Brandon Glick

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Brayan Bello finds himself the subject of trade rumors following the team's rotation overhaul. Will the Sox genuinely consider trading one of their best young arms? View full video

The Boston Red Sox, despite a couple of savvy trades for starting pitchers, are one of just two teams in MLB this offseason not to sign a major-league free agent. What's going on? View full video

Jordan Hicks certainly didn't do a great job of endearing himself to the Boston Red Sox faithful after arriving as 25% of the trade return for Rafael Devers. However, with Kyle Harrison looking crowded out of the rotation and James Tibbs III plying his trade in Los Angeles, the flamethrowing right-hander may be the Sox's best chance of recouping an iota of value from that ill-advised blockbuster. Once a superlative high-leverage relief arm for the St. Louis Cardinals, Hicks' career went wayward after signing a four-year contract with the San Francisco Giants that came with the stipulation that he'd attempt a move to the rotation. In 42 appearances (29 starts) in the Bay Area, the right-hander logged a 4.83 ERA and 4.15 FIP, watching his strikeout rate plummet while proving unable to reel in his unwieldy habit for issuing free passes. The Red Sox acquired Hicks and transferred him right back to the 'pen, but things only got worse. Opposing hitters posted a .949 OPS against him as he recorded an 8.20 ERA and 6.19 FIP. His 15.5% strikeout rate was pitiful; his 12.4% walk rate was just plain ugly. The stuff was just no longer playing up in a short-stint capacity, and Hicks was placed on the 15-day injured list with a shoulder injury in early September, prematurely ending his season. Now on the fringes of the roster, the former closer is likely only safe by virtue of being owed $25 million over the next two years; no team will pay him that much for his recent production, and the Red Sox are unlikely to waive him while soaking up such a large dead cap hit. As such, expect Hicks to be on the Opening Day roster in 2026, barring a bad-contract for bad-contract swap at some point this winter. Instead of just lamenting his presence, though, let's try to see if Andrew Bailey and the pitching lab can do anything to help Hicks return to his former glory. His best season was probably in 2023 when he posted a 3.29 ERA (3.30 xERA, 3.22 FIP) between the Cardinals and Blue Jays while rocking a career-best strikeout rate of 28.4%. Between that year and this past season, look at all the places Hicks has declined (2024 is included for reference): *Chart courtesy of Baseball Savant The average exit velocity he allows has jumped by more than three miles per hour, and his hard-hit rate has jumped by nearly ten percent. His average fastball velocity has wilted by 2.5 mph, which is directly related to the five-percent drop in whiff rate. And, because of his recurring shoulder issues, his arm angle has declined by about five degrees since 2023, which factors into the next part of our discussion. Hicks remains excellent at generating ground balls thanks to his sinker-heavy approach. As someone who utilizes perceived rise well, his vertical movement profile generally remains the same as it was a few years ago (each of his pitches generally functions with anywhere from zero to five inches of perceived rise). However, we've talked about the importance in having movement variance along at least one of the planes — it's a necessary factor in being an effective pitch tunneler. But look at Hicks' horizontal movement over the years: At his best (2023), Hicks has kept things incredibly tight on the x-axis. However, as he's lowered his arm angle over the past few seasons, his range of horizontal movement has shifted dramatically. Which, in turn, has made him an easier pitcher to read and react to; large changes in run or sweep are far easier to pick up on in the batter's box than minuscule ones. With declining velocity in conjunction to more distinguishable pitches, it's no wonder how hitters have become better at approaching Hicks. Again, this is a little backwards from how we traditionally think about improving a pitcher's arsenal. Normally, we want more variance in movement, not less (it forces hitters to sell out to one side of the plate, rather than being able to target a specific part of the zone). But Hicks has made a living on the margins, using upper-echelon velocity to punish batters into ground outs and pop-outs, rather than generating reams of strikeouts. Adding a few more ticks back to his arm, if at all possible, would be the easiest fix here; getting him to tighten his splitter back up would also suffice. The talent is there, even if his unique profile requires everything to click at the same time to be effective. There's a good chance that Jordan Hicks' best MLB days are behind him. But, so long as the Red Sox feel obligated to roster him, there's no use in treating him like a lost cause when there are some apparent tweaks in plain sight. View full article

The Boston Red Sox were predictably quiet at the Winter Meetings after trading for Sonny Gray and Johan Oviedo earlier in the offseason, though they did ship out a disgruntled prospect in Vaughn Grissom. View full video

