Nick John

Welcome back once again to our small series looking back on one major trade from each GM in the John Henry era. After leaving off with Dealing Dave Dombrowski, we move into a new era for the Red Sox. The new era even came with a new title: enter Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom. It's no secret that Chaim Bloom was hired to perform some unpleasant tasks. After the Red Sox brought in Dave Dombrowski to go all out for championships, Bloom was tasked with rebuilding the farm system and doing the unthinkable: trading Mookie Betts. However, I feel that we've talked about that particular tragedy enough over the years, so instead, we’ll be looking at what might have been Bloom’s best trade: a deadline deal in 2022 that saw the Sox ship long-time catcher Christian Vázquez to the Astros for prospects Wilyer Abreu and Enmanuel Valdéz. The trade came as a surprise not just to fans, but Vázquez himself. The catcher was being interviewed on the field during batting practice, and only found out about the trade when a reporter asked him how it felt to be traded. It's hard to imagine the emotions that must have been running through Vázquez as he got blindsided by the question live on camera. At the time, the reception to the move was mixed. Fans understood the need to move Vázquez. The Red Sox didn't look like contenders and he was a 31-year-old catcher on an expiring contract. The problem was Vázquez was a fan favorite and was one of the team’s better players that season. Vázquez spent eight seasons in Boston, appearing in 698 games and slashing .262/.311/.389. While he was never a strong hitter, he knocked 54 home runs and was a part of the 2018 World Series team. He called a god game and pitchers enjoyed working with him. The Red Sox were going nowhere, and the Astros were in a playoff race looking to upgrade their catching position. It was a natural fit. Unfortunately, Vázquez wouldn’t play much in Houston. He appeared in only 35 games after being traded, as the Astros chose to play the light-hitting Martin Maldonado over him during the playoffs. Fortunately for Vázquez, the Astros won the World Series, earning him his second championship ring before he hit free agency. The catcher got a payday from the Twins, signing a three-year $30-million contract after the 2022 season. He's now rumored to be on the trading block. The Red Sox made out in the trade. Considered one of Bloom’s best moves during his tenure in Boston, the Sox brought in two interesting prospects in the form of Abreu and Valdéz. Considering how their time in Boston ended up, it is a little bit ironic that Valdéz was the one considered the more valuable at the time, having reached Triple A by the age of 23. Valdéz was generally viewed as having a great bat but no real position, due to defensive struggles. He holds a career .806 OPS in the minor leagues. The Astros had tried him all over the field in order to keep his bat in the lineup, but after the trade, the Red Sox mainly played Valdéz at second base. In 44 games in Worcester, Valdez continued to flash his power with seven home runs to end the 2022 season. Despite defensive limitations, he impressed the team enough to be added to the 40-man roster after the season. Valdez would go on to split the next two seasons between Boston and Worcester, often being the first position player recalled to the majors when the team needed body. Despite his continued defensive struggles, Valdéz would continue to get chances due to his potential bat. 2023 showed flashes of it, slashing .266/.311/.453 across 49 games for a 102 wRC+. However, Valdéz struggled throughout 2024. He ran into some bad batted-ball luck that resulted in a 72 wRC+ in Boston, and his Worcester stats weren't particularly impressive either. In December, Valdéz was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster, then traded to the Pirates right-handed pitcher Joe Vogatsky, who has yet to throw a pitch as a professional. Abreu, on the other hand, has so far turned out better than anyone could have expected. When the Red Sox acquired him, he was viewed as an on-base threat with a bit of pop and a great glove. After the trade, he spent the remainder of 2022 in Portland, where he played in 40 games and put up an impressive 120 wRC+. Just like Valdéz, Abreu impressed enough to be placed on the 40-man roster that offseason. That turned out to be a good move, as Abreu kept right on hitting in 2023. Opening the season as a 24-year-old in Worcester, Abreu played in 86 games and ran a 130 wRC+ with 22 home runs to go along with outstanding defense. He continued to impress during a 28-game cup of coffee at the end of the season, slashing .317/.388/.474 with two home runs. Abreu had earned the chance to win the starting right field position in spring training. and he would do just that, becoming the starter and playing in 132 games. He had to adjust to a full season of major league pitching, and the Red Sox kept him from facing left-handed pitching as much as they could, but he had an outstanding season. His final slash line of .253/.322/.459 was good for a 114 wRC+. He hit 15 homers and racked up value on the basepaths and in the outfield. Abreu would finish sixth in the Rookie of the Year voting and brought home a well-deserved Gold Glove award. He also had the dirtiest uniform in the league. Chaim Bloom has become something of a rebuilder for hire. After working his way up with the Rays, the Boston job was his first as the person in charge, and he wasn't hired to do the fun stuff like Dave Dombrowski. He was hired to make unpleasant decisions that could make the team better in the long run, and then he was dismissed before he could enjoy the fruits of that labor. He is now working for the Cardinals, and is set to take over for John Mozeliak as president of baseball operations after the season. He'll have a tough rebuild ahead of him there. This trade is likely the best Bloom ever negotiated during his time in Boston. Letting Vázquez find out about the trade the way he did was criminal and the Valdéz portion didn't work out, the Red Sox still managed to acquire a talented, outfielder on a rookie contract who should keep performing for many years. With the amount of young talent ready to break onto the scene in Boston, whether Abreu remains with the club or ends up packaged in a trade, having him puts the Red Sox in an excellent spot. View full article

