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29. Atlanta seems to be the outlier...

I'll throw out a very detailed prediction for the Sox 2021 MLB opening day roster, you know, for the heck of it. C: Mike Zunino - signed as a free agent. Good defensive catcher who can hit 20 HRs and still struggle to maintain a .700 OPS. But Bloom has acquired him before. 1B Bobby Dalbec 2B Enrique Hernandez - Signed as a free agent. A very under-the-radar possibility that sneaks in. Other possibilities include the equally underrated Cesar Hernandez, along with Kolten Wong, and Jonathan Schoop. Marcus Semien remains a longshot with some very interesting potential. 3b Rafael Devers SS Xander Bogaerts LF Andrew Benintendi CF Kevin Kiermaier. Acquired from Tampa in a deal for Christian Vazquez RF Alex Verdugo DH JD Martinez SP: Eduardo Rodriguez SP: Nathan Eovaldi SP: Nick Pivetta SP: Rick Porcello. Signed as a free agent. SP: Shane Baz. Acquired with Kiermaier from Tampa for Vazquez. Shane McLanahan is also a possibility. (Neither trade works on BTV, as Vazquez' value is greater than either combination. But I am still predicting it or some variation.) Tanner Houck could also claim this spot, which is just a placeholder for Sale. All three pitchers (Houck, Baz, McLanahan) have minor league options. CL: Brad Hand. Signed as a free agent RP: Archie Bradley. Signed as a free agent RP: Matt Barnes RP: Ryan Brasier RP: Darwinzon Hernandez RP: Paul Campbell. Rule 5 selection from Tampa. Bloom drafted him out of Clemson. RP: Austin Brice RP: Phillips Valdez BN Kevin Plawecki BN: Michael Chavis BN: Brad Miller. Signed as a free agent. Can play 2b, 1b, and corner OF and provides a LHH bench bat, and has a history with Bloom. BN: Christian Arroyo A bit of an obvious theme - Bloom acquiring players he knows. Of course, he has already done some of that by acquiring Christian Arroyo, Cesar Puello, Ryan Weber, and probably 1 or 2 others. (He also seems to like former Giants and Rockies.) So how would this team fair? If you don't like it, blame Bloom, not me...

Other names that could be on the move include Riley Pint (Rockies) LHP - Former 4th overall pick with high 90's fastball. Limited by control issues some team might view as fixable. Omar Estevez (Dodgers) 2b - Buried in the middle infield depth of the Dodgers org, Estevez posted a respectable .784 OPS in AA at age 21 in 2019 Lake Bachar (Padres) RHP and Jordan Guerrero (Padres) RHP - The Padres once again struggle to protect their abundance of minor league talent. Two MLB-ready arms that can fit into nearly every MLB bullpen for a year. Paul Campbell (Rays) RHP. Very possible Sox target, as Bloom drafted him out of Clemson despite his unimpressive college career. Campbell has posted better numbers at AA than he did in college, and is projected to be a backend MLB starter.

Well if the Pirates are willing to trade Taillon and Bell to the Yankees, hopefully Bloom is ready to step in. Per BTV, the Red Sox could offer up a package of Dalbec and Potts. But I theorize not including Casas might be a deal breaker for Cherington...

Oh me neither. Not that I bring value here, but it at least prevents me from bringing negative value anywhere else...

Lou Merloni never thinks anyone wants to play for the Sox...

I think she is referring to us, mvp....

So ... one less reason to visit Lowell...

I wouldn't include Groome, but Texas probably jumps at that offer...

I only are about the cash in that it limits spending in other places. I am not sure about the Sox budget this year and if the luxury tax is the only consideration or not. But if taking on Odor allows the Sox to also acquire another useful piece, I am not against it...

I simply missed him. He is most definitely in play. But I still think Bradley is the better option...

While it is easy to say all financial resources need to be dedicated to pitching, unless the Sox are talking to Bauer, there just isn't much out there. Paying Jake Odorizzi or Jose Quintana like an ace will not turn either into one. The Sox could (and IMO should) go heavy on bullpen spending and sign at least 2 from Robles, Bradley and Hand and shore up the very weak bullpen. But addressing the rotation with at least one starter is probably going to get something very mediocre unless the Sox go after Bauer. And the trade market has not seen any addition more compelling than Blake Snell or Sonny Gray, either of whom is likely to cost trade chips the Sox simply do not have. Now the Sox could try to reduce the asking price from the Reds by including an underwater contract like Mike Moustakas or Nick Castellanos, but that doesn't mean Cincinnati will bite, especially if they view moving Gray as more than just a cost reduction. A similar strategy with the Rays is actually not very likely, especially since their only bad contract is Kiermaier, and he is very far from cancelling out the very high value of Snell and his contract. Bloom turned the Rays into contenders by piecing together monster bullpens and watching his team implement strategies to maximize their usage. Granted, having Blake Snell pitch every fifth day certainly helped and is a luxury the Sox do not have now. But if you cannot build a great rotation, the next best thing is a great bullpen that shortens games to 5 or 6 innings for the opposition...