Ever since the 2023 World Baseball Classic, Munetaka Murakami has been the Japanese player MLB teams have been waiting for. Sure, Yoshinobu Yamamoto arrived to the states 2024 with the largest-ever contract for a pitcher in hand and Roki Sasaki followed suit by choosing the Los Angeles Dodgers last winter, but Murakami was the one with 56-homer power. At just 25 years old, the "Babe Ruth of Higo" is finally a free agent; DiamondCentric projects him to earn $92 million over four years, or $23 million per season before accounting for his posting fee. Most other prognosticators figure him a lock for a nine-figure deal. The issue with Murakami isn't that his upside is limited. On the contrary, he may be one of the most prolifically-talented baseball in the world. The problem is that, for as towering as his ceiling is, his floor may stoop even lower. That 2022 season was truly legendary, as he won the Central League Triple Crown while hitting .318 with 134 RBIs. He's hit 246 home runs in 892 career games in NPB, good for a 162-game pace of 44.67. There's no denying those numbers, nor the potential they invite. But there's also no denying that Murakami has struck out nearly 29% of the time over the last three seasons combined, nor can one hide the fact that he simply cannot hit high-velocity fastballs. As you may know, MLB pitchers tend to throw harder than their counterparts in the NPB; Murakami's swing-and-miss issues are more likely to be exacerbated, not fixed, upon his arrival to the states. Contrast that with Kazuma Okamoto, who possesses similar power (he averaged 33.1 home runs per year from 2018-24) but far fewer projectability concerns (he ran equal 11.3% walk and strikeout rates in 2025). Yes, Okamoto is four years older than Murakami, and like his compatriot, is unlikely to have the defensive skills to stick at third base over the long term. Luckily, the Red Sox have an opening at first base as well, where the 29-year-old NPB star should thrive. Okamoto's contact skills have only improved with age, and he topped out at an 80.4% contact rate (total percentage of contact made when swinging at all pitches) in 2025. Though an elbow injury limited to just 69 games, he still hit .327/.416/.598 with 15 home runs and a 210 wRC+. He's simply a safer bet than his fellow Japanese slugger, especially when you consider he actually thrives against velocity. The Red Sox, along with the Blue Jays and... Pirates(?) have been named as some of the most aggressive suitors in the Okamoto sweepstakes. His right-handed power would fit nicely into Alex Bregman's vacated spot in the middle of the lineup, particularly if Boston wants to run a L-R-L-R-L gauntlet at the top of the order with Roman Anthony, Trevor Story, Jarren Duran, Okamoto, and Wilyer Abreu. The Winter Meetings should reveal a lot more into both stars' markets (as well as Tatsuya Imai's free agency venture), given that their posting deadlines expire on Dec. 22 (Murakami) and Jan. 4 (Okamoto), respectively. Expect the Red Sox to be in on both players, but when push comes to shove, it should surprise no one when they chose the elder slugger over his revered counterpart. View full article

This is an excellent observation, and exactly why I called the Mariners out by name in this section (as opposed to, say, the Royals, who very clearly have needs in the outfield). The buzz in Mariner Land is they don't want Robles as anything more than a 4th outfielder. He was awful in 2025 and really hasn't been productive in the big leagues outside of that 2024 Linsanity run (and the 2019 season). Raley has never been much more than a utility corner infielder/outfielder, and his bat fell off a cliff in 2025 (91 wRC+). Canzone is the wild card; if the Mariners are willing to trust him with that third spot next to Arozarena and Rodriguez, that could take them out of the outfield market. However, Arozarena is a free agent after 2026. And they need to resupply some power to the lineup after losing Suarez & Polanco. I'm sure they'd love a star third baseman (Alex Bregman?), but they need to be cost-conscious considering their payroll is already near last year's record high (for them). They could very easily trade for a Duran/Abreu to fill that right field hole while having them around long-ish term to help backfill for Arozarena's absence. And I think you're off the mark with the Castillo comment. George Kirby could easily be expendable after a relatively mediocre season, especially if they want to give Logan Evans or Emerson Hancock more MLB run.

