Tag Archives: Alex Cora

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Get Ready Red Sox Fans

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It’s here. Spring training baseball is ramping up and seam-heads across the land are readying to descend upon waiting tourist traps in Florida and Arizona. The Boston Red Sox pitchers and catchers officially report on Wednesday, February 13th. Let’s get ready to defend the title.

Sights and Sounds

The Mets GM gets it. It’s the sights and sounds. When I flip through the files as I’m working on my taxes I hear the snap, crackle, pop of baseballs hitting gloves. Boy would that long haired dude look good in a Red Sox uniform.

Ain’t that a sight. Jet Blue Park is a great destination, the facilities are top notch, and you better believe there’s a lot of pomp and circumstance with a World Series Championship to celebrate. Speaking of celebrations…

Alex Cora’s Getting His Closeup

On Tuesday February 12th at 9pm EST, the MLB Network has their latest ‘MLB Network Presents‘ on Alex Cora. We all know Cora presses all the right buttons in the playoffs, but there’s a lot more to his story.

We’ll be back on Wednesday with some highlights.

Rules, Glorious Rules

There’s a bunch of horse-trading going on between the players and ownership regarding all sorts of rules changes. Pitch clocks, universal DHs and even less mound visits, oh my!

Speed up the action, it’s not complicated.

Debate about Barnes

There’s some scuttlebutt about the Red Sox plans to stay in house with their Closer this year. Barnes is ready, but not everyone is convinced. Sean McAdam of the Boston Sports Journal has a story about how risky this move might be.

Just like the Red Sox can’t win the World Series with a rookie manager with only one year of bench coach experience. In Cora we trust.

Here’s to sunshine and foul balls, fielding drills and batters up.

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Photo Credit: www.nashuatelegraph.com

Mookie Betts Signing: Shades Of Lady Gaga

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The echoes of Lady Gaga’s Poker Face race through the memory banks. The Patriots are in the AFC Championship, 55% less likely, according to odds makers, than the Chiefs to win the Super Bowl. Almost as bad as the Patriots odds against the Falcons down 28-3. Gaga performed at halftime, and the rest was history. These were a fraction of the long odds the Red Sox were looking at resigning Mookie Betts a month ago. Then he signed with the Red Sox for $20 Million last week. Is this the turning point that Hightower’s sack of Matty Ice was?

Mookie Betts Contentious Arbitration Cases

It is well documented that Mookie has gone to the wall with the Red Sox in arbitration thus far. It has been trumpeted by Tony Massarotti, among many others, that the Sox have risked completely alienating Betts by going to arbitration after 2017.

In that case, Betts asked for $10.5 Million, and the Red Sox countered with $7.5 Million. Up to that point in history, only Kris Bryant and Ryan Howard had gotten more than $10 Million in their first year of eligibility for arbitration. They agreed before an arbitration hearing, and both had Rookie Of The Year and NL MVPs under their belts at the time. The Red Sox were most definitely looking at Mookie and saying to themselves “Hey, he hasn’t won any major awards, why give him $10.5 Million?”

Arbitration hearings can be contentious. The player is promoting themselves, while the team is tearing them down. A funny thing happened in this case. The Arbitrator sided with Betts, noting his Silver Slugger in 2016, his Gold Gloves in 2016 and 2017, and his MVP runner up in 2016. Hey, not everyone has to compete against Mike Trout.

A New Deal

But then the news came across the wire on January 11th of this year: Mookie Betts had agreed to one year contract with the Red Sox for $20 Million. This after an MVP season in 2018, when he put to bed all the worries that 2016 was a one year aberration. After a historic 105 win season and 11-3 postseason on the road to a World Series Championship.

The fact that the Red Sox have approached him with long term offers that he has rejected don’t seem so real now. His deal of $20 Million sets a record for players with only 4 years in the big leagues, but it’s still a bargain.

