Red Sox Pre-Offseason Mega Thread

[moonslav59]

10 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

I don't think any of the extensions were really necessary TBH. This is a team that should be able to afford to keep these guys. It really is only adding an extra 2 years after ARB IF they turn into superstars. Aside from Crochet, these guys haven't shown that ceiling yet. Anthony has had his moments here and there, but IDK.  None of the other guys really needed the extensions to protect them from ARB increases or reaching FA. 

We can keep saying "should be able to keep our best players," but in reality, it doesn't happen.

[mvp 78]

6 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

We can keep saying "should be able to keep our best players," but in reality, it doesn't happen.

Is it because they can't or don't want to? Should I really feel sorry for smol bean John Henry? 

[mvp 78]

7 minutes ago, notin said:

I imagine his breeze through the minors and his extremely favorable scouting reports and rankings factored in at some point.

I do think the Sox tried to mess with his swing, which odds something they really need to stop doing…

For as many favorable scouting reports there were, there were a ton of scouts that were dubious about Campbell as a prospect due to swing. They thought he'd get exploited at higher levels. 

[Old Red]

1 hour ago, mvp 78 said:

I think with him running out of options, it's more likely we see him this year than we did last year. 

In Boston, or elsewhere?

[mvp 78]

9 minutes ago, Old Red said:

In Boston, or elsewhere?

Here. Nobody else will want that contract even if he's hitting 900 in WOO. 

[Hitch]

1 hour ago, mvp 78 said:

Sean McAdam mentioned it on his podcast and maybe in a column. It makes more sense to do that AFTER he's burned through all of his options. 

That's assuming they see a way back for him, which I'm highly sceptical about. I thought it was a pretty sound idea. With luck someone else grabs him and takes the contract. 

[notin]

50 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

For as many favorable scouting reports there were, there were a ton of scouts that were dubious about Campbell as a prospect due to swing. They thought he'd get exploited at higher levels. 

Every prospect has tons of negative reports at some point.  Ever seen that article about a scout’s reports on Ichiro?  I mean, it might be just web lore, but it was also pretty plausible given the criticisms.

At the end of the day, most of the scouting bureau’s did ultimately agree to rank him highly...

[mvp 78]

19 minutes ago, Hitch said:

That's assuming they see a way back for him, which I'm highly sceptical about. I thought it was a pretty sound idea. With luck someone else grabs him and takes the contract. 

Why DFA him now? I guess it doesn't make sense to me except for opening up a roster spot. There are other guys on there I'd move on from first TBH rather than further hurting his ego. 

[mvp 78]

13 minutes ago, notin said:

Every prospect has tons of negative reports at some point.  Ever seen that article about a scout’s reports on Ichiro?  I mean, it might be just web lore, but it was also pretty plausible given the criticisms.

At the end of the day, most of the scouting bureau’s did ultimately agree to rank him highly...

There were enough mixed reviews on Campbell during his ascent to warrant skepticism. This wasn't just a one off Ichiro won't work out type thing. And ultimately, they were right!!!

[Old Red]

28 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Here. Nobody else will want that contract even if he's hitting 900 in WOO. 

Right now I don’t see any position, or spot available to him unless trades, DFA’s, or injuries happen.

[Old Red]

7 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

There were enough mixed reviews on Campbell during his ascent to warrant skepticism. This wasn't just a one off Ichiro won't work out type thing. And ultimately, they were right!!!

Quite a difference between KC, and the Ichiro situation.

[mvp 78]

11 minutes ago, Old Red said:

Right now I don’t see any position, or spot available to him unless trades, DFA’s, or injuries happen.

Of course there's going to be injuries and trades. They could have used a RHB at the end of THIS season! 

[notin]

18 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

There were enough mixed reviews on Campbell during his ascent to warrant skepticism. This wasn't just a one off Ichiro won't work out type thing. And ultimately, they were right!!!

They were right?

He’s 24 years old with two months of MLB.  

[mvp 78]

Just now, notin said:

They were right?

He’s 24 years old with two months of MLB.  

How's it working out for him in AAA? You think if they just put him up in MLB that it would be better? He's been a bust so far after receiving a huge extension and being called one of the best prospects in MiLB. 24 months later, we're talking about DFA'ing him. 

[moonslav59]

1 hour ago, mvp 78 said:

Is it because they can't or don't want to? Should I really feel sorry for smol bean John Henry? 

IMO, it's because JH doesn't want to pay bigly, esspecially for 30+ y/o players.

I don't feel sorry for JH, and I'm not asking anyone to, either.

[moonslav59]

26 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Why DFA him now? I guess it doesn't make sense to me except for opening up a roster spot. There are other guys on there I'd move on from first TBH rather than further hurting his ego. 

I think the wish is someone takes the contract you and others think should not have been given to him.

[mvp 78]

10 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

IMO, it's because JH doesn't want to pay bigly, esspecially for 30+ y/o players.

I don't feel sorry for JH, and I'm not asking anyone to, either.

They still end up paying though! Sometimes overpaying too since now it is harder to move some of these guys. They probably could have traded Bello last offseason, but his value is diminished due to the contract. Save on these smaller contracts and just hold out for the guys that are really worth it (superstars like Betts). The FO believed that extensions reduced the risk of higher ARB rates and players leaving, but didn't consider "what if the guys just don't reach their potential and we want to move on from them at some point?"

[Old Red]

18 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Of course there's going to be injuries and trades. They could have used a RHB at the end of THIS season! 