Continuing our small series on major trades by Red Sox general managers during the John Henry era, we move on to Dave Dombrowski and a move that started out so brilliantly that it made the long, sad end worth it. Welcome back to another entry in our short look back upon major trades from recent Red Sox GMs. After reviewing Ben Cherington’s trade for Eduardo Rodríguez, we move on to one of the game's most famous traders. You might know him as Dealing Dave Dombrowski, who ran baseball operations for the Red Sox from August 18, 2015, until September 9, 2019. Throughout his highly decorated career, Dombrowski has earned a reputation as a win-now GM and an owner whisperer, convincing ownership to authorize major moves to improve the major-league squad, often at great cost in terms of both money and prospects. He built the World Series champion 1997 Marlins, the Tigers team that went to three American League Championship Series and one World Series between 2011 and 2013, the 2018 World Series champion Red Sox, and the current Phillies squad that has been to three NLDS, an NLCS, and a World Series over the past three seasons. He lived up to his reputation when he took the reins in Boston, trading away much of the farm system to bring in All-Star caliber players. Although he made several major trades during his tenure, the move I want to look back on should come as no surprise: Chris Sale trade. Following a loss to Cleveland in the 2016 ALDS, the Red Sox and Dombrowski looked at ways to improve the team and get past the first round of the playoffs. While the front of the rotation was led by David Price and Cy Young Award winner Rick Porcello, the back end struggled. Clay Buchholz ran a 5.01 ERA as a starter and was demoted to the bullpen, Eduardo Rodríguez took a step back after an impressive rookie season in 2015, and deadline acquisition Drew Pomeranz regressed after coming over from San Diego. Dombrowski went after the right pitcher. Left-hander Chris Sale had spent the first seven seasons of his career with the White Sox. He had two dominant years as a reliever, then spent five as a starter, during which he earned five straight All-Star selections and never finished worse than sixth in the Cy Young voting. In both 2015 and 2016, he earned MVP votes. He had a career 3.00 ERA and a record of 74 wins and 50 losses in 1110 innings pitched. Over those last five years, his 25.4 fWAR trailed only future Hall of Famers Max Scherzer and Clayton Kershaw (and ranked just one spot above David Price). Still only 27 years old at the end of 2016, he was a no-brainer for a Red Sox team ready to go all in on a championship run. On December 6, 2016, that deal was finalized. In return for Sale, the White Sox received highly-touted prospects Michael Kopech and Yoán Moncada, along with Victor Diaz and Luis Alexander Basabe. The Red Sox won the four-for-one trade easily, as Sale picked up right where he'd left off in Chicago. His streak of All-Star selections, top-six Cy Young finishes and MVP votes would continue for two more years. In 2017, Sale finished as the runner-up for the AL Cy Young Award and helped the Red Sox win their second consecutive AL East title. Across 32 starts and an MLB-leading 214 1/3 innings, he went 17-8 with a 2.90 ERA and an MLB-best 2.45 FIP. But what may be most impressive was his career high of 308 strikeouts and a (then) career-high 12.9 strikeouts per nine innings. Both marks were the highest in baseball. Sale was everything the Sox could have hoped for, anchoring a rotation plagued by inconsistency and injury. Unfortunately, the Red Sox would fall to the eventual World Series champs, the Astros, in the ALDS. Sale’s continued dealing during the 2018 season. He was once again was tasked with leading the rotation. Alongside David Price and midseason acquisition Nathan Eovaldi, he did just that, winning 12 games and only losing four. He did so in just 27 games, as shoulder inflammation forced him onto the IL in both August and September. Despite the injury, Sale still threw 158 innings and struck out 237 while making another All-Star game and finishing fourth in the Cy Young voting. Over three postseason starts and two relief appearances, he ran a 4.11 ERA, but that was likely due more to bad luck than anything else, as he struck out a jaw-dropping 14.1 batters per nine innings. He appeared to be healthy in the ALDS, pitching in two games against the Yankees, but following that, he was not his usually effective self. In the ALCS, he made a single appearance, allowing two earned in four innings, before starting game one of the World Series. When it mattered the most, the ball was in Sale's hand. With the Red Sox up, 5-1, in Game 5, Sale blew the Dodgers away in the bottom of the ninth, striking out Justin Turner, Enrique Hernandez, and Manny Machado swinging to clinch the championship. Sale signed a five-year, $145-million extension with the Red Sox prior to the 2019 season, but it didn’t work out too well. In the five seasons that followed his injury in 2018, Sale’s body could not keep up. After throwing the sixth-most innings in baseball from 2012 to 2018, he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2020. From 2019 to 2013, he he pitched in just 56 games with a 4.16 ERA. Following the 2023 season, the Red Sox would be trade Sale to Atlanta for infielder Vaughn Grissom. He would immediately make the Red Sox regret the move, bouncing back to claim his first Cy Young Award and returning to the All-Star game for the first time since 2018. As for the players the Red Sox gave up in the Chris Sale trade, things never really seemed to work out for the White Sox. Yoán Moncada and Michael Kopech headline the move. Both players showcased flashes of brilliance — Moncada put up excellent 2019 and 2021 seasons, and Kopech was solid in 2021 and 2022, but inconsistency and injuries kept them from reaching their potential Moncada was a roughly league-average hitter in his first two full seasons with the White Sox, and 2019 looked like it should have been his breakthrough campaign. Moncada played in 132 games and put up 5.2 fWAR, slashing .315/.367/.548 to go with 25 home runs. He was also propped up by an absurdly high .406 BABIP, the highest among all qualified players. Unfortunately, that was as good as it would get for Moncada. In 2021, he ran a 120 wRC+ and hit 14 home runs, but that was the last time he would look like a star. Over the past three seasons, injuries have limited him to just 208 games. He only played 12 games in 2024. Now a free agent and the White Sox rebuilding once more, it’s unlikely he returns to Chicago. Kopech is already gone, having been traded to the Dodgers at the 2024 trade deadline for Miguel Vargas, Alexander Albertus, and Jeral Perez. In 2018, Kopech made four starts for the White Sox before undergoing Tommy John surgery in September. He would go on to miss all of the 2019 season and