Mike Trout is simply the sickest player on the planet. He finished 2017 leading the majors in WAR for the 5th time. He’s played 7 years full years. If he retired tomorrow he would arguably sail into the Hall Of Fame on the first ballot. That’s the guy Mookie beat out for the 2018 AL MVP. Guess who beat Trout out for 2018 WAR lead? That’s right. Mookie Betts. In 2018 he lead the league in batting average at .346, hit 32 homers, stole 30 bases, and won another gold glove, among many other things. Yes, $20 million is a bargain.

The Future

The bars of Gaga’s A Million Reasons ring out:

” I’ve got a hundred million reasons to walk away
But baby, I just need one good one to stay “

Sox fans have a reason to feel good. Because the Sox gave Mookie $20 Million reasons to stay, and by agreeing without going to the wall in arbitration they’ve opened the door to perhaps $300 Million more after 2019.

Is it Alex Cora and a culture of togetherness and support? Maybe it’s JD Martinez and his other teammates that he loves. Could be the joy of working in Fenway Park with all of us screaming his name. Whatever the reason, Mookie has opened the door to a long term deal.

Don’t screw this up Red Sox. And go Pats!

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Red Sox Offseason Lacking Fireworks…And That’s Okay

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I was making the rounds on the Red Sox news circuit yesterday when I came to a sudden realization. This is going to be a boring offseason.

Granted, it’s still incredibly early on. The non-tender deadline for arbitration-eligible players (the first major offseason date) is later tonight at 8 pm ET. The Winter Meetings don’t kick off until December 9th. MLB’s hot stove has been relatively cool thus far, outside of a handful of moves ranging from “Indifferent Shrug” to “Okay, That’s Interesting”. Both New York teams have led the charge by shopping at the Great Seattle Mariners Fire Sale of 2018. The Yankees acquired lefty James Paxton on November 20. Meanwhile, the Mets traded for Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz. The Red Sox, for their part, haven’t really been involved in much of the early action. There haven’t been any rumors of that changing any time soon.

That makes total sense for a 108-win champion coming off of the best season in franchise history. Boston will likely be returning most of the core group that led 2018’s title run. It has already brought back World Series MVP Steve Pearce on a team friendly 1-year deal and restructured/extended Alex Cora’s current deal through 2021. Both moves were no-brainers, and the Sox moved quickly to tie up those loose ends. The Red Sox also took a flyer on 25-year-old reliever Colten Brewer. Beyond that, the only real questions with this roster involve Craig Kimbrel, Nathan Eovaldi, and which of their homegrown core they can lock up long-term.

It’s a change of pace from last year’s eons-long pursuit of JD Martinez. It’s also a far cry from splashy offseasons like 2014 and 2015. I didn’t hear any reports of Dave Dombrowski sitting down for Thanksgiving dinner with Madison Bumgarner like Theo Epstein did with Curt Schilling in 2003. Trying to decide which sub-70 OPS+ catcher to move on isn’t a fun conversation to have on sports talk radio. The minutiae of sussing out a 6th or 7th reliever don’t really move the needle for many fans. There is some intrigue around second base and Dustin Pedroia’s status moving forward. And, while I personally think first base is an area to upgrade, the team seems happy with their Peace/Mitch Moreland platoon.

Winter can be fickle, and Dombrowski has never been shy about making blockbusters happen. Standing pat after a season where nearly everything went right can be risky, too. However, should the Sox choose to mostly shuffle some minor pieces around while keeping most of a championship roster intact, it will be hard to complain. This team doesn’t feel quite as one-hit-wonder-y as 2013, and doesn’t have as many players set to depart as 2004. The best comparison is 2007. That offseason, a strong mix of young, homegrown talent and veteran stars made it easy to roll things over to 2008.

Besides, next offseason looms large. Some key players that are up for extensions in 2019: Moreland, Martinez (player option) Chris Sale, Rick Porcello, and Xander Bogaerts. Mookie Betts and Jackie Bradley become unrestricted free agents the following year. It may be best for Boston to keep its books as clean as possible, with that in mind. That is unless they plan on acquiring a player with the intent to replace one of those guys over the long term.

As is always the case, we’ll have no choice to wait and see what happens. But if push comes to shove, I’m fine if the only offseason addition the Red Sox make is another World Series trophy to their display case.

Should The Red Sox Go After Noah Syndergaard?

