The Red Sox announced they’ve added lefty reliever Justin Wilson on a one-year contract. Boston had an opening on the 40-man roster, which is now at capacity. Wilson, an ACES client, is reportedly guaranteed $2.25MM on a deal that offers another $750K in incentives. He’d earn $150K apiece for reaching 40, 45, 50, 55 and 60 appearances.
Wilson, 37, has a lengthy track record in the majors but has struggled with injuries in recent seasons. He returned from Tommy John surgery last year to pitch 46 2/3 innings for Cincinnati but was tagged for an unsightly 5.59 earned run average in that time. A good portion of those struggles were due to spikes in his average on balls in play and home run rate, the latter of which was directly influenced by the hitter-friendly nature of his home park in Cincinnati. Seven of the ten homers surrendered by Wilson last year came at Great American Ball Park, which has been far and away MLB’s most homer-friendly setting over the past three seasons, per Statcast’s Park Factors. (Boston’s Fenway Park is right in the middle of the pack at No. 16.)
Wilson’s run-prevention numbers were uninspiring, but his rate stats were far more encouraging. Both his 24.4% strikeout rate and 6.2% walk rate were better than league average. The 95.5 mph he averaged on his four-seamer was the second-best mark of his career, trailing only his 95.9 mph average in 2017. The 92.3 mph he averaged on his cutter was a career-high. Metrics like xFIP (3.99) and SIERA (3.41), which normalize a pitcher’s homer-to-flyball rate, both feel Wilson is a strong bet to rebound in 2025 if he can continue at his 2024 pace.
From 2015-20, Wilson was one of the most consistently effective lefties in the game. He appeared in 344 games between the Yankees, Tigers, Cubs and Mets during that span, totaling 291 innings of 3.41 ERA ball with a 28.2% strikeout rate and 10.8% walk rate. His command looked far better than usual in his ’24 showing with the Reds, and his ability to miss bats didn’t seem overly compromised. The veteran Wilson is no stranger to late-inning work, having picked up 142 holds and 20 saves in his 12 major league seasons.
Entering the offseason, Brennan Bernardino was the only lefty reliever who could be comfortably projected for Boston’s 2025 bullpen. Fellow southpaws Bailey Horn, Cam Booser and Chris Murphy are on the 40-man roster as well. However, Murphy had Tommy John surgery last year and won’t be ready for Opening Day. Horn and Booser come with little to no big league experience of which to speak. Wilson will provide skipper Alex Cora with a seasoned veteran who’s still capable of missing bats and, if he can get back to pre-surgery levels of run prevention, could eventually emerge as a viable leverage option at a bargain price point.
Robert Murray of FanSided was first to report that Wilson and the Red Sox had an agreement. Rob Bradford of WEEI first reported it was a one-year major league deal with a $2.25MM base salary and $750K in incentives. Ronald Blum of the Associated Press reported the specific incentive structure.
Woo wee!
Reds – Who needs Tanner Scott to fill the lefty reliever need when they’ve got Justin Wilson.
I know, I know …. saving money for Soto – right?
Fever, to paraphrase Latrell Sprewell, Henry’d family has to eat…
dewey – Wow that’s a name I hadn’t heard in ages! Hearing it again chokes me up.
This move does not stand in the way of signing Tanner Scott or anyone else as others have pointed out below.
I’d be a bit leery of signing Scott anyways. He piles up Ks but he also gives up a lot of contact. He allows a ton of base runners for a guy with his # of Ks who does not walk a ton of batters.
There is no doubt alot of upside with him, not sure it ll b worth what he’ll command tho.
Wilson needs to change his pitch mix. Last year, he threw his least effective pitch (4-seam fastball) 49.5% of the time and his most effective pitch (cutter) 24% of the time.
x.com/TJStats/status/1857164869734105369
Been a LONG road back for him, but he’s got serious arm talent. Good low cost (presumably) signing.
…and poor results
If the price is right it’s not a bad signing
Each signing requires a spot on the 40 man roster, and this guy has no future. I’m not sure it is a positive at any price.
Not every move can be made with the next 5 years in mind. If he pitches well and they are winning it’s a solid move, if he pitches well and they struggle they can flip him for a lotto ticket. If not, cut him. It’s a no-lose signing
He pitches poorly and the team loses games because of it.
It might be a no lose signing if his hometown Angels had signed him because they are going to be bad regardless. But Boston plans on winning games in 2025.
Do they? Very little evidence to suggest that Boston is going to spend to win. So far their plan is to play their young players and see what happens. If they win, great, if they lose, well, the young players will improve and 2026 will be our year!
Until Henry pulls out the checkbook in a real way, I’m not ready to say they plan to win games in 2025.
The GM or president or whoever it was said they were going to try to win in 2025. He didn’t use the words full throttle again but it sounded like that’s what he meant.
Rsox – I think Red Sox Nation is pretty much had it with the “take a flyer, hope for a bounceback season” type signing.