sit out the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, choosing to get his body right rather than playing in the shortened 60-game season without any buildup through rehab assignments. Kopech was then moved to the bullpen to help limit his innings. He performed well, running a 3.50 ERA over 44 appearances. Kopech returned to the rotation where in 2022, but despite his shiny 3.54 ERA, the numbers under the hood were concerning. His walk and strikeout numbers went in the wrong directions, resulting in a 4.50 ERA. The bill came due in 2023, when he ran a 5.43 ERA. The White Sox moved Kopech back to the bullpen in 2024, and he pitched in 43 games before being traded to the Dodgers. Prior to the trade, he ran an ERA of 4.74 and a WHIP of 1.35, but with the Dodgers, his ERA dropped to 1.13 and his WHIP to 0.79. He got into 10 postseason games, running a 3.00 ERA. As for the other two players in the trade, Victor Diaz only appeared in 14 games in the low levels of the White Sox organization, making it up to high-A Winston-Salem before being released in 2017. Luis Alexander Basabe never made it to the majors with the White Sox, making it as high as Double A in 2019 before having his contract purchased by the San Francisco Giants in 2020. The outfielder would play nine games in San Francisco before spending 2021 in the minor leagues once more. He signed a minor league deal with the White Sox for the 2022 season but was released in May and hasn’t played professional baseball since. In the end, Dombrowski got his wish for an ace who could anchor the rotation through difficulties. While the extension didn't work out to anyone's satisfaction (save maybe the Braves), Sale did what he came to Boston to do: win a championship. It may be hard to separate the trade from the extension, but in those first three seasons, Sale continued to be one of the premier pitchers in all of baseball. Combine that with the fact that the prospects Boston coughed up for him never truly panned out, and the move is an easy victory for the Red Sox. View full article

Continuing our small series on trades performed by the various Red Sox General Managers under John Henry, we will move on to his second GM, Ben Cherington. Last time, we covered Theo Epstein and his move to acquire Adrián González, which technically did not end positively. Now, we’ll continue down memory lane as we discuss a move by Cherington. One move I would like to mention as an honorable mention would be Cherington trading for Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell, and Guillermo Mota in November of 2005. During this time, Cherington was technically the co-GM of the team alongside Jed Hoyer, as Epstein had resigned after October 2005, and in return for those three, Cherington and Hoyer sent top prospect Hanley Ramírez along with pitchers Aníbal Sánchez, Harvey García, and Jesus Delgado to the Florida Marlins. As everyone knows, Beckett and Lowell were key pieces for the 2007 team that won a World Series. Delgado and García didn’t amount to much for the Marlins, while Ramírez and Sánchez would be key pieces for the team before both being traded in 2012. The Ben Cherington move I would like to dive into has had a lasting effect on the organization since. In 2014, the Red Sox were struggling; heading into the trade deadline, they recorded 48 wins and 60 losses. While not officially eliminated from the playoffs, they were unlikely to return there and had already made moves to trade away key players like Jake Peavy and Jon Lester. Then Cherington moved a player to a division rival who had started to come into his own in Boston. Andrew Miller had been acquired by Theo Epstein before the 2011 season and struggled as a starter. In 2012, they tried him as a reliever, where he succeeded before showing his potential in 2013 with a 2.64 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 30 2/3 innings pitched. 2014 saw him take another step forward. In 50 games with the Red Sox before being traded, Miller had a record of three wins, five losses, and an ERA of 2.34 in 42 1/3 innings pitched. He had 69 strikeouts, and teams in contention would love a hard-throwing left-handed reliever for the playoffs. That was when the Orioles became a match when they agreed to ship off one of their top prospects, left-handed pitcher Eduardo Rodríguez. The trade was a straight-up swap of lefties and both sides came out as winners. The Orioles got their lefty for their bullpen as Miller would pitch in 23 games down the stretch to the tune of a 1.35 ERA in 20 innings. He would also strike out 34 batters in that stretch. The Red Sox, however, got a young, left-handed pitcher who they ended up slotting into their rotation in mid-2015. The 2014 season was lost, and the Red Sox were looking towards the future and got that in Rodríguez, who wound up winning 10 games his rookie season, starting 21 games and throwing 121 2/3 innings in 2015. Although his time in Boston was filled with ups and downs, Rodríguez pitched six seasons for Boston, winning 64 games and making 159 appearances, 153 of them starts. He threw 856 2/3 innings while in Boston and was a key member of the 2018 championship team. But it was his leaving Boston that made this trade so influential. Following the 2021 season, which saw Rodríguez win 13 games and lose eight, pitching in 32 games and throwing 157 2/3 innings, he became a free agent. The Red Sox and Rodríguez tried to work out a deal during the season, but neither side could find something that worked for them. Instead, Chaim Bloom extended a qualifying offer to Rodríguez at the end of the season. It was declined as expected, and he would go on to sign a five-year deal worth $77 million with the Detroit Tigers. The Red Sox, in return, received a compensation pick that would be awarded following the second round of the 2022 draft. That pick could potentially be franchise-altering as it turned into their current top prospect, Roman Anthony. Anthony was taken with the 79th pick, and the compensation pick was awarded to the Sox after they lost Rodríguez. With Anthony expected to play a role in Boston sometime in 2025, this is a case where a trade could have an impact nearly a decade later. While Ben Cherington stepped down as GM in August 2015, his trade for Rodríguez was a case in which no one knew how the future might unfold. No one would have thought we could have acquired a franchise player a decade after acquiring Rodríguez, and yet, it was an amazing accident that it occurred. View full article