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The Baseball Hot Stove is beginning. It’s winter, so warm up.  There are reports out there that the New York Mets are open to trading Noah Syndergaard.  Could Thor be in the Red Sox future?  Cue the Led Zeppelin and put on your mittens while we take a look.

Syndergaard’s Injuries

Noah Syndergaard has had a number of injuries, but his ‘injury prone‘ label is unwarranted.  In May of 2018, he had a strained ligament in his right index finger.  It’s unknown how he did it, perhaps playing Fortnite or Red Dead Redemption 2 a little too vigorously, but it held him out six weeks.  Then in late July, he suffered from the plague that hit New York pitchers hard: Hand, Foot and Mouth disease.  The scourge of toddlers may be embarrassing, but it’s hardly a long-term problem.

The major injury for Thor was a strained right lat muscle in May of 2017.  I’m not a doctor, so the details are a bit beyond me, but the bottom line is he did not need surgery.  Furthermore, this was not a rotator cuff or elbow injury.  Yes, it wiped out most of his 2017, but there has been no recurrence of the injury.

Contract Status

Because he missed the bulk of 2017, Noah Syndergaard has an incredibly affordable contract for someone of his stature.  He still has three years of arbitration ahead of him, and he’s starting 2019 from the low rung of $2.975 Million.

That means that even if he performs like a Cy Young candidate in 2019 and 2020 he still won’t be breaking the bank.  In short, this man is probably the best bargain in baseball as long as he’s healthy.  And it appears that he is.

End Of 2018 Performance

Syndergaard had a rough August as his body recovered from sickness, but he poured it on in September.  He went 4-1 with two complete games, including a shutout to end the season.  His Statcast average pitch speed was over 97 MPH on his fastball, so he’s still throwing much harder than the average incredible baseball player who is on any Major League roster.

On September 14th, Noah Syndergaard came to Fenway Park and pitched a beauty against arguably the greatest Red Sox team of all time.  7 innings, 3 hits, 6 strikeouts.  After the performance he tweeted out this nugget of a tantalizing possibility:

I’m sorry, but in light of the rumors of his availability, can I freak out now?

How He Fits On The Red Sox

It’s no secret that the Red Sox have a rather large bill coming due at the end of 2019.  Chris Sale’s contract is up.  Xander Bogaerts is hitting free agency.  JD Martinez has an opt-out in his contract.  Mookie Betts even now is looking to break records in arbitration.

As stated above, Syndergaard is cost controlled.  So while he is at that $2.975 Million number and coming off a season where he missed some time and made only 25 starts, Mookie is at $10.5 Million and coming off an MVP season.  The lower you start from in arbitration, the lower you end up the next year, and vice versa.

For a Red Sox team that is paying David Price over $30 Million, with at least that much needing to go to Chris Sale if they want to keep him, Syndergaard is a dream contract.  Furthermore, there is no starting pitcher depth in the Red Sox minor league system.  Low-cost young stars are the lifeblood of successful major league teams.  Noah Syndergaard is the very essence of the solution to these problems.

For these reasons, he won’t come cheap.

What A Trade Would Look Like

Alarmingly, the Red Sox main competition in the American League are pegged as landing spots for Syndergaard.  But the possible assets from the Yankees and Astros can’t measure up to the firepower the Red Sox can offer.

I was willing to trade Rafael Devers for very few players.  Kris Bryant was one of those players.  That is because Bryant is young and an MVP winner and perennial MVP candidate.  But Bryant would cost a lot soon.  Syndergaard is almost the equivalent as a pitcher that Bryant is as a batter and third baseman, and he’s cheap.

I’m also an advocate for taking advantage of Christian Vazquez’s value at this moment in time.

The Mets are working on getting 3B David Wright’s contract off their books.  They also have a hole at catcher.

I think the framework is there for a Rafael Devers and Christian Vazquez for Noah Syndergaard swap.  I do know that this is a trade that meets what the Mets may be looking for.