Yes, and it was a telltale they didn’t bring KC up"

 

[Old Red]

1 minute ago, mvp 78 said:

They still end up paying though! Sometimes overpaying too since now it is harder to move some of these guys. They probably could have traded Bello last offseason, but his value is diminished due to the contract. Save on these smaller contracts and just hold out for the guys that are really worth it (superstars like Betts). The FO believed that extensions reduced the risk of higher ARB rates and players leaving, but didn't consider "what if the guys just don't reach their potential and we want to move on from them at some point?"

Good points. 

[mvp 78]

12 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

I think the wish is someone takes the contract you and others think should not have been given to him.

Nobody is going to do that and you've further damaged KC's brand for no reason. 

His cap hit goes up to 8.75 when traded. Teams would probably want the Sox to deal him and eat salary if anything. 

[Old Red]

15 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

I think the wish is someone takes the contract you and others think should not have been given to him.

That’s pretty much the growing sentiment out there.

[mvp 78]

3 minutes ago, Old Red said:

Yes, and it was a telltale they didn’t bring KC up"

 

He's not a power hitter. He plays mediocre OF defense. He also has even splits, so isn't a great platoon option. 

[moonslav59]

2 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

He's not a power hitter. He plays mediocre OF defense. He also has even splits, so isn't a great platoon option. 

Yes, he hasn't earned a promotion, and the tell is we went and traded for White and Jones, instead of calling him up.

We called up Eaton over him. Maybe Ward was a head of him on the depth chart.

It's no secret he's fallen. The question is, "Can he get up?"

[mvp 78]

To me, keep KC in WOO. Put him in RF for every game this year. Let him earn his spot and fight his way back to BOS. Maybe year 2 of his revised swing will be better... 

It's clear to me that there are fans, podcasts, media, etc that still have expectations on KC that aren't in line with what he's done on the field since going back down to WOO in '25. Let him at least become a successful AAA player that is knocking down the door before talking about finding a spot for him. Also, there are enough guys in the org without a decent ceiling that the Sox could move on from before DFA'ing KC. I don't believe there is much of a 40 man roster crunch at the moment. 

[mvp 78]

2 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

Yes, he hasn't earned a promotion, and the tell is we went and traded for White and Jones, instead of calling him up.

We called up Eaton over him. Maybe Ward was a head of him on the depth chart.

It's no secret he's fallen. The question is, "Can he get up?"

It's different skillsets with those players IMO. Eaton, White and Ward are speed guys for the bench who can play a little defense. Jones was the defensively challenged platoon bat to replace the injured Romy.

KC is supposed to be an all around guy who is an athletic defender (in the OF) and has a bat that is good enough to keep him in the lineup everyday. He's not near his ceiling at the moment, but it doesn't mean he can't make further improvements. 

[Old Red]

4 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

To me, keep KC in WOO. Put him in RF for every game this year. Let him earn his spot and fight his way back to BOS. Maybe year 2 of his revised swing will be better... 

It's clear to me that there are fans, podcasts, media, etc that still have expectations on KC that aren't in line with what he's done on the field since going back down to WOO in '25. Let him at least become a successful AAA player that is knocking down the door before talking about finding a spot for him. Also, there are enough guys in the org without a decent ceiling that the Sox could move on from before DFA'ing KC. I don't believe there is much of a 40 man roster crunch at the moment. 

I agree, but why in RF?  He definitely needs more seasoning at Woo. I’ve heard interviews with one of the Woo’s broadcasters who says KC still has too many swings, and misses, and still has trouble getting jumps on the ball in the OF.

[notin]

57 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

How's it working out for him in AAA? You think if they just put him up in MLB that it would be better? He's been a bust so far after receiving a huge extension and being called one of the best prospects in MiLB. 24 months later, we're talking about DFA'ing him. 

Well, who is talking about DFAing him?  Us? McAdam?  Are the Sox actually considering it?  And if so, is it solely because of the 40 man roster spot?

Depending on what he was doing and what he was working on in AAA, his numbers might be meaningless.  I seriously doubt they demoted him and said “just do the same thing you were doing and we’ll judge you based solely on batting average.”  He was sent down to make some sort of change, and whatever that change was, it was absolutely going to impact his numbers negatively to some degree…

[moonslav59]

31 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

It's different skillsets with those players IMO. Eaton, White and Ward are speed guys for the bench who can play a little defense. Jones was the defensively challenged platoon bat to replace the injured Romy.

KC is supposed to be an all around guy who is an athletic defender (in the OF) and has a bat that is good enough to keep him in the lineup everyday. He's not near his ceiling at the moment, but it doesn't mean he can't make further improvements. 

You think if KC was a LHB, he'd have been promoted, instead of acquiring Jones?

I don't.

His bat isn't good enough, right now.

His D was never good enough.

We have enough DHs to fill a whole line-up card, already. (Hyperbole alert)

[moonslav59]

28 minutes ago, Old Red said:

I agree, but why in RF?  He definitely needs more seasoning at Woo. I’ve heard interviews with one of the Woo’s broadcasters who says KC still has too many swings, and misses, and still has trouble getting jumps on the ball in the OF.

Maybe because he has speed?

He looks like a DH Only guy to me.

LF in Fenway might be passable to okay.

[notin]

57 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

They still end up paying though! Sometimes overpaying too since now it is harder to move some of these guys. They probably could have traded Bello last offseason, but his value is diminished due to the contract. Save on these smaller contracts and just hold out for the guys that are really worth it (superstars like Betts). The FO believed that extensions reduced the risk of higher ARB rates and players leaving, but didn't consider "what if the guys just don't reach their potential and we want to move on from them at some point?"

I think they considered it, but decided it was worth the risk.  One successful extension can more than cover two or three that don’t pan out.

If Anthony works out as anticipated , his $120mill extension could easily save more money than the team “lost” with extensions given to Campbell and Bello…