In what will be a short series, we’re going to look into each of the Red Sox heads of baseball operations since John Henry and the rest of Fenway Sports Group took over the team (though we won’t be including interim General Manager Michael D. Port as he was only there for 2002). We’ll look at one trade each of the General Managers, Chief Baseball Officer, or President of Baseball Operations did and how it affected the season it was made and worked out for future seasons. Of course, we can’t start something like this without John Henry’s first hire as a GM for the Red Sox: Theo Epstein. Promoted to General Manager on November 25th, 2002, it’s easy to pick a trade like Curt Schilling or the one that shipped Nomar Garciaparra to the Cubs and brought in Orlando Cabrera and Doug Mientkiewicz, but there’s a different trade I’ll be looking into. And no, it isn’t Josh Beckett since Epstein was not the GM at the time. This trade may not have worked out for either side in the long run. On December 5th, 2010, the Red Sox made a huge trade. Theo Epstein hammered out the details that saw All-Star first baseman Adrián González come to Boston. In return, they shipped three prospects and a player to be named later to San Diego: outfielder Rey Fuentes, pitcher Casey Kelly, and first baseman Anthony Rizzo. The fourth player wound up being Eric Patterson. González was viewed as a massive acquisition for Boston. The left-handed slugger would be entering his age-29 season in 2011, and he cemented himself as both a force in the lineup and an excellent defender. In his five seasons with the Padres, he had slashed .288/.374/.514 and 161 home runs while playing half of his games at Petco Park. He was destined to slide immediately into the middle of the lineup and take over first base, while Kevin Youkilis would slide across the diamond and fill the hole at third base left by Adrian Beltre. While we all know 2011 to be a disappointing season due to the collapse in September, it wasn’t due to González. In 159 games in 2011, González slashed .338/.410/.548 with 27 home runs and 117 RBI, along with 45 doubles. Despite his offensive production, the Red Sox would miss the playoffs after being in a position to make it for the majority of the season. The infamous collapse would lead to changes in the team as both manager Terry Francona and GM Theo Epstein would leave, being replaced by Bobby Valentine and Ben Cherington, respectively. González’s time in Boston wouldn’t last long either, only making it until August 2012 before being shipped out in another mega trade. 2012 saw a lot of issues with the team, but González was once again not one of them. Despite having the worst record since John Henry bought the team, González slashed .300/.343/.469 with 15 home runs and 86 RBI across 123 games. But by August, it was clear things had to change. In what was a shocking move at the time, the Red Sox and Dodgers agreed to a trade that saw the Dodgers acquire not just González but also Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett, and Nick Punto, which took a lot of money off the books for the Red Sox. This trade would clear up money for the Red Sox to sign players such as Shane Victorino, Mike Napoli, Jonny Gomes, and Ryan Dempster in the following offseason. All players would serve crucial roles for the 2013 team winning the World Series. And while González did not last long in Boston, the players the Red Sox gave up for him didn’t hurt too badly. Casey Kelly pitched in nine games with eight starts between 2012 and 2015 for the Padres before bouncing around the league. He eventually played in the Korea Baseball Organization for the LG Twins from 2019 until July 2024. Kelly recently returned to the majors in 2024, pitching in two games for Cincinnati. For his career, the 35-year-old has a record of 2-11 in 28 games, 12 of which were starts. He fared much better in Korea with a record of 73 wins and 48 losses in 168 starts with a 3.31 ERA in over 1,000 innings pitched. Rey Fuentes did not fare much better, appearing in 23 games with the Padres during the 2013 season. In 33 at-bats, he slashed .152/.222/.152 with a single RBI. He would split 2014 between Triple-A and Double-A, playing in a total of 88 games before being traded to the Kansas City Royals in November. For his career, Fuentes played in 100 games split between the Padres, Royals, and Arizona Diamondbacks, slashing .238/.286/.310 for his career. Following the 2018 season, where he played in Triple-A, Fuentes has played in foreign winter leagues such as the Puerto Rican Winter League or the Atlantic League for the Long Island Ducks. In the end, the biggest loss of the trade was Anthony Rizzo. The first baseman never had a chance to show his potential for the Padres as he was traded after a tough 2011 season. In 49 games, he struggled, hitting just .141/.281/.242 with one home run and nine RBIs. After the season, he was traded to the Cubs, where he managed to break out as a key piece in the organization. In 10 seasons with the Cubs, Rizzo would make three All-Star teams, finish in the top 10 for MVP voting three times, and win a Silver Slugger and four Gold Gloves. He would also be part of the franchise’s first world series in 107 years. In his career with the Cubs, Rizzo slashed .272/.372/.489 with 242 home runs and 784 RBI before being traded to the Yankees in 2021. And all the Padres got in return was minor league player Kyung-Min Na, who didn’t play for their organization after 2012, and Andrew Cashner, who pitched for them from 2012 until he was traded in 2016. For his career, Rizzo has hit .261/.361/.467 in 1,727 games with 303 home runs and 965 RBI. He undoubtedly hurt the most to give up in the long run for González. Overall, the González trade shows that sometimes a big move like that could be something that doesn’t end up with a positive or negative outcome. While González wasn’t a part of the World Series champion team of 2013, his presence on the team allowed them to make a move that moved money off the books. Of course, the main purpose was to have him lead the offense to a championship, which could be seen as a failure due to his early exit. I guess you could argue that if the González trade didn’t end up as a failure, then the Sox may not have won the 2013 World Series. View full article

Yeah. I think Crawford needs to show he can take that next step now when it comes to physical conditioning. I'm not ready to give up on him as a starter yet though (Houck struggled a couple years before his breakout this season), but right now I feel you have to give the 5th spot to Bello based on the extension they just gave him. Though that doesn't mean Crawford can't put his name into a fight for the 5th spot, especially if Giolito needs some time to ramp back up from his surgery.