This would be a major shake-up of the future of the Red Sox.  Most likely this would mean the Sox would not be in on Nathan Eovaldi, the Sox number one target of this offseason, but maybe not.  It would definitely mean letting go of all the potential and promise of Rafael Devers.  Perhaps there’s a certain swiss army knife, who’s won a recent World Series with Alex Cora, the Sox could sign to play third?

The Mets GM, Brodie Van Wagenen, is an unknown entity at the moment.  There’s no telling what he may do, but he is contacting a lot of starting pitchers’ agents.  It certainly appears he’s readying to trade Thor.

Think of top of this rotation on opening day: Chris Sale, Noah Syndergaard, David Price.  Kind of makes the drool flow freely from your gaping mouth right?

Trade Christian Vazquez

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A rundown of the Red Sox catching depth shows Christian Vazquez, Sandy Leon, and Blake Swihart. Guess who makes well over 50% of the money?  That’s right, Christian Vazquez.

Blake Swihart Moving Up

There’s news that Blake Swihart will be brought to camp with the intention of keeping him at catcher in 2019.  This may seem innocuous.  But then there was Alex Cora saying he wasn’t fair to Blake Swihart in 2018.  These smoke signals seem to be pointing to Swihart getting a lot more time behind the plate in 2019.

Sandy Leon’s Defense

On first blush it could be that the team is looking to move on from Sandy Leon.  He was, of course, usurped as the number one catcher in the playoffs by Christian Vazquez.  But all throughout the season, there was story after story about how much the pitchers trusted Sandy Leon.  In August of 2018, The Globe did a story about Sandy having a 3.01 catchers ERA, which was the best in baseball at the time.

Just because Leon’s batting stats cratered in 2018 (.117 batting average for example), all that defense doesn’t fly out the window.

Vazquez Contract

Which leads us back to Vazquez.  It would be one thing if he was making $563K like Swihart, or $1.95 Million like Leon, and on the arbitration train like the two of them.  Not only is Christian Vazquez making $2.85 Million this year, but he’s also owed an additional $10.45 Million over 2020 and 2021.  That is because the Red Sox gave him a 3-year deal that starts in 2019.

In his admittedly sparse 4-year major league career, Blake Swihart has batted .256 with a .678 OPS.  For comparison, Vazquez hit .207/.540 this year and .240/.632 in his career.  Vazquez did hit .290 last year, but it took Leon’s offense disappearing in 2018 for Vazquez to get his chance again.

So Christian Vazquez has the recent World Series success of the team and a quintessential Yankee Stadium postseason Home Run to burnish his attraction to other clubs.  And because the Red Sox have Leon and Swihart, with Swihart’s improved defense (No errors, no passed balls, threw out 5 of 14 base stealers for an excellent 36 percent rate) to boot, Vazquez is an excellent candidate to be traded.

Trade Possibilities

Vazquez won’t bring back a lot on his own.  At best the Red Sox could look to bolster their weak farm system with a starting pitcher prospect or two.  Or perhaps he could be added to a package to get a higher rated prospect or more.

Removing Vazquez’s escalating salary is almost as important as giving Blake Swihart more time or getting prospects.  The Red Sox should sign Nathan Eovaldi, but it will cost.  The end of 2019 has Chris Sale and Xander Bogaerts getting to free agency, with JD Martinez likely to opt out as well.  Every payroll dollar counts.

A Vazquez trade wouldn’t be a blockbuster, but there are too many positives to trading him to not make sense this offseason.

 

 

Nathan Eovaldi Should Be Top Priority

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2018 was a fun ride for fans and players, now it’s time to get down to business. For the Red Sox, I think they need to find a way to keep Eovaldi in Boston. Reports on the situation are that Boston does indeed want to re-sign him. If they are unable to make that happen, they want to sign another proven Major League starter to replace him. I think that it is imperative to keep him.

Here’s Why Eovaldi Needs To Stay

With Nathan Eovaldi re-signed Boston’s starting rotation would be unreal with Sale, Price, Porcello, and Rodriguez all staying put. Suring up that rotation with Nathan would be smart. Boston has their key offensive pieces in place. Boston doesn’t have to worry about Mookie Betts or JD Martinez this year, so instead of signing another veteran pitcher, this is why Eovaldi is the answer.