The 2025 Winter Meetings are nearly upon us! The annual four-day event begins officially on December 8 in Orlando, Flordia, though most teams will begin arriving by Sunday, Dec. 7. There's a lot that tends to go down at the Meetings every year, so let's break down the schedule, and the biggest rumors and noise surrounding the Boston Red Sox heading into the offseason's biggest event. NOTE: The Red Sox completed their Jhostynxon Garcia trade with the Pirates shortly before this article was set to publish. Red Sox's Offseason Thus Far The big move Boston has made was the acquisition of Sonny Gray in a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals. The 36-year-old right-hander should be a perfect fit in the middle of Alex Cora' rotation alongside Garrett Crochet and Brayan Bello. Otherwise, the team has focused on protecting prospects and preparing the 40-man roster for a busy offseason. Some notable non-tenders (Nathaniel Lowe) and minor trades (Luke Heyman, Ronny Hernandez) clog up the team's transaction log, but for the most part, this is still largely the same roster the team had when the 2025 season ended. The Red Sox's notable free agents include Alex Bregman, Lucas Giolito, and Steven Matz. In terms of previous Winter Meetings, the Sox brought in both Chris Sale (2016) and Crochet (2024) at the event in past years. This is perhaps the single-best chance to make a trade on the league calendar thanks to the proximity of every major front office executive, though Boston may focus on free agents this time around after trading for Gray. 2025 Winter Meeting Schedule Location: Orlando, FL December 8 marks the first official day of the meetings, and it should be a busy one. There's already been a number of notable moves made this offseason, from the Dylan Cease signing to the New York Mets and Texas Rangers' blockbuster trade involving Marcus Semien and Brandon Nimmo. The big expectation is that at least two of the big three Japanese stars (Munetaka Murakami, Kazuma Okamoto, and Tatsuya Imai) will sign at the Meetings, as their posting windows will close within the next month and change. December 9 will be when the league's annual MLB Draft Lottery takes place, though by virtue of making the playoffs in 2025, the Red Sox won't find themselves in contention for the No. 1 overall pick. December 10 will feature the Rule 5 Draft, in which teams can selected unprotected prospects from other organizations. In order to keep drafted players, teams must keep them on the active 26-man roster (or the 60-day IL) throughout the remainder of the following season; otherwise, the prospects' original team can take them back. In terms of recent Rule 5 picks, the Red Sox have a few members of their bullpen (Justin Slaten, Garrett Whitlock) who stand out as excellent selections. The Winter Meetings will officially end on December 11, though most teams will depart from Orlando before the finish line is crossed. Still, the groundwork laid in Florida will lead to a cascade of signings and trades through the New Year. Red Sox Winter Meetings Rumor Roundup Sonny Gray won't be the only starting pitching addition. This is something we've believed since the moment the Gray trade was made, but at this point, it seems to be a lock. The Red Sox made sure the Cardinals ate a bunch of salary so they could maintain flexibility throughout the remainder of the offseason, be it via more trades or a blockbuster free agent or two. My money is still on Freddy Peralta, but Tatsuya Imai remains a very popular name that continues to pop up in rumors. I also wouldn't be stunned if the team finally leverages its outfield depth to swing a trade with Jerry Dipoto and the Mariners, who have seemingly soured on Victor Robles in right field. Will Sonny Gray be extended? From what I've seen, this topic hasn't come up much, but it is a pressing matter. Gray, 36, is a free agent after the 2026 season, assuming his $30 million mutual option is declined in favor of a $10 million buyout. With the 2027 lockout looming, Gray would be wise to secure one last big contract, though I don't expect the Red Sox to be the ones to pay it. Gray was acquired as a true one-year rental, and I'd imagine Craig Breslow has every intention of maintaining some payroll and roster flexibility for next offseason. Are the Red Sox prioritizing a reliever? Aroldis Chapman was utterly brilliant in 2025, and set-up man Garrett Whitlock wasn't far behind. Yet, Chapman is 37 and had a long run of mediocrity before his maiden campaign in Boston, and Whitlock can become a free agent next year if the team declines his option. Thus, it shouldn't be a surprise that the Red Sox have been poking around the bullpen market in free agency. And I'm not talking about a small play like a reunion with Steven Matz — I mean that there's real smoke on the reliever fire, whether it be a more cost-effective option like Pete Fairbanks or a true upper-echelon closer like Edwin Diaz. I'm under the impression the latter will only happen if the team swings and misses on all of its primary starting pitcher targets, but pairing Chapman and Whitlock up with another elite leverage arm could shorten a lot of games in 2026. What on earth is happening at first base? Truthfully, I don't know, and I'm not sure anyone does. Triston Casas has more fans than detractors in the organization, but you simply can't rely on him to stay healthy at this point. I'm pretty sure the Sox don't want Murakami -- his strikeout issues are a real concern for MLB teams -- and Okamoto is probably going to exit their "comfortable" price range. Power is a necessity, so someone like Luis Arraez is off the table as a reclamation project. This truly might be a spot where a trade has to happen, unless the Red Sox completely pull a 180 on their modus operandi and sign an aging Pete Alonso to a long-term contract. View full article