If Bernardino and Wilson are going to be the only two lefty relievers on the team (how often do they have three?) then that means no attempt at making it a 2-Tanner team.
So in that respect, it is definitely a yes-lose signing.
Oh look. Someone wrote full throttle.
He pitches poorly and the team loses games because of it.
==============================
Or he pitches well, right? And isn’t that the same with every player?
Sure it is. I was replying to the guy saying it was a no lose situation. It’s not its simply a gamble.
There is almost always no such thing as a ‘no lose proposition. It is marginal benefit/marginal gain. We could sign Snell and trade for Crochet, and wind up being in far worse shape.
“raise the ceiling”
ebred – You’re 100% correct, the Red Sox have stated during last season they don’t plan to contend until 2026 at the earliest.
But maybe, just maybe, between this year’s bad financials and the sluggish 2025 season ticket sales and all the money coming off the books, maybe they will splurge on a player or two.
Time will tell.
Another out of school comment from Blackpink/Joel, surpising….
Wilson pitched pretty well in Minors working his way back in 2023. He pitched well most of 2024 til late AUG. Started to get back on track and then had a few bad outings as Sept was coming to an end.
Joel wouldn’t know these type of things as it’s well established he’s a fan of baseball news and stats and not watching the sport itself.
The Red Sox basic needs are the same ones this year as the last 3 seasons, which they did zero to address any of the years.
To me this all hinges on the clock starting for prospects. Although people may think leaving them down in the minors while the team was not competing is sound, and perhaps it was no matter how badly we needed them at times last year for various reasons. It is now time to see what we actually have with several players.
They are either ready or not, and we will never know till they face major league talent. The risk of tanking their value is real, but it also is the only gauge we have to learn some very important things. If they are the real deal. you can look ahead 5 years in payroll knowing what positions and arms you have and know where you are covered on the big-league team.
Can you get a Soto, Burnes, etc if you know you are saving a lot of money due to playing prospects or not? Do we have trade bait with value on the roster to get major upgrades because we know our top tier prospects can fill the vacancies? No. This free agent season is a huge gamble because we simply do not know if any of these prospects are real.
I think the 2026 prediction for spending to fill those terrible holes is probably accurate, but it didn’t have to be. As I posted during the second half last season, we had a golden opportunity to see some of these kids play to gauge this off season. I would not have regretted ending the season in 4th place or 5th instead of 81-81 to have that knowledge going into a very solid free agent class.
@William Well said. Sometimes that’s exactly what’s needed to get accurate assessment of future. The Tigers just did this and tho the results were anything other than predictable they now have are in a great spot to build where they have known weaknesses.
I don’t think Sox necessarily have to tear it down that far. But I do see why rushing out to sign say Snell to a longterm deal could be a rather rash decision.
What prospects didn’t get a chance to play last year that should have?
To be honest, any that were on the bubble assessment wise and played a position where we were getting nearly no production, where players were hurt, or where we were forcing people out of position (on a team with no chance). I am not talking about the big 4 necessarily either. Go down the totem pole of assessed talent and bring up who you think is ready. If they aren’t, don’t. Move to the very next option.
What I hope is that Gaspar and Westbrook were not seriously viewed as the best options we had, because that was their choice. You can look at the stats page and see the Red Sox were more than charitable with playing time for major league journeymen and refurbishments. My point stands that I would rather have lost with prospects for sound evaluation purposes then watch players possibly play themselves off yet another team.
I am not saying I am totally right, because I honestly don’t know how the Red Sox truly evaluate these prospects. They may simply think they are not ready and will stink if brought up. They may be more worried about tanking value then any benefit. I am just saying the knowledge you gain, and the experience the players gain is more important than watching your fill in players that do not fit into any future plans either play at replacement level, or tank. The value of prospect evaluation imho was worth more, even if that meant being another 78-84 team with a great pick rather than an amazing 81 and 81.
Fever Pitch Guy: “the Red Sox have stated during last season they don’t plan to contend until 2026 at the earliest”
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False and misleading. This would be big news like Full Throttle if they ever said that.
I’m of same school of thought as far as what is to be gained by knowledge and experience. Tigers called up Jackson Jobe for the playoff push. I figured it was just to enjoy that special run with a core he ll likely be with for years to come. Hinch had him pitch in a rather high leverage situation down the stretch to and he did well. He also made an appearance in playoffs where he seemed to be overwhelmed. Walked first batter then plunked the 2nd. Hinch left him in and he got clubbed like a baby seal. That’s one of rare moments I questioned Hinch during that run. Seemed very obvious he needed to b pulled.
All and all though just like Jobe’s few appearances, some will be good some will be bad. What’s important though is to get over that hump where emotions are that much higher and started settling in and focus on success. Also gain any knowledge or tips from the Vets who had been there. Treating prospects with white gloves at all time is often going to hold them back and they ll also b opportunity costs when not finding out sooner if a player doesn’t pan out.