Game 4 of the ALDS against the rival Yankees, Eovaldi dominated, pitching 7 plus innings with 1 run allowed. New York is also one of the teams that could be in on him. As the Red Sox continued into the ALCS, Eovaldi was great again. 6 plus innings with just 2 runs as the Sox won Game 3 using his arm again. As we all know by now the Red Sox beat the Houston Astros, and we were introduced to the rover. Alex Cora used Eovaldi as his rover in game 5 of the ALCS and in Games 1 and 2 of the World Series. In those 3 games, he came into each game and threw fire allowing 0 runs, while making it look easy. Even with short rest, Boston was going to have him start Game 4 of the World Series, but Game 3 changed that plan.

Eovaldi Turns in Heroic Performance Showing His Selflessness

Rover

Eovaldi was perfect for the Red Sox and should stay in Boston

Once again, Eovaldi was called on as Game 3 of the World Series turned into a marathon of a game. Still tied in the 12th inning, Nathan Eovaldi came out of the pen. In one of the greatest performances I’ve ever witnessed, he turned in a heroic 6 inning relief appearance. He knew that he was putting his future in jeopardy, by pitching so often. Anything could have happened and he could’ve lost a lot of money. As a free-agent-to-be, he risked his health along with future contracts, but he just wanted to help his team. Putting all of that aside, he went deep into the 18th inning, hitting triple digits on the radar gun like it was nothing.

Eovaldi pitched a gem and kept the Sox in the game as long as he could. In the bottom of the 18th, he gave up a solo shot to end the longest game in history. His teammates were all amazed at what he just did, some brought to tears as they realized how much Nathan just gave for his team. I believe it galvanized an already very close clubhouse. Eovaldi was a huge reason for Boston’s Championship.

 Closing Thoughts on Nathan Eovaldi

Boston should do what they can to keep Eovaldi. He’s 28 years old, extremely dominant and the way he pitched since arriving in Boston is all I need to know about him. For what it’s worth he threw 16 scoreless innings against the Yankees in the regular season. Also, his 1.35 ERA in September combined with what he did in the postseason, I believe he’s worth the $15 million range. He himself said he’d love to stay in Boston. While many teams will be fighting for him, I believe he wants to be here enough that he and Boston will work something out.

The Greatest Red Sox Legends by Uniform Number: 11-15

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Following up probably the easiest portion of these articles, numbers one through ten comes the third installment in this series of articles. This set of numbers, 11 through 15, won’t be quite so obvious. This grouping, however, does include one retired number and one current player.

Number 11 – Frank Malzone

Frank Malzone was an eight-time All-Star, spending 11 of his 12 seasons in Boston. Malzone made two All-Star Games in both 1959 and 1960, when Major League Baseball temporarily held two per season. Malzone was an excellent fielder, winning three consecutive Gold Gloves to begin his career. He also drove in 103 runners his rookie season, placing second in the Rookie of the Year vote.

During his nine full seasons with the Red Sox, Malzone batted .278 in addition to his All-Star Games and Gold Gloves. He hit 131 home runs during his time in Boston. From 1957-64, he was the cream of the crop at the hot corner. During that time he made eight All-Star Games in eight seasons. His average season was .281 with 16 home runs and 84 runs batted in during that timeframe.

Honorable Mentions: Tim Naehring, Bill Mueller, Clay Buchholz, Dave Stapleton

Number 12 – Ellis Burks

After a brief stint in Pawtucket, Burks came up to the Red Sox in 1987 and put up a 20-20 season as a rookie. He kept putting up results all over the field his entire career. With the Sox, he stole over 20 bases each of his first three seasons. In his first four years, he batted .291 with a .820 OPS. In that fourth season, he made the All-Star Game, won a Gold Glove and the Silver Slugger Award.

Burks’ play fell off his final two seasons in Boston, missing more than half the season in 1992. He battled injuries periodically throughout his career but was stellar when on the field. His biggest competition at the number 12 comes in the form of players who were good fewer years in Boston than he was, although several of them were postseason heroes.

