I'm going to repeat myself but what if we reset in 2020? We let both Sale and Porcello go along with Pearce, Moreland, Holt, Wright, and hope JD opts out. Stay with me here.
We re-sign Xander to long term contract.
We trade away Betts and his $20M anticipated salary for 2019 for younger pieces. Trade him to a team that's an outfielder away from winning it all. We do this with the thought of overpaying Betts for 2021. Hell give him $350M deal.
I estimate our CB Payroll going into 2021 to be around $170 with just one signing, Xander.
Our budget is $250M for 2021. We'll have approximately $80M to sign Betts, JBJ (incremental pay raise) and a top line starting pitcher. We start over and have a three year window. Rinse and wash.
For 2021
SP Price, E Rod, Eovaldi, $25M Man, ?????
LineUp
Betts, Beni, Xander, Devers, Chavis, Pedroia (DH), Lin, Vaz, JBJ