moonslav59

If we did not have 2-3 holes, I'd agree on keeping depth. I don't want Duran to DH, either. He's worth more to all 30 teams as an OF'er than as a DH. If we didn't have Masa and Tristian to DH, I might be kinda okay with DH'ing Duran, but we have both. I also see Campbell and Masa as LF depth, so I think trading an OF'er has to happen. We need a 2Bman or 3Bman. Both, if you don't trust Mayer/Romy/DHam/Sogard. IMO, we still need a #2, but I doubt we get one.

I think in an emergency, yes. STL has some nice catcher depth, and they had 4 catchers get 100+ innings in 2025, but WC got zero.

I share your deep concern on large and long contracts, and also not about saving JH money, but about knowing we always have a limited budget and wasting money will hurt us for years to come. I plan on living longer than the longest contract we have signed or will sign. I'm thinking a big bat is a higher priority than a #2 SP. I'm wondering if Brez sees Gray as the #2 or if Gray + Oviedo makes up for not getting a true #2. (If you go by fWAR and projected fWAR, Gray has been and will be a top 60 SP'er- even a top 30 in some categories.) We have made a ton of trades, so far, and still have 4 OF'ers plus Campbell/Masa as OF depth. We may be looking at the biggest winter trade yet to come, or perhaps a major signing. Maybe both. I think we will avoid a large and long deal, so maybe E Suarez or C Bassitt might be the one signing we make. Trades might involve KMarte, Paredes, Donovan, Vientos or someone we never thought of.

The Sox have traded away these prospects, this winter: 4. Perales (for #6 Bennett) 6. Jh Garcia (Oviedo and #29 Samaniego & #31 Guzman) 8. Clarke (with Fitts for S Gray) 8. Fajardo (w Dobbins & Aita for Contreras) 20. Travieso (w Jg Garcia for Oviedo plus) 21. Paez (Rule 5 loss- not a trade) 36. Aita (w others for Contreras) All together, we traded these 13 players & prospects: Dobbins, Fitts, Bernardino, Grissom, Murphy, Guerrero, Jh Garcia, Perales, Clarke, Fajardo, Travieso, Aita & Reimer For these 12 players and prospects: Sonny Gray, Wilson Contreras, Johan Oviedo, Ryan Watson, Tristan Gray, Jake Bennett, Tyler Samaniego, Adonys Guzman, Ronny Hernandez, Braiden Ward, Luke Heyman & Isaiah Jackson No free agents signings, so far- the only AL team in that boat.

I don't really want him at 4 years, either, but if the option is 4 years or nobody else significant, then I'd do it. I agree, 5 is too much. The guy was in a 3 year decline before 2025, then missed about 30% of the season. (I'm not for paying what Bichette will get either.) I think I'd rather get Suarez on a 2 year deal or maybe trade for Paredes, assuming we don't trade for KMarte.

My guess is Duran, but I have moved Rafaela into the 2nd most likely to be traded slot. Maybe tied with Abreu. RF defense is very important for Boston. (So is CF.) Trading Rafaela helps the offense by keeping the others. Trading Duran means we need a bigger bat addition at 2B or 3B than even Bregman or Bichette can fill, IMO. Trading Abreu hurts the offense and mostly the power, which is our big hole, right now. DH'ing an OF'er make almost no sense to me.

That certainly seems like the overwhelming possibility on both the Casas and Masa fronts (and Hicks being on the 26 for opening day, too.) We don't have much depth at 1B. If we trade an OF'er the DH depth is one less deep. That is what I see happening.

It all depends on what other GMs are offering. He will likely get 5- maybe with an option 6th year and decent buyout. Maybe Brez offers 5 with another opt-out, of 4 with a hefty buyout on 5th year option or a huge signing bonus.

I have Moran above Sandlin, Uberstine and Drohan, but I'm assuming he can regain what he showed a couple/three years ago. 11.1 K/9 in 95 IP w MIN (Yikes on the 5.2 BB/9!) In 2022, he had a .490 OPS Against in over 40 IP. I doubt the 3 guys I listed ever come close to that in any 40 IP stretch of their careers. In AAA: 13.7 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 (0.7 HR/9) AA: 14.6 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 (0.8 HR/9) Here is my ordered to be DFA'd list: 1. Hicks (or traded w cash) 2. Yoshida (traded w cash) 3. Uberstine T4. Eaton (if we add a 3Bman) T4. Sogard (if we add a middle infielder) T4. Drohan 7. Watson returned via Rule 5 By ST'ing, I might have Moran ahead of Kelly.

According to B-R, he has no PAs vs NYY. 1.338 v TOR 13 PAs 1.203 v TBR 14 PAs .143 v BAL 14 PAs .690 at Fenway in 14 PAs Sample sizes are too small to make anything of them.

No. He's a decent defensive 1Bman, unlike Casas and Campbell.

Welcome aboard! I agree that Mayer or maybe a Mayer/Romy platoon is best for 2B. I'd be okay with Mayer at SS and Story at 2B, but Cora is loyal to his vets and their positions. (He apparently did not even ask Devers to play 1B.) I don't like Romy at 3B, so it makes more sense to add a 3Bman (Bregman, Paredes, Suarez and hopefully not Vientos) than 2B, but I really think KMarte would move the needle into major contention status for the Sox and 2026 & beyond. Maybe we don't need Romy at 3B, if Mayer can learn to hit LHPs. Trade Rafaela (6.3M), Crawford ($2.7M), Phillips and Mullins for KMarte and... 1. L Anthony CF 2. S KMarte 2B 3. L Duran LF 4. R Contreras 1B 5. L Abreu RF 6. R Story SS 7. L Masas DH (R Romy/ L Casas DH?) 8. R Narvaez C 9. L Mayer 3B (R Romy 3B) Alternatively, trade an OF'er for a #2 SP'er and sign Suarez or Okamoto.