Honorable Mentions: Wes Ferrell, Mark Bellhorn, Todd Walker, Mike Napoli

(Photo by Robert Beck/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Number 13 – John Valentin

John Valentin was an underrated star of the Red Sox in the nineties. Valentin was good both offensively and defensively and was a clutch hitter. During his time in Boston, he turned the tenth unassisted triple play in Major League history, hit for the cycle and posted the highest WAR in the American League in 1995. In the postseason, Valentin batted .347/.407/.639/1.046, hitting five home runs and driving in 19 runs over 72 at-bats.

Unfortunately, Valentin experienced severe knee problems that shortened his career. His knees bothered him in the late-nineties, then he blew out his knee and only played 30 games over his final two seasons with the Red Sox. However, from 1994-97 Valentin averaged 17 home runs and 35 doubles per season while batting .303/.384/.492/.876.

Honorable Mentions: Alex Cora, Hanley Ramirez

 

John Valentin homers off Roger Clemens in the 1st inning of game 3 of the ALCS in 1999.

Number 14 – Jim Rice

Jim Rice is the lone Hall of Famer in this group and has his number 14 retired by the Red Sox. He was quite possibly the most feared hitter in baseball for a decade. His rookie season he placed 2nd in the Rookie of the Year vote and third in the MVP vote. Things only went up from there.

From 1977-79, Rice put up one of the most dominant three-year stretches baseball has seen. Rice went over 200 hits each of those seasons and led the league in home runs twice. His 406 total bases in 1978 are a franchise record to this day. During that stretch, his average season was .320 with 41 home runs, 128 runs batted in, 207 base hits, 386 total bases, and a .972 OPS. He wasn’t all home runs as you can see by his hit total and the fact he hit 36 triples in those three seasons.

After a few good seasons, Rice had another monster season left in him in 1984. That year he led the league with 39 home runs and 126 runs batted in. His final top five MVP finish came in 1986 when he placed in third. In addition to his 1978 MVP Award, this was Rice’s fifth top-five MVP finish. His career tailed off in a hurry after that 86 season or he would have made the Hall of Fame much sooner. He still finished with nearly 2500 lifetime hits and a .298 batting average.

Number 15 – Dustin Pedroia

Who else at number 15 but our beloved leader at the keystone position. Pedroia has fallen on hard times lately with his knee problems, but he has had a wonderful career. Defying the odds of his small stature, Pedroia has won a Rookie of the Year, an MVP Award, a Silver Slugger, four Gold Gloves and made four all-star teams.

Pedroia followed up his Rookie of the Year campaign by leading the league in hits, runs scored and doubles in 2008. He even added some home run pop to his repertoire, hitting 17 out that season. In 2010 he was on pace for 20 when he broke his leg with a foul ball. He followed through on that pace the next season, smashing 21 “lasers” over the fence.

In his career, Pedroia has averaged 194 base hits per 162 games played. He is a career .300 hitter with extra-base power. In addition to that, he is a team leader and one of the best fielding second basemen in the game. Pedroia has never made more than seven errors in any season. The only season his fielding percentage dipped below .990 was when he was a September call-up in 2006; remarkable.

Honorable Mentions: Joe Dobson, Kevin Millar, Dennis Lamp, Earl Webb

 

Featured picture from the Baseball Hall of Fame

Red Sox Free Agency 2019: Does Charlie Morton Compare to Nathan Eovaldi?

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One of the surprises of the 2019 Free Agency crop in Major League baseball is that Charlie Morton is available.  The Astros did not sign him before he hit free agency and they did not extend him a qualifying offer.

Nathan Eovaldi In Demand

Why does that matter to the Red Sox?  Because Nathan Eovaldi is suddenly starting to attract attention in the market.  A quick google search will show the Yankees’ interest.  And shockingly, curveball enthusiast Lance McCullers is going to miss the 2019 season for the Astros due to Tommy John Surgery.  According to many, this puts Eovaldi on the Astros list.

All of this is to say, the Red Sox will have a lot of competition for Eovaldi.  And while we rightly sing songs to his World Series heroics, it’s not like Eovaldi is the second coming of Pedro Martinez.  So it’s worth asking, if Eovaldi signs elsewhere, are there legit replacements available?