JBJ is the headliner among glove-first CF. The other options on the market include Jake Marisnick, Alberto Almora, and then some of the borderline starter types like Billy Hamilton and Jarrod Dyson. The free agent market also includes 29yo Japanese import Harushi Nishikawa, who is listed as a CF on MLBTR, but his B-R page lists him as being a 2B, 1B and RF. Although he reportedly lacks the arms strength for RF and is better suited as a LF/CF type. Strong OBP (.379) in Japan, but weak SLG (.395). So he is more of a leadoff type, and he does have some SB on his resume (323 in 10 seasons). He is considered less of a player than fellow countryman Shogo Akiyama, who signed for 3 yrs/$21mill last year with Cincinnati and posted a .654 OPS in 183 plate appearances... Maybe he could be moon's backup 2b/CF

Whit Merrifield has played both at an average level. On the free agent market, there is Danny Santana and Dee Strange-Gordon. Santana's defensive metrics are the superior ones, but his numbers do not stand out. They are comparable to Merrifield. Neither Santana nor Strange-Gordon can be counted on to hit. Delino DeShields and Billy Hamilton were both middle infielders in the minors. But they have combined for all of 3 innings in the infield in MLB...

Odor's cotnract pays him $27.67 million over the next 2 seasons (with an option for a third). And he has been worth 2.3 fWAR over the last 3 seasons. His career fWAR numbers seem to have two distinct sets in his career. The early eyars hwere he was 2-2.5, and then the recent ones where he seems to be less than 0.5 more often. He will be 27 on opening day 2021, so there is some hope he can bounce back. But if the Sox do acquire him, that description is getting applied to far too many people in the lineup. I would only take on that contract if the deal included Jose LeClerc, their closer who is owed $10.5 mill over the next 2 seasons (with options). The Rangers really have no other pitching they can and will deal. Per BTV, a package of Odor and LeClerc still combines for a negative trade value, so figuring out who goes back is a bit complicated, at least for me. Does Texas want quality? Potential? Or just happy dumping money?

My one guarantee for the Sox this off-season is Bloom signs Brad Miller. While Miller can fill the need for backup 1B, backup 2B, backup OF and a LHH bench bat, he cannot (or at the very least, should not) play CF. But he is a good hitter that Bloom has acquired before and does fit multiple needs, although admittedly they are all the easiest ones the team needs to fill....

Well, so far the Real Valdez has 46 MLB IP, and his 3.5o ERA looks good, but his 4.75 FIP, his 9.3K/9 and 4.9BB/9 and his 1.62 WHIP tell me he is a very ordinary pitcher at best and his type can be found on the waiver wire pretty much all the time. His numbers in the upper minors were not horrible, but he did stay down there for a reason. He is an AAAA pitcher. Nothing more. And right now his only selling point is he is one of the better AAAA pitchers on the Sox. Of course, that is an honor somewhat akin to having the fastest Kia Rio on your street...

He still had the advantage of pitching in a role where hitters never got a second look at him. And Valdez' numbers might look better, but you just removed over 10% of his IP and are now evaluating him on only 26 IP. Bear in mind, in 2019, Valdez also pitched 16 innings for Texas and was basically the same pitcher. Low ERA, but WHIP over 1.6 and very high FIP. He is a guy whose peripherals tell you his ERA is a mirage...

Wilson is 24 years old and put up reasonable numbers in the upper minors. He could possibly be dealt for a non-40 man minor leaguer in a deal with some of the more cost-conscious teams around MLB, much like Yoan Aybar was. That Wilson can potentially back up three outfield positions and while making the league minimum might be a selling point to a few teams around MLB. (Paging Mr. Cherington.)

After 2021? Yes, that would be when you waive/non-tender him, as he has no guaranteed deal in place for his final arb year...

I like Merrifield as a fit for the Sox and a lot of other teams. But as he is an underpaid player who provdes value, taking on his contract is not exactly the best method to get KC to throw in one of the promising younger arms. Now if you want to take Danny Duffy off their hands, maybe you can get them to something decent that would normally cost more..

Horrible Why take on Odor's contract just to get one season of Lynn?

No idea. That's why I want to see the movie!

I would hold both first. Both are younger, and while their ceiling might be "minimum wage bench bat," the Sox might be in a position to need people who work for the league minimum. Finding the next Chris Mazza or Valdez might prove as difficult as finding sand at the beach. Especially if either or both goes all Marcus Walden on us and tanks in his next season...

Valdez is 29 years old and is career highlight is pitching 30 innings with a 1.615 WHIP and 4.38 FIP. He is basically the luckier version of Chris Mazza. And if I were a rival GM,I'd claim Mazza before I claim Valdez. Their small sample size 2020 MLB numbers are extremely close, but at least Mazza got his in the more difficult capacity of being a starter. Brewer is just frustrating. His ceiling is 7th bullpen arm/mop up guy...