading for one is the best route. Right now Ryan and Peralta might be the best fits, Where Mayer plays depends on Bregman. Everyone says Casis can't stay healthy, but Mayer's last three seasons have ended with injuries. He has flahed the skill set needed to be an effective major leaguer, but he needs to stay on the field. Not disagreeing about Casis starting 2026 with Woo Sox, and signing someone to start year at first that could be traded when Casis is ready to be productive, 

[moonslav59]

34 minutes ago, Behindenemylines said:

A number 2 starter is top priority as the wild card playoffs showed. I think trading for one is the best route. Right now Ryan and Peralta might be the best fits, Where Mayer plays depends on Bregman. Everyone says Casis can't stay healthy, but Mayer's last three seasons have ended with injuries. He has flahed the skill set needed to be an effective major leaguer, but he needs to stay on the field. Not disagreeing about Casis starting 2026 with Woo Sox, and signing someone to start year at first that could be traded when Casis is ready to be productive, 

The Casas injury is very hard to come back from. With Mayer, it's been different injuries, but none career threatening.

I'd trade Duran and Sandlin for Lodolo.

Sign one of these pairs:

Bregman (3B) and Suarez (1B)- Mayer/Romy plays 2B

Suarez (3B) and Hoskins (1B)- Mayer/Romy plays 2B

Alonso (1B) and Torres (2B) Castro (2B) Rengifo (2B) or B Lowe (2B)- Mayer/Romy plays 3B

KMart (2B via trade) and Suarez/Hoskins (1B)- Mayer/Romy at 3B

Maybe bring back Matz & Refsnyder, too.

[Dirtywater433]

1 hour ago, moonslav59 said:

BA is so out of style.

Casas has hit way more than one hot streak.

He's been over .766 in 3 of his 4 seasons, although 1 of those 3 was just 27 games (the .766 season.) However, the oner season he did not hit over .766 was 29 games long.

He's hit over .800 in his two longest seasons. Both of those seasons, he had OBPs above .337 and SLG above .462.

Those two seasons combined totaled 745 PAs with an .838 OPS w 37 HRs. I'll take the .256 BA or even .240, if he hits 30+ Hrs and has an OPS over .800. You should, too. (127 OPS+)

So, one hot streak?

2022: .441 in first 14 games and 1.069 in last 13 games- 1 hot streak

2023: .580 in first 29 games and .931 last 103 games- 2nd hot streak and 103 games long! (Over 3 x as long as the cold streak)

2024: .682 in first 11 games and .828 in last 52 games- 3rd hot streak and way longer than the cold one.

2015: .466 in first 21 games and .800 in the 8 games right before going on the IL. I won't count that as hot streak #4, and it was shorter than the cold streak, but basically...

Casas has had 4 cold streaks of 14, 29, 11 and 21 games long. That's 85 out of his 251 game career. Sure, he might be the next Dalbec, but Bobby D didn't have 251 games within hot streaks.

Look, he may never hit well, again, but we don't have to pretend he was a streaky hitter with long cold snaps.

 

Batting average is a bad stat to prove a good hitter or bad hitter. It just kind of proves he can't rely on contact because batting average isn't a part of his game. One less tool. The hit tool is a tool. He draws a walk. He puts up a good at bat at times. He has some power (we don't know the ceiling because he never stays healthy).

Your post kind of proved my point. He has one good streak over 3 weeks long in a major league career. He was suspect before the injury. His injury is the type of injury that ends careers. Which is the reason why I cited John Valentine. All the tendons detached from his knee. One set back and he's missing 2026. 

I don't want the Sox falling into the trap of thinking Cassas is any part of any plans. Forget him. It's almost easier to non tender him because the Sox need 40 man roster spots this off-season. They have a lot of talent that needs to be protected from the rule 5 draft. They need some free agent additions. (Left handed reliever, Bregman, first base). 

You non tender Houck and Casas, you have around 5 million saved. That gets you around a Steven Matz re-signed, who's doing more for you in 2026. One bird in the hand beats two in the stone. The saying.

This is the kind of post that got me banned from Soxprospects.com forum. They don't want to hear this.

[moonslav59]

18 minutes ago, Dirtywater433 said:

Batting average is a bad stat to prove a good hitter or bad hitter. It just kind of proves he can't rely on contact because batting average isn't a part of his game. One less tool. The hit tool is a tool. He draws a walk. He puts up a good at bat at times. He has some power (we don't know the ceiling because he never stays healthy).

Your post kind of proved my point. He has one good streak over 3 weeks long in a major league career. He was suspect before the injury. His injury is the type of injury that ends careers. Which is the reason why I cited John Valentine. All the tendons detached from his knee. One set back and he's missing 2026. 