Charlie Morton

Let’s play a choose your own pitcher game.  Here are the average stats for the past two active seasons of each pitcher.  One of these is Charlie Morton, the other is Nathan Eovaldi:

  • Pitcher A: 118 innings, 23 starts, 4.28 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 7.6 K/9, 2.5 BB/9
  • Pitcher B: 157 innings, 27 starts, 3.53 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 10.4 K/9, 3.3 BB/9

Can you guess which is which?  A is Eovaldi, B is Morton.  Charlie Morton gets a bad rap that he’s injury prone, but he’s averaging 157 innings a year, which is what you need from a number 3, 4 or 5 starter.  He walks a few more than Eovaldi but strikes out a lot more too.

The fact that Morton, like Eovaldi, is right-handed also works in his favor.  The Sox already have three left-handers in Sale, Price and Eduardo Rodriguez.  There are a lot of right-handed bats on the Red Sox closest competitors, the Yankees, and Astros.  Having a right-handed starter to counteract Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Gary Sanchez, George Springer, Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, and Carlos Correa is a necessity.

One other nugget about Morton: He is the forerunner of Eovaldi in terms of bullpen work in the ALCS and World Series in 2017.

Charlie Morton is 35 years old, 6 years older than Eovaldi, and because of that, there will be less demand for his services.  MLB Trade Rumors state, and I love this, that Morton is aging like fine wine.  They also estimate a 2 year $32 Million deal for him, verse a 4 year $60 Million deal for Eovaldi.

The Alex Cora Connection

There’s that man again.  Cora worked with Charlie Morton last year with the Astros, he has the inside knowledge on this guy.  Because of this, if there is smoke out there about the Sox interest in Morton I would believe it.

To me, Nathan Eovaldi is the Number 1 priority for the Red Sox in Free Agency.  But if the numbers start to creep towards $20 million a year I think the Red Sox should search for alternatives.  Charlie Morton is a great back up plan.

Red Sox Free Agency 2019: Is Marwin Gonzalez A Fit?

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When last we gazed on the 2018 Red Sox, the view was majestic.  But the 2018 season is over, and second base is a need.  Could Marwin Gonzalez meet that need?

On The Roster Now

For over 10 years, Dustin Pedroia was the guardian of second base and the second spot in the batting order for the Red Sox.  Before the dark times, before Manny Machado.

But let’s not be too harsh.  Machado’s spike and the aftermath, it could be argued, ended with the Sox getting Alex Cora.  That’s a great thing!

Pedroia is making a lot of money.  He’s on the books for an average of $13.75 million until 2021.  And that would be fine if he could play.  But the outlook is extremely iffy. He had knee cartilage restoration surgery in late 2017, followed by arthroscopic surgery to remove scar tissue in late July of this year.

I’m not a doctor, I don’t even play one on the Boston Sports Extra website, but because of those knee surgeries, I’m not hopeful for a full recovery.

Eduardo Nunez and Brock Holt are the remaining possibilities at second base.  But Nunez is a DL stint waiting to happen, while Brock Holt provides limited returns the more he plays.

Look, I love me some Brock Holt, but he’s averaged 89 games a year for the past 3 years.  He’s not reliable for a full season.

Can Marwin Gonzalez play 2B?

Gonzalez is what’s known as a super utility player.  Think Ben Zobrist.  He has played 1B, 2B, SS, and OF for the Astros over the past few years, and done well.  His 3-year averages are 140 Games, 28 Doubles, 17 Home Runs, and a .778 OPS.

He has been held back from a set position because of the team he’s been on.  The Houston Astros have MVP candidates at Second Base in Jose Altuve, and at Short Stop in Carlos Correa.  In his career, Marwin Gonzalez has spent 54% of his time at either Short Stop or Second.

I think Gonzalez can definitely play Second Base, but why would he come to the Sox?

The Alex Cora Connection

Because of Alex Cora.  Even the most casual observer could see the difference over a full season and in the playoffs that Alex Cora makes.  It’s no mistake his teams have won the World Series two years in a row.  And Marwin Gonzalez knows Cora from their time together last year with the Astros.