You're right. I forgot to mention it (and I've brought that up several times in other conversations) but this past season was the most that Crawford has pitched in a season since I believe 2018 and I feel was part of the reason for his drop off.

The Red Sox have added three new starters in the past two weeks. What does that mean for the back end of the bullpen? With the recent signing of Walker Buehler, it is safe to assume the Red Sox rotation is now set, barring an unanticipated trade. It looks to be in much better shape than it did in either 2023 or 2024. Thanks to the additions of Buehler, Garrett Crochet, and Patrick Sandoval, no longer will Garrett Whitlock have to try to make it through the entire season as a starter. At this moment, the front of the rotation should be comprised of Crochet, Tanner Houck, Lucas Giolito, and Walker Buehler, but there's a legitimate argument to be had about whether Brayan Bello or Kutter Crawford is most deserving of the fifth spot. At first glance, Bello seems like he should unquestionably get the job. The Sox have high hopes for the young right-hander and signed him to a six-year extension back in March. He’s younger than Crawford as well; he won't turn 26 until the middle of May while Crawford will be 29 at the start of April. Additionally, Bello has always been viewed as a starter, while Crawford spent 2022 and 2023 bouncing between the bullpen and rotation. It’s easy to see why Bello seems like the obvious favorite. When you look closer, though, the two pitchers have some important similarities. Both had one good half and one awful half in 2024: Crawford ran a 3.00 ERA in the first half only to more than double it in the second half, while Bello dropped his ERA from 5.32 in the first half to 3.47 in the second. Both pitchers set career-highs in innings pitched, Bello with 162 1/3 and Crawford with 183 2/3. All together, the two pitchers had very similar seasons even though they relied on different styles. Bello induced one of the highest groundball rates in the league while Crawford ran one of the highest fly ball rates, resulting in plenty of homers. Crawford had the better results, but the advanced metrics like xERA and FIP preferred Bello. Crawford managed to limit hitters to a .223 batting average and a BABIP of just .247, but he led all of baseball with 34 home runs allowed. Bello had less luck (and a weak infield defense to contend with), and batters hit .252 against him despite a BABIP of .303. With new coach Jose Flores instructed to shore up the infield defense, Bello will hopefully get more help in 2025. The fact that he surrendered just 19 home runs will certainly be a point in his favor. But if Bello wants to claim the last spot in the rotation for himself, he'll limit his walks. His 9.1% walk rate ranked ninth among qualified starters. Because the two players had similar overall stats on the season, it's possible that how they finished could play an outsized role in the decision, which would point toward Bello. Crawford went 3-9 losses to go with a 6.59 ERA in 13 games, a run that saw him surrender 20 home runs in 69 2/3 innings. Bello managed to pitch to a 3.47 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP, and allowed just 28 runs across 72 2/3 innings. Spring training may provide the duo a chance to battle it out for the last rotation spot (something Crawford has had to do in the past two spring trainings). They always say that competition brings out the best in others, so there’s a chance this opportunity elevates both pitchers to even higher heights. In the end, wonder whether the fifth rotation spot will go to Kutter Crawford or Brayan Bello is a pretty good problem to have. View full article

'Twas the night before Christmas, and Craig Breslow was busy acquiring yet another pitcher who recently had Tommy John surgery. It may be the holidays but the Red Sox are staying busy. On Christmas Eve, a day after signing Walker Buehler to a one-year, $21-million contract and the same day that the Patrick Sandoval signing became official, the Sox made a move to bring in more pitching depth. Mickey Gasper is headed off to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for 27-year-old lefty Jovani Morán. The move, which opens a 40-man roster spot for the Red Sox, sees the team move on from catcher/first baseman Mickey Gasper. A New England native, Gasper was a feel-good story after the Sox picked him in the minor league Rule 5 draft from the Yankees. He started the season in Double-A Portland and made it all the way up to Boston for a cup of coffee. During his time in Portland and Worcester, Gasper played in 92 games, slashing an outstanding .328/.440/.531 with 12 home runs and 58 RBI. The switch hitter appeared in 13 games for the Red Sox, but he went 0-for-18 with four walks, including one in his first big league at-bat. With the signing of Buehler, it was only a matter of time before the Red Sox made a corresponding move to clear up a spot on the 40-man roster, and Gasper was the odd man out. Morán appeared in 79 games for the Twins across three seasons, but he missed the entire 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in November 2023. Yes, the Red Sox have acquired yet another player who is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, making it clear that this is very much a trend. In 2022, he made 31 relief appearances and ran a sublime 2.21 ERA and 1.78 FIP. However, in 2023, he made 43 relief appearances with a 5.31 ERA in 42 1/3 innings pitched and got sent down to Triple A in August. He doesn't throw particularly hard, even for a lefty, and he walks far too many batters, largely because he doesn't earn enough chases. However, if you look under the hood, it's not hard to see why the Red Sox are interested in him. Morán had a 3.82 FIP in 2023, meaning that he likely faced some very bad batted ball luck. He also ran an absurdly high 37% whiff rate and an absurdly low 27.5% hard-hit rate. With his potent swing-and-miss stuff, the ability to either hit the zone more often or figure out a way to tempt batters outside the strike zone would allow Morán to cut down on the walks and improve upon what he does best: missing bas and inducing weak contact. Over his career, he has 123 strikeouts and just three home runs in 91 innings. Morán should be ready early into the 2025 season. He’ll look to be relief depth for the Red Sox though will start the season behind the likes of Aroldis Chapman, Justin Wilson, Brennan Bernardino and Chris Murphy on the depth chart. Following the trade, the Red Sox 40-man roster now sits at 39 players, as the team has yet to officially announce the Buehler signing. View full article