Well, we knew the Boston Red Sox had to deal from their outfield coffers eventually. This isn't exactly the blockbuster deal most had in mind, but it certainly qualifies as the team's second major trade of the offseason. The Pittsburgh Pirates are getting top prospect Jhostynxon Garcia and 18-year-old pitcher Jesus Travieso in exchange for major-league starter Johan Oviedo and a pair of prospects, pitcher Tyler Samaniego and catcher Adonys Guzman. Oviedo has a career 4.24 ERA in 361 innings, though he only made nine starts in 2025 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. In order to make room on the 40-man roster for both Oviedo and Samaniego, the Red Sox designated pitcher Cooper Criswell for assignment. Talk Sox will have a full breakdown of all the moving parts of this deal shortly, but the TLDR on each prospect: Jesus Travieso is a teenager who signed as an international free agent out of Venezuela in 2024. He looked good in his first taste of stateside ball in 2025, pitching to a 3.06 ERA and 3.15 FIP between the Complex League and Single-A. He's got great stuff (31.8% strikeout rate) but lacks control and is very unpolished. A high-upside lottery ticket for the Pirates to develop. Tyler Samaniego is a pitcher who has stalled at Double-A but was just protected from the Rule 5 Draft by the Pirates. He's 26 and no longer a true prospect, but he struck out 27.8% of hitters while walking only 7.0% this past season. There's a legitimate MLB relief arm in his profile if the Red Sox can help him induce fewer fly balls. Adonys Guzman was a fifth-round pick in this year's draft out of the University of Arizona. He slashed .328/.411/.496 in his final season in college and could move quickly up the ranks if he can hit like that while sticking at catcher. As for the big pieces involved, Garcia is a tough loss to swallow. Affectionately known as "The Password", the 22-year-old slugger had simply become superfluous in a loaded outfield in Boston. With Kristian Campbell also making the switch from the dirt to the grass, there just wasn't any room for Garcia. The Pirates, who ranked dead-last in MLB in home runs this past season (by a country mile) will benefit greatly from his presence. He hit .267/.340/.470 with 21 home runs and a 116 wRC+ in the minors in 2025. He was even better in 2024, hitting 23 bombs and producing a ridiculous 149 wRC+. He is an excellent get for Pittsburgh, who took advantage of the Red Sox's roster glut. Oviedo is the prize returning to Boston, and he's a fascinating piece to add to the puzzle. It was just months ago that the Pirates were touting him as a "big part of their future"; did something happen to where they soured on him? I would guess not, and instead just chalk this up to them dealing from a place of strength (starting pitching) to get some help at an area of weakness (competent hitting). Standing at an intimidating 6'6" and 275 pounds, Oviedo brings a lot of downhill force with him off the mound. At 27 years old and with two years of team control remaining, he currently resembles the favorite to handle the No. 4 spot in Alex Cora's rotation, as currently constructed. He pitched to a 3.57 ERA in his return from TJ surgery this past season, though his xERA (4.19) and FIP (4.92) were not as optimistic about his comeback. He's got good fastball velocity when healthy, though that's been rare throughout his career — Oviedo has only completed 65+ innings in a season once, back in 2023 (when he threw 177 2/3). He's got a five-pitch arsenal, though his movement profiles tend to overlap. You can be sure Andrew Bailey is just waiting to get his hands on Oviedo's mix to help him tunnel and differentiate better. As things stand, this feels like yet another set-up move following the Sonny Gray trade. Oviedo has a lot of upside, but little in the way of a floor. With the Winter Meetings on the horizon, don't be surprised if the Red Sox add a third starting pitcher, and one who is better than both of their most recent additions. View full article