Even if Pedroia comes back, Holt gets playing time, and somehow Nunez stays healthy, Alex Cora knows how they communicate with the team effectively.  Gonzalez’s versatility would be put to cooly efficient use by Cora in those circumstances.

The Cost

MLB Trade Rumors pegs Marwin Gonzalez as the 16th best free agent and estimates he will garner a 4 year, $36 million dollar deal.

These are the types of players I believe the Red Sox will go after because of their substantial payroll.  The Luxury Payroll Tax is a complicated matter that will be addressed at a later time.  But after all the arbitration numbers for the entire All-Star Outfield, as well as Xander Bogaerts, the Sox will be well into Luxury Tax territory.

Less expensive players like Marwin Gonzalez would go a long way towards solidifying the roster and getting the Red Sox back to the playoffs in 2019.

The 2019 Red Sox Bullpen: The Craig Kimbrel Question

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There are changes coming to the 2019 Red Sox Bullpen.  Yesterday I took a look at Joe Kelly.  The biggest piece, closer Craig Kimbrel, is today’s focus..  Is he worth paying to keep and what are some options out there?

Craig Kimbrel

In 2017 Craig Kimbrel was the 800 lb gorilla of all time Red Sox closers.  5-0 with 35 saves and a 1.43 ERA.  If he had been given more opportunity I’m sure he would’ve had even more saves.

Using a 3 year average is an attempt to have some perspective, but in Kimbrel’s case the 2017 season has a massive effect.  Because Kimbrel’s three year stats are, frankly, amazing: 14.8 K/9 and a 2.52 ERA.

Even then though, the walks show through: 3.8 per 9 innings.  That’s a lot of base runners.  When he’s on his game and striking out the world, it works.  When he’s not, let’s just say Alex Cora going with Chris Sale to close out game five says a ton.  And Kimbrel giving up a two run home run to Kiki Hernandez of all people in game four brought back all those non save situation failures from prior years.

All of this is to say Kimbrel’s not a guarantee to bring back as the 2019 Red Sox closer.  But who is out there who could be a good fit?  Closers who have working in the American League and have postseason experience.

Kelvin Herrera

Kelvin Herrera will undoubtedly be the least expensive option.  He suffered a torn Lisranc ligament in his left foot and had surgery for it on 8/30/2018.  The recovery for that encompasses around six months and requires vigilance.  That means he’ll be available a few weeks into spring training if all goes well.

There’s a lot to like about Herrera.  He is the youngest of this group at 29 on Opening Day 2019.  He also he walks the fewest batters.  His 3 year average is 2.17 walks per 9 is the lowest of all the comparisons I’ve found in the top tier group.  It is that low walk number than allows him to rival Kimbrel in the walk per strikeout stat.  Herrera is 4.6 BB/K, Kimbrel is 4.97 BB/K.

His three year ERA is 3.15 and the Red Sox tried to trade for him at the trade deadline this year.  His injuries were bad luck.  This year was his first extended time on the DL.

Because of his injury there are questions about Herrera, but that will also make him less expensive.  He very well could big the biggest relief Ace bargain of 2019.

Cody Allen

This former Cleveland Indians closer fell out of favor due to an off year in 2018.  While Kimbrel will be 31, Cody Allen will be 30 on opening day 2019.

Even with a bad 2018 he can stand next to Kimbrel at 3.8 BB/9 (Kimbrel is at 3.8) and he’s tantalizing because he will be cheaper than Kimbrel and has had a lot of success.  In 2016 and 2017 he averaged a 2.73 ERA and 31 saves a year with almost 12 K/9.  That is dominant.

Because of 4.70 ERA in 2018 and corresponding difficulties he’s a question.  But a worthy gamble due to the potential of prior years and no obvious injury.

Conclusion

Ultimately I believe Kimbrel will come back if he’s asking for a reasonable salary.  But if he’s pushing $20 Million like Mark Melancon I see a few appealing options out there that have pitched in the American League, in the playoffs, and are at reasonable age.