Good post. Casas may start the year on the IL (maybe even put on the 60, at some point,) but AAA would be a good way for him to work his way back to the bigs. IMO, when healthy, he a better bat than Yoshida, but with Yoshida's contract and 4 OF'ers looking to play one at DH makes it difficult. Maybe an OF'er gets traded- like I thought would happen last winter, or we find a way to dump Yoshida, while paying most of his remaining salary or including a prospect or two with him.

Yes- not so much for Uberstine or Drohan, who to me are high on my possible DFA list.

I have been saying Casas should DH. I just asked the question, will he be traded. I agree, his upside value is too high to trade, now, while his stock is so low. We don't have a 40 man roster squeezes and no other real 1B depth on the 40, so keeping him makes the most sense, to me.

I'm not expecting anything of value for these guys, but marginal and underwater players are often traded.

Exactly.

I see it this way, too, at least from Brez's perspective. I'd like to get one big bat infielder, and my broken record is KMarte.

I do not think Contreras & Vientos make up for the losses of Bregman, Devers, Ref and DLowe. I realize we are hoping to get more from Anthony and Mayer, but we have to figure injuries or less from others. Duran for Paredes and ____, maybe. Maybe Rafaela for Paredes.

Casas is really awful on defense and is injury prone. If we didn't have Masa at DH, it would look like an easy choice sliding him to DH. That still might be his landing spot... with us or with another team.

We've seen some major swings in how our GMs approach the trading of top prospects. Ben hoarded them and DD traded away over 20 prospects that at one point were ranked in the top 20 by soxprospects.com. We could probably count on one hand the amount of top 10 prospects traded away by Bloom, and many more of his traded involved acquiring prospects than trading them away. Even his trades for vets often has a prospect or two thrown in- like DHam with JBJ and Wink with Franchy. Maybe this is part of the cycle of winning strategy I have mentioned JH & Co. loosely following. Maybe it was more team philosophy shits rather than the individual choices made by the ever-changing GMs. I may have missed a few trades, but I'm pretty sure Brez has traded away more top 20 prospects in each of his last two years with BOS than Bloom did in his 4 years combined. Blooms major prospects traded away: 9. Aldo Ramirez (Schwarber) NR (was 13th once) Scherff (Robles) (Graduated but was a #1) Chavis (A Davis) Let me know if I missed some. _____________________________ Brez prospects traded for 2026: soxprospects updated their rankings list based on a few moves: Traded away: 4. Perales 6. Jh Garcia 8. B Clarke 8. Fajardo 20. J Travieso 36. Aita Lost to Rule 5: 21. J Paez Added: 6 Bennett (for Perales), 22. Ryan Watson (for Riemer), 30. Samaniego (w Oviedo & Guzman for Garcia & Travieso), 32. A, Guzman (see trade above), 33. L Heyman (obtained in Hoppe trade) Was ranked 34th before, 50. I Jackson (Obtained in Grissom trade) ______________________________ Brez prospects traded for 2025: 4. Teel (Crochet) 5. Montgomery (Crochet) 7. Tibbs (D May) 8. Meidroth (Crochet) 18. Wikelman (Crochet) 19. B Jordan (Matz) 25. ERod (20. Narvaez) ________________________ Brez trades for 2024: 6. Yorke (Priester) Added: 8. Fajardo (Booser) 12. Fitts (Dugo), 14. Sandlin (Ammons), 8. Fajardo (Booser) 19. Holobetz (Priester) ___________________________ There has been an obvious shift in our willingness to trade away prospects, but Brez has kept the top 5, unless you count Teel or Montgomery: Anthony, Mayer, Campbell, Tolle & Early.

Cots has us about $4M under the tax line. I think I heard somewhere that KMarte's remaining lux tax would be just under $14.7M. If we traded Duran ($7.8) + Crawford (2.7M) we'd be real close to the line. Maybe we can also sign Okamoto and trade some other salary- like Rafaela ($6.3M) Sandlin and Hicks ($10.2M) for Lodolo and stay under. 1. L Anthony CF 2. S KMarte 2B 3. R Contreras 1B 4. L Abreu RF 5. R Okamoto 3B 6. L Yoshida LF /R Campbell LF 7. R Story SS 8. L Casas DH/ R Romy DH 9. R Narvaez C Bench: Wong, Mayer, Campbell, Romy

Contreras turns 34 in May, but has just 2 years left. Does this make Casas trade bait or in the running for the DH slot? Do we still feel like we are logjammed at SP'ers from A+ to MLB? I gotta think 2B/3B is still a major need area. I'm not sure Brez is still looking for a #2 SP'er. Maybe we add a RP'er and 3B/2Bman (KMarte? Bregman? Bichette? Paredes? Donovan? Suarez? Vientos?)

I still think KMarte is our best shot at a major gain with one guy added. I think we need Duran's bat, so maybe AZ wants Rafaela plus ____. I hope it's not Tolle or Early, but I'm not sure we can pull it off with Rafaela, Crawford & Harrison. Maybe they want Romy or Arias or someone like Valera or Witherspoon, if we don't give them Tolle or Early. Not many 4 or 5 for one deals like Crochet's was, these days.

One of these two asks should make us better than 2025, but I agree- two puts us in serious competition mode.