I don't want the Sox falling into the trap of thinking Cassas is any part of any plans. Forget him. It's almost easier to non tender him because the Sox need 40 man roster spots this off-season. They have a lot of talent that needs to be protected from the rule 5 draft. They need some free agent additions. (Left handed reliever, Bregman, first base). 

You non tender Houck and Casas, you have around 5 million saved. That gets you around a Steven Matz re-signed, who's doing more for you in 2026. One bird in the hand beats two in the stone. The saying.

This is the kind of post that got me banned from Soxprospects.com forum. They don't want to hear this.

One 3 week streak? I found one over 100 games long. Try 3+ months.

I may disagree with you, but you won't get banned from here for posts like these.

We don't have much talent that needs Rule 5 protection. One could argue Sandlin is borderline.

To me, we can easily get down to 36 players while keeping Casas, Houck and Sandlin. Say good bye to Grissom & N Lowe.

Keep one from Kelly and Guerrero.

Keep Sogard over Eaton.

Keep two from Criswell, Wink, Moran and Murphy (the first 3 have zero options)

That's an easy 36. Leave room for 4 FAs. 

Houck was our ace in '24. Casas is the only guy on our roster who has averaged 30 Hrs per 650 and an .800+ OPS. You wanna keep Sogard and eaton over him?

[mvp 78]

14 hours ago, Dirtywater433 said:

They have a lot of talent that needs to be protected from the rule 5 draft.

I'm not so sure this year. 

Bleis - too far away and the on field performance has been lacking

Castro - not losing sleep if someone takes him

Drohan - if selected for the 2nd time he doesn't come back, injury prone

Hoppe - could be a reliever at some point, but not reliable right now

Monegro - injured

Mullins - maybe, lots of injuries, probably selected though

Paez - ended the season injured and far away

Sandlin - similar to Slaten MiLB numbers, could pop but has been rough

Uberstine - depth starter, but not a guy typically selected

The two guys that there are decisions on are Mullins and Sandlin. I could see the Sox protecting either or trading either prior to the Rule 5 deadline. There are some issues with both. Everyone else are either unlikely to get drafted or would probably be returned to the Sox if they had to appear on a MLB roster. 

[mvp 78]

Also, the Sox don't typically non-tender guys. We always try to project a guy or two, but they end up picking up everyone's contract. 

[moonslav59]

2 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

I'm not so sure this year. 

Bleis - too far away and the on field performance has been lacking

Castro - not losing sleep if someone takes him

Drohan - if selected for the 2nd time he doesn't come back, injury prone

Hoppe - could be a reliever at some point, but not reliable right now

Monegro - injured

Mullins - maybe, lots of injuries, probably selected though

Paez - ended the season injured and far away

Sandlin - similar to Slaten MiLB numbers, could pop but has been rough

Uberstine - depth starter, but not a guy typically selected

The two guys that there are decisions on are Mullins and Sandlin. I could see the Sox protecting either or trading either prior to the Rule 5 deadline. There are some issues with both. Everyone else are either unlikely to get drafted or would probably be returned to the Sox if they had to appear on a MLB roster. 

And when you look at the bubble players already on the 40 that could be traded or DFA'd without much worry, IMO there is no major 40 man roster crunch.

Kelly or Guerrero

Out of options: Grissom, Criswell, Winckowski, Moran

Salary dumps: Masa & Hicks

Trade? Murphy, DHam, Eaton or Sogard

 

[notin]

15 hours ago, Behindenemylines said:

A number 2 starter is top priority as the wild card playoffs showed. I think trading for one is the best route. Right now Ryan and Peralta might be the best fits, Where Mayer plays depends on Bregman. Everyone says Casis can't stay healthy, but Mayer's last three seasons have ended with injuries. He has flahed the skill set needed to be an effective major leaguer, but he needs to stay on the field. Not disagreeing about Casis starting 2026 with Woo Sox, and signing someone to start year at first that could be traded when Casis is ready to be productive, 

The Brewers had the best record in MLB and have an extremely cheap $8mill team option for Peralta.  If he is available, it won’t be until July 31st.

Ryan has already been available.  I see no reason for that to change…

[mvp 78]

3 minutes ago, notin said:

The Brewers had the best record in MLB and have an extremely cheap $8mill team option for Peralta.  If he is available, it won’t be until July 31st.

Ryan has already been available.  I see no reason for that to change…

Other teams should check in on Crochet and see if he's available. Sox have lots of holes to fill! 

[notin]

3 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

And when you look at the bubble players already on the 40 that could be traded or DFA'd without much worry, IMO there is no major 40 man roster crunch.