Many trade rumors have connected Alex Bregman to the Red Sox. How would the Houston star fit in Boston? The Boston Red Sox are in pursuit of talent to help transform their team into a playoff contender. After missing out in the Juan Soto Sweepstakes, the team has continued trying to make moves, finally connecting with the trade for Garrett Crochet on Wednesday. When it comes to the offense, however, the work hasn't even started yet. One of the best players available might have some fans questioning how he would fit in: Alex Bregman. The third baseman has spent his entire nine-year career with the Houston Astros, winning two World Series championships during that span. Bregman has a career 135 wRC+ with 191 home runs. Even more interesting are his 576 walks and 646 strikeouts. Both statistics are important to consider his fit with this current Boston Red Sox team. Bregman possesses excellent plate discipline and bat-to-ball skills, something that the Red Sox could have used last season. His 13.6% strikeout rate was the ninth-lowest among all players. His 12.8% whiff rate and 23.6% chase rate were also elite. Quite simply, Bregman is one of the best players in the game at controlling the strike zone and has been for years. The Red Sox ran a 25.4% strikeout rate in 2024, the third-highest mark in baseball. They could desperately use some of Bregman's skills. Six of their starters struck out over 110 times each, and Jarren Duran led the way with 160 K's. Bregman's gaudy home run totals come despite the fact that he's never hit the ball particularly hard. His exit velocities and hard-hit rates have generally hovered right around the league average. However, he has specialized in pulling the ball in the air, a surefire way to supercharge your power. Playing in Houston, with the Crawford Boxes providing a short porch in left field, that approach has paid outsized dividends. With the Green Monster sitting out in left, Bregman could take advantage of the wall in the exact same way that he has in Houston. Bregman may not hit the ball harder than most, but the Green Monster is sitting just 310 feet from home plate and Bregman has a career 45% pull rate. It’s easy to picture him peppering the Green Monster with wall ball doubles for years to come. It isn’t just the offense that makes Bregman an intriguing option. Bregman is a two-time Gold Glover who has even moonlighted at shortstop on occasion. Bregman would help out with the infield woes that have plagued the Red Sox these past few seasons. And yet surprisingly, his help wouldn’t come at third base, but at second. With Rafael Devers penciled in as the starting third baseman for the foreseeable future, Bregman would have to play a different position if he were to join Boston. So far, he’s told the media that he's open to such a move, but being the starting second baseman in Boston wouldn’t necessarily mean the end of his days at third base. Instead, it would allow the team a chance to rest Devers and slot him at DH every so often. Bregman's potential move to second base could also help in multiple ways. First, and foremost, it could bring an end to the revolving door at the position. Since Dustin Pedroia retired the Red Sox multiple players have played second base but none has been able to hold onto the position. Adding Bregman would bring stability to the position. Bregman can also provide much-needed leadership off the field. Having plenty of playoff experience and entering his 10th season, Bregman will provide a veteran voice in the clubhouse, something the young team sorely needs. In the past, Boston has had Chris Sale, Justin Turner, and Chris Martin to serve as a veteran presence for the younger players. Currently, the roster doesn’t have a leader in that sense, as Devers is much more of a lead-by-example type of player. Bregman can help guide the team through the dog days of August as well as a playoff run. Over the past two seasons, the Red Sox have gone 13-15 in August, tied for the ninth-worst record in baseball, and it cost them the chance to make the playoffs in both seasons. Someone like Bregman, who’s been through not just a playoff run but also two championship seasons, can be a stabilizing force within the clubhouse. Whether the Sox sign Bregman will come down to how much he’s looking for and how much the team would be willing to offer. However, there is little debate as to whether Bregman could be useful to the team. View full article

The Boston Red Sox have been busy as the Winter Meeting is in its penultimate day, first making a trade with the Chicago White Sox for Garrett Crochet. Now, they have followed it up with a trade with the New York Yankees. Coming over from the Yankees is twenty-six-year-old catcher Carlos Narváez, who made his major league debut this past season. In a small sample size, Narváez appeared in six games for the Yankees, slashing .231/.333/.231 across 13 at-bats. Narváez spent most of the season in Triple A, playing 96 games where he hit 11 home runs and drove in 58 RBI. After the season ended, Narváez played in the Venezuelan Winter League, appearing in 23 games. In that time, he slashed .366/.439/.676 in 71 at-bats. Narváez was added to the Yankees’ 40-man roster in November of 2023, although he was viewed as their fourth catcher on the depth chart. Offensively, he has managed to be roughly league average at each minor league stop but is vulnerable to high fastballs. Major league pitchers can get him out easily if they can control their fastball to the