Following their acquisition of Sonny Gray, it hasn't been difficult to imagine the Boston Red Sox doubling-down and adding another premier starter to their rotation this offseason. The 2026 campaign represents the final one prior to (what many expect to be) a long lockout that could put the 2027 season in jeopardy. There's real, tangible value in operating under economic certainty, even if only for one year. Trading for Gray -- and requiring the St. Louis Cardinals to pick up half of his remaining salary -- was the start of going all-in on next year, not the end of it. That being said, where exactly the Red Sox turn after Gray depends on your perspective. I made it clear that I believe Gray to be the No. 2 starter this team has been searching for since last year's Winter Meetings. Others have made it clear they do not share that opinion. Depending on which side of the ledger you fall on, you either believe the Red Sox need another depth option to fill in one of the primary jobs behind Brayan Bello, or that they need a true co-ace for Garrett Crochet. As a Gray truther, I'll cross the line on my own party and stand with those wanting another frontline addition. Gray is a true one-year rental at 36 years old, and it could behoove Boston's front office to find a longer-term partner for Crochet. One could make the case that Bello may still yet grow into that role, or perhaps one of the team's many exciting young arms (Payton Tolle, Connelly Early, Kyson Witherspoon, etc.) could leap others on the depth chart. But that's an idea best harbored for a post-lockout world; in the here and now, there needs to be another upper-echelon starter in Beantown by Opening Day. I'm not here to tell you who that may be. I maintain my belief that Freddy Peralta is the quintessential Red Sox trade target, though perhaps trading valuable prospect capital for two rental starters in the same offseason isn't the best way of doing business. What I am here to do is explain why, despite my (overzealous) belief in Gray, I think this team should be focusing exclusively on front-of-the-rotation arms. It helps that there's already so much depth in place. Tolle and Early really should be given the first crack at the No. 5 gig in spring training, and it helps that fellow high-upside arms Kyle Harrison and Luis Perales are already on the 40-man roster. That also doesn't include a trio of players with past MLB success that should be returning from injury at some point in 2026: Patrick Sandoval, Tanner Houck, and Hunter Dobbins. Those seven alone should easily be able to cover whatever innings are open following Crochet, Gray, and Bello, but even that group fails to mention the best of the bunch: Kutter Crawford. I'll slow my own roll for a second and clarify that by "best", I don't mean "most talented" or "possessing the most impressive track record." Instead, I simply mean that, of the octet of options laid out in the previous paragraph, I find it most likely that Crawford will be able to hold onto a rotation spot throughout the duration of next season. Of course, that will require Crawford to overcome his bizarre wrist injury that he suffered while moving furniture in the confines of his own home. He was on track to return from patellar tendinopathy in his right knee at some point after the trade deadline, and yet, the usually-reliable starter missed the entire campaign after undergoing surgery on his throwing wrist in July. As far as freak accidents go, that's certainly one of the them. I'd hardly call Crawford -- who made 56 starts between 2023-24 -- injury-prone, and I'd wager a guess that the braintrust in Boston feels the same way. If we can suppose that Crawford will return to his pre-injury form, the Red Sox should be able to add another starter to the end-of-the-rotation mix, and a damn good one at that. Though he's never been particularly elite at any one thing, the 29-year-old right-hander is dependable. He tossed 183 2/3 innings when he was last on the mound in 2024, firing off a 3.85 xERA and 4.65 FIP that just about perfectly bisected his 4.36 ERA. He struck out over 23% of hitters while walking just 6.7%, though his primary blemish was allowing 34 home runs in 33 starts. He was much better in Fenway Park, surrendering a .296 wOBA at home compared to a .314 mark on the road. He also allowed eight fewer home runs despite facing 81 additional batters in Boston. That checks out when digging deeper — batters only went to the opposite field against Crawford 24.4% of the time in 2024, which makes it difficult for lefty hitters to attack the Green Monster. That's not a matter of luck, either. It's wrought on by conscious decisions made with his repertoire, highlighted by a pair of fastballs and a solid sweeper. Image courtesy of Baseball Savant As we know, the Red Sox love pitchers who can toss a big horizontal sweeper, and Crawford fits that mold. It was his best offering to righties last time he was healthy, and it yielded a .214 xBA and .295 xwOBA overall across 522 offerings in 2024, to go along with a tidy 26.3% whiff rate. In conjunction with that earlier note on the righty being better at home, most will note that Crawford worked reverse splits in his breakout campaign. Left-handed hitters slashed just .207/.272/.402 (.293 wOBA) against him, compared to a .240/.296/.436 (.316 wOBA) slash line for righties. A lot of that has to do with his excellent splitter and knuckle curveball, pitches that yielded batting averages below the Mendoza Line. Crawford tended to reserve those offerings for late in the counts against left-handed batters, seeing as both pitches generated put-away rates above 24%. Simply put, this is an arsenal that works in harmony. The raw "stuff" isn't necessarily elite, but there's a lot of synergy between each offering and when Crawford likes to throw them. There's genuine variance in the movement profiles of each pitch, and the same is true for their respective velocities. Hitters may be able to hit him hard when they guess right, but that's a one-in-five proposition when every pitch is working. If healthy, we already know Crawford can handle the workload. It helps that he also has a big-league caliber fastball in his aptly-named cutter, which produced a .216 batting average against and 26.5% whiff rate in 2024. With so much pressure being put on the front of the rotation to produce in 2026, it shouldn't be a surprise if Crawford settles right back into his home as one of the league's most-dependable backend starters next season. View full article