Kelly or Guerrero

Out of options: Grissom, Criswell, Winckowski, Moran

Salary dumps: Masa & Hicks

Trade? Murphy, DHam, Eaton or Sogard

 

Trading fringey 40 man players before the draft is tougher simply because every team has the same limit in the number of roster spots.  Even Miami and Pittsburgh are not so eager to dedicate 40 man roster spots to Sogard types ahead of their own prospects.

On soxprospects, the Sox have 38 spots filled. They also still have numerous players still listed as being on the 60 day IL, several of whom are strong candidates to be added, including Houck, Crawford, Dobbins, Sandoval, Casas, Guerrero and Mayer and some fringey ones including Winckowski, Criswell and Grissom. (Criswell feels like the most likely add of these three, but they might DFA him and try to re-sign him to an MiLB deal.)

But several roster spots will open up after the World Series when players declare free agency.  Bregman, Refsnyder, Matz, Giolito, May, and Wilson will do this.

In early December, the Sox likely add Sandlin and no one else.  The long shot might be Noah Song, who is now about 28 years old but did climb through the minors fairly quickly last year.  
 

There is no roster crunch….

[moonslav59]

1 minute ago, notin said:

Trading fringey 40 man players before the draft is tougher simply because every team has the same limit in the number of roster spots.  Even Miami and Pittsburgh are not so eager to dedicate 40 man roster spots to Sogard types ahead of their own prospects.

On soxprospects, the Sox have 38 spots filled. They also still have numerous players still listed as being on the 60 day IL, several of whom are strong candidates to be added, including Houck, Crawford, Dobbins, Sandoval, Casas, Guerrero and Mayer and some fringey ones including Winckowski, Criswell and Grissom. (Criswell feels like the most likely add of these three, but they might DFA him and try to re-sign him to an MiLB deal.)

But several roster spots will open up after the World Series when players declare free agency.  Bregman, Refsnyder, Matz, Giolito, May, and Wilson will do this.

In early December, the Sox likely add Sandlin and no one else.  The long shot might be Noah Song, who is now about 28 years old but did climb through the minors fairly quickly last year.  
 

There is no roster crunch….

We may be able to sneak a couple guys through waivers, but if someone claims out-of-options Grissom, Moran, Wink or Criswell, will we feel crushed?

Same with players with options like Kelly, Guerrero, Eaton and maybe Sogard.

I would not shed a tear if we DFA Hicks or even Masa, but I think we could trade them by paying 70-90% of their contracts. (That could add a handful of $M of dollars to the winter budget.)

I could also see a trade like Duran + Dandlin for Lodolo which would free up one more slot. Maybe Duran, DHam & a 40 man roster pitcher (Crawford, Dobbins, Fitts, Harrison) for a much better pitcher. I agree, not many teams are looking to add 2 to their 40 man crunch. The Crochet trade was just 2 guys from the 40 plus 2 prospects.

[moonslav59]

7 minutes ago, notin said:

Trading fringey 40 man players before the draft is tougher simply because every team has the same limit in the number of roster spots.  Even Miami and Pittsburgh are not so eager to dedicate 40 man roster spots to Sogard types ahead of their own prospects.

If we really like our "fringey" players that much and are looking for a way to keep them, we can trade 2-3 non fringey players for 1 much better player and open up 1-2 slots.

Duran, Crawford and DHam (barely a step above fringey.)

[notin]

1 minute ago, moonslav59 said:

If we really like our "fringey" players that much and are looking for a way to keep them, we can trade 2-3 non fringey players for 1 much better player and open up 1-2 slots.

Duran, Crawford and DHam (barely a step above fringey.)

I think Hamilton is secure at least until the Rule 5 draft.  In terms of roster spots, I don’t think he is fringey at all.  Especially compared to Winkowski, Criswell and Grissom.

For the Rule 5 draft, the Sox roster will probably have either 39 or 40 players on it.  And I think 40 is far more likely.  I doubt they select anyone this year…

 

[moonslav59]

2 minutes ago, notin said:

I think Hamilton is secure at least until the Rule 5 draft.  In terms of roster spots, I don’t think he is fringey at all.  Especially compared to Winkowski, Criswell and Grissom.

For the Rule 5 draft, the Sox roster will probably have either 39 or 40 players on it.  And I think 40 is far more likely.  I doubt they select anyone this year…

 

I think we add Sandlin and select nobody.

Mullins might be worth adding to the 40, especially if we know we have a 2 or 3 for 1 deal in the making. Once we add FAs, we can always DFA a bubble guy or make another trade.

I think Wink and Criswell have some minor trade value. Trade one for a non 40 man prospect.