upper levels of the strike zone. Narváez’s best tool is his fielding. The catcher has an incredibly quick release and an accurate arm. However, despite that, he has allowed 79% of base stealers to steal successfully. However, the visual scouting report of his ability to control the run game is more encouraging than what the numbers show. Overall, he’s viewed as a competent defender who is fair with blocking balls in the dirt. He will most likely be viewed as the Red Sox's third catcher waiting in Triple-A Worcester if they manage to bring another catcher. Otherwise, at the current moment, he would be the backup catcher to Connor Wong. Heading back to the Yankees to complete the deal is right-handed pitcher Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz, TalkSox’s 15th-ranked prospect for the Boston Red Sox. Rodriquez-Cruz was drafted in the 4th round of the 2021 draft and spent last season between Salem and Greenville. Overall, he finished the year with a five and five record across 21 games split between the two levels. He pitched to a 2.91 ERA and struck out 102 batters in 89 2/3 innings. The Red Sox are also sending an $250,000 of international bonus pool space to the Bronx in the deal. Rodriguez-Cruz, profiled as a long reliever, will be an interesting acquisition for the Yankees. He is only 20 years old and has a fastball that tops out at 99 mph. As a corresponding move to open a spot on the 40-man roster for Narváez, Enmanual Valdéz was designated for assignment. Acquired in the Christian Vazquez trade to Houston in 2022 alongside Wilyer Abreu, Valdez spent parts of two seasons in Boston. In 125 career games, Valdéz slashed .235/.287/.400, hitting 12 home runs and driving 47 RBI. View full article

Tyler O’Neill has found a new team to call home this offseason. The outfielder signed a three-year contract with the Baltimore Orioles Saturday night. Jon Heyman was the first to report O’Neill’s contract. The official terms are three years and $49.5 million. The contract also includes an opt-out after the 2025 season. O’Neill’s signing helps the Orioles fill the void not only in their outfield but also in their lineup with the free agency of Anthony Santander. Santander was the starting right fielder last season for the Orioles and was a key offensive piece of their lineup. The switch hitter slashed .235/.308/.506 across 155 games. He also had 44 home runs and 102 RBI. Santander spent eight seasons in Baltimore, hitting a total of 155 home runs, but with O’Neill’s signing, it is assumed he will join a new team. O’Neill will now join his third team in the last three seasons. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals from 2018 through 2023 before being traded to the Boston Red Sox. Boston acquired the outfielder for two minor league pitchers, Victor Santos and Nick Robertson, and he did not disappoint in his lone season with the Sox. Despite four stints on the IL across the 2024 season, O’Neill managed to play in the second most games of his career with 113 and had the second-best offensive season of his entire career. In 2024, he managed to slash .241/.336/.511. His 31 home runs for the season led Boston, while his 61 RBI ranked fourth. While it was likely that O’Neill wouldn’t return to Boston based on their current outfield situation, his right-handed bat will be missed in a lineup that leans heavily left-handed. Boston will now need to replace his right-handed power in the lineup, and with Willy Adames having signed with the San Francisco Giants Saturday, the options for free-agent bats are starting to dwindle. The Red Sox remain invested in wooing Juan Soto to join them. While he is a left-handed hitter, his skills will help offset the loss in production that O’Neill’s departure creates, especially against left-handed pitchers. Last season alone, he slashed .313/.430/.750 in 156 plate appearances against lefties. For O’Neill, he will look to help a young Orioles’ core make it back to the playoffs following their Wild Card round exit at the hands of the Kansas City Royals. With his addition, the lineup will only be deeper as he’ll play alongside Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman, Jordan Westburg, Colton Cowser, and Cedric Mullins. Add to it the fact that Baltimore is moving in the left-field fence at Camden Yards, and he could put up another monster season that would allow him to opt out of his new deal and hit the market once more at 30. View full article

The Red Sox have made their desire for Soto abundantly clear, but no one knows what will come next. The Boston Red Sox appear to be ramping up their pursuit of Juan Soto. The offseason's top free agent appears to be narrowing the teams in consideration, and the Red Sox don’t want to be left off his list. Thursday night, the Boston Globe’s Alex Speier reported that the Red Sox have requested a meeting with Soto and his representatives to figure out what price it would take to get the outfielder to Boston. The move is an interesting one, signaling Boston’s desire to get a deal done with the generational talent. At the moment, however, it is not known if the meeting has been agreed upon or even taken place. Although the Juan Soto Sweepstakes has featured surprisingly few leaks, the denouement seems likely to arrive soon. Many newsbreakers throughout baseball have voiced the opinion that Soto will announce his decision by the end of the upcoming Winter Meetings, and possibly as early as their opening on Sunday. "We’ve had meetings with a number of franchises," said Scott Boras, Soto's agent. "He’s begun the process of eliminating teams." By all appearances, the Red Sox have managed to stay in the hunt. Their competition is widely reported to include the reigning World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, division rival Toronto Blue Jays, the Steve Cohen-led New York Mets, and of course the Sox' eternal rivals, the New York Yankees. It’s been reported that currently the Red Sox have upped their latest offer to the slugger for over $600 million, as have the other four teams in contention. Soto is coming off of