The Boston Red Sox's trade for Sonny Gray reinforced the rotation without breaking the bank, giving the team multiple paths to improving more throughout the winter. View full video

It's that time of year again! Talk Sox invites you to discuss your favorite players and moments from the 2025 Boston Red Sox season! View full video

Well, at long last, the Boston Red Sox have their No. 2 starting pitcher. Sonny Gray of the St. Louis Cardinals is heading to Beantown as part of yet another blockbuster trade in this early part of the 2025-26 MLB offseason. Gray, 36, is reworking his contract as part of this deal. He'll receive $31 million for 2026 and a $10 million buyout on a mutual option in 2027. The Cardinals are sending $20 million as part of the trade, meaning the Red Sox will get him for the equivalent of $21 million over one season. The return for Gray is reportedly major-league pitcher Richard Fitts and top pitching prospect Brandon Clarke. Before getting into Gray, let's acknowledge that Clarke is a legitimate prospect. However, I can confirm that people within the organization had significant concerns about his reliever risk after the 22-year-old ran into stamina and command issues in his professional debut in 2025. Though he possesses brilliant stuff, Clarke worked an 18.1% walk rate in 28 1/3 innings in High-A this past season; his ceiling may be that of an elite reliever, which simply isn't as valuable as a top-tier starting prospect. Plus, the Red Sox already have a number of players that fit that archetype that leapt Clarke on the depth chart this year, including first-round pick Kyson Witherspoon, Payton Tolle, and Connelly Early. He was expendable, even if he's only scratched the surface of his talent. As for Fitts, the 25-year-old is a pure reclamation project for the Cardinals. He struggled badly in his 45.0 major-league innings this year (5.00 ERA, 5.80 FIP) and ended the season on the injured list with right arm neuritis. He no longer had a place on the 40-man roster among a loaded group of backend starters like Hunter Dobbins, Kutter Crawford, and Patrick Sandoval. That's a notable return for a 36-year-old pitcher on an expensive one-year contract, but with the Cardinals paying down roughly half of it, this is absolutely a trade the Red Sox could afford to make. Chaim Bloom knows this system well, and only losing one notable prospect at a position of extreme organizational depth for a legitimate No. 2 pitcher is a solid bit of pre-Thanksgiving work by Craig Breslow and company. And let's make something clear: Gray is a "legitimate No. 2" starting pitcher. He may be removed from his 2023 peak when he led the league in FIP (2.83) and finished second in AL Cy Young voting with the Minnesota Twins, but he still led the Senior Circuit in strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.29) and handled more than 180 innings for the second time in three years. Gray has run an xERA below 4.00 in every single season since 2019, a feat he's matched in both FIP and xFIP. He's a metrics darling despite modest strikeout numbers throughout his career, though he's improved upon even that recently, ringing up 30.3% of hitters in 2024 and 26.7% of hitters in 2025. Though he's started to allow harder contact as he gets older, he's maintained elite chase, whiff, and walk rates without fail. Notably, the right-handed comes equipped with a seven-pitch arsenal that's highlighted by a devastating sweeper that yielded a 42.3% whiff rate in 2025; he and Garrett Crochet were two of just five pitchers to surpass that mark with their sweepers last season (min. 400 pitches). He only averaged 92.0 mph on his fastballs, but that's just one tick down from his peak velocity in 2018-20. This is a guy who knows how to pitch to major-league hitters. Expect more of the same from Gray as he gets a chance to work in Andrew Bailey's pitching lab in 2026. From here, the Red Sox can move their offseason in a bunch of different directions. They could pursue another starter with the Cardinals eating so much money, or they can prioritize bullpen depth and infield help. Either way, starting the winter off with such a savvy move puts them well in front of the pack prior to the Winter Meetings. View full article