a monster season with the Yankees, slashing .288/.419/.569 to go along with 41 home runs and 129 RBI. Jay Jaffe's JAWS metric, which estimates worthiness for enshrinement in the Hall of Fame, already counts Soto as the 53rd-most deserving right fielder, and he's just 26 years old. If the Red Sox manage to convince the slugger to join a lineup that already includes Jarren Duran, Rafael Devers, and Triston Casas, it could make for a terrifying force. Add in a healthy Trevor Story and Wilyer Abreu looking to take a step in his second full season, and the Red Sox could have as deep a lineup as any in the American League. Excitement about the possibility of landing Soto isn't limited to the fans and the front office. On Thursday, the Globe's Julian McWilliams relayed comments from reliever Liam Hendriks: While the Red Sox have given every indication that they are extremely serious in their pursuit of Soto, as far as the public knows, it’s anyone’s game. If they do manage to snag the offseason's top prize, they could become one of the favorites in the American League. If the pursuit of Soto turns out to be unsuccessful (and basic math still says that you should take the field over any one team), the Red Sox will need to pivot in a hurry in order to fulfill the promises made by Sam Kennedy and Craig Breslow. Once the big domino has fallen, there may well be a rush on free agents, and the Red Sox have serious holes to fill in order to make the team into a contender once more. While not as enticing a name, the team could look to bring back outfielder Tyler O’Neill, who had a decent season with the club, or bolster their infield with the addition of stars Willy Adames or Alex Bregman. The Red Sox know they have to do everything in their power to convince both Soto and Boras that they mean business, and they’re trying to do just that. View full article

Blake Snell will not play for the Red Sox, and the rich keep on getting richer. What does this mean for Boston? One of the Red Sox's top potential targets is officially off the board. Late Tuesday night, Blake Snell hinted at a possible signing as he posted an image of himself in a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform on his personal Instagram. He had done the same last offseason, right before announcing that he had signed with the San Francisco Giants. Sure enough, the breaking news tweets began to roll out with the announcement. Blake Snell had signed with the Dodgers for five years and a grand total of $182 million. Of that $182 million, $52 million will come in the form of a signing bonus, as reported by the New York Post’s Jon Heyman. Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reported that roughly $60 million of the remaining $130 million will be deferred and that while Snell doesn't have a no-trade clause, he would receive an additional $5 million from the Dodgers if they were to trade him. Deferring money has become a trend with the Dodgers of late. Most notably, Shohei Ohtani is making $70 million a year, but a whopping $68 million is deferred. Snell will not receive the full amount until years after his contract has expired. Assuming the deferrals are spread out evenly, Snell's average annual value would work out to $34.34 million for the purposes of the Competitive Balance Tax. Snell is the first major free agent to sign this offseason and is likely to jumpstart the free agent market. Signing this early in the offseason is a stark difference from last year. The left-handed pitcher didn't sign until March 19 this past offseason, inking a two-year, $62 million contract with the San Francisco Giants with an opt-out after the first season. Leaving $30 million on the table, Snell bet on himself and opted out. That gamble paid off handsomely, as he became the first free agent in this year’s class to sign a nine-figure deal. Snell, a two-time Cy Young winner, had previously been in contact with the Red Sox. How deep these conversations went is unknown but they had been in a meeting as recently as last week. Despite heavy interest from the Red Sox, Snell had made it no secret across his career that he preferred playing on the West Coast. He'll now remain on the West Coast for the foreseeable future. Snell will turn 32 on Wednesday, and in joining the defending World Series champions will fit somewhere in a rotation that already houses superstars Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Tyler Glasnow. That doesn't even include the back end of the rotation being filled in by some combination of Clayton Kershaw, Bobby Miller, Tony Gonsolin, and Dustin May. With Snell off the table, Bob Nightengale reported that Red Sox are now focusing on Max Fried. The left-handed pitcher will enter the 2025 season at 31 years old and will likely cost less than Snell’s $182 million contract. Coming off of an 11-win season in which he ran a 3.25 ERA over 174 1/3 innings, Fried would easily slot in at the top of the Red Sox rotation alongside Tanner Houck. Boston will also likely focus on Corbin Burnes. The righty just turned 30, making him younger than both Snell and Fried. He’s likely to cost more. Despite pitching well for the Orioles, Burnes has seen a decline since his Cy Young-winning season in 2021. He is still capable of being an ace, but the big red flag is the fact that his cutter isn't quite the same pitch it once was, which has hurt his strikeout rate. Despite that development, Burnes saw an improvement in his slider and introduced a sweeper in 2023. By leaning on these pitches, he could offset the decline in his cutter and remain an ace-caliber pitcher for years to come. Snell wasn’t the first free agent the Red Sox lost out on and he won’t be the last. However, if the Red Sox are serious about upgrading their rotation, they need to go out and sign one of the other premier starting pitchers still on the market. With Snell unavailable, it is likely that other teams will get desperate. The Red Sox do not want to end up in a bidding war with a desperate team and should look to act quickly, even if that means overpaying slightly. View full article