Another consideration is service time. I’m not a fan of service time but it’s there and that said moves should b made cognizant of the implications. I don’t think young teams should waste a year of service time if trying to claw at a Wild Card if not necessary. Now if a team is a legit contender sacrificing a year of control could be worth it if it ll seemingly improve the team. These moves should be made with a clear plan and timeline for the present and future of the roster as a whole.
William – Superb post as always!
You are absolutely correct, calling up at least Campbell & Anthony in August would have been the smart thing to do. It would have helped assess whether their talents translate well to MLB, and also would have given the team a much-needed shot in the arm for their playoff run.
They did it with Rafaela and Abreu last year, as well as Casas and others in prior years, so why not this year? I haven’t kept up with all the new rookie rule changes, but is it possible the Red Sox didn’t promote them because they wanted to extend the team control period? If they perform well next ST and still get sent down to start the season, we could have the answer to that question.
The 2026 projection was always based on Sox ownership/management stating they will not try to win until CMAT have established themselves as solid MLB players. Most of us felt MAT would definitely be called up this past season to give them that much-needed MLB experience.
So what happens now? Do they really trade Duran or Abreu before Anthony plays his first MLB game? It’s a mess, the decisions they’ve made have been so shortsighted and illogical. And as usual, there’s no consistency. One minute they are saying they want to avoid the massive longterm contracts, the next minute they are *supposedly* trying to give out the biggest contract in MLB history. Perhaps this year’s poor financials, sluggish 2025 season ticket sales, and huge amount of payroll coming off the books has changed their plans. It’s still a poor reflection for them to constantly change course.
And if they are serious (doubtful they are) about dedicating more than half a billion to a mediocre defensive outfielder despite OF already being a position of strength, that would be another huge mistake if it likely prevents them from spending on areas of need.
One thing is certain, this offseason will have a massive impact on the team for years to come.
william – Part of their stated thinking is they want to treat CMAT in unison. Because they’ve all moved up the minor league chain together, they want to promote them together. That makes ZERO sense. They are all individuals who have been developing at their own pace. To hold back one or two of them because the others are lagging is unconscionable. Co-dependency is never a good thing.
This is a team that simply makes very poor scatterbrained decisions.
For example, how the hell did they expect a 44-year-old pitcher who hadn’t pitched in a year to be ready for MLB games after just 2 innings in the minors? Then he’s gone after just 3 MLB innings? Talk about a clown organization.
There are black holes on this team.
You are right about the outfield. Imho it’s not great offensively, but it is solid defensively and good enough as is if you want to solve problems elsewhere. Any move would have to be a clear upgrade and would have to address their lack of right-handed elite hitters with power. The Change would be to jettison one outfielder in a trade (Abreu since they can’t move Yoshida) for pitching. The DH being clogged by a light hitting lefty bat was a crippling side effect of this signing.
Needs: One elite right-handed bat with potential to hit 30+
HR’s. I am not saying outfield, because we can
afford to stand pat, if necessary, in the OF. This bat
can be acquired to plug the disgraceful
production out of second base once and for all or
finally move Devers off third base before he kills
someone.
One elite left-handed reliever to finally provide the
bullpen with a weapon the team has not had since
2013. Just mind boggling.
A minimum of one free agent ace caliber starting
pitcher, and a trade for another 1b caliber starter.
Problems that are solved. Black hole at 2nd base is finally over. More balanced lineup depending on if you get the right-handed infielder and outfielder (Slim chance, they will choose to count on Grissom/Rafaela). You dramatically improve the rotation AND THE BULLPEN. The Bullpen you ask? It’s just a lefty reliever you say? You are kicking two starters out of the rotation by bringing two in and putting them in the bullpen adding depth. That lefty is replacing one guy in the pen. You just knocked three bottom dwelling schlubs off your pitching staff.
This approach is so misguided that if I owned the team, I would fire anyone that even hinted at it. Players develop differently. Your needs change year to year. The goal is to maximize time and production with home grown talent because if they work out and succeed you will be dealing with spending REAL money as they approach arbitration and free agency. If they fail, you are staggering failure, seeing if you can recover the player by seeing flaws, and anticipating future needs at that players position.
This is so illogical. You are setting up 4 possible failures on the big-league level at once. That would wipe out a year from contention. You are setting up possibly needing to go outside the organization 4 times to fill those needs you thought you had sewn up. You are dealing with 4 young arbitration eligible, and free agent eligible players at the same time IF THEY ARE GREAT.
You bring each up when ready. Period.
William: No one has ever stated that Mayer, Anthony, Teel and Campbell will all advance together that I am aware of. I wouldn’t worry about it.
They didn’t have to say anything. They are showing you. We had clear needs multiple times, and we chose playing people out of position and bringing up players that play no part in future plans. That was by choice. They “could” have given guys a taste. They chose to not do that, despite being a floundering team with no chance. Either they truly believe our top prospects are not capable, or they are more concerned about tanking their value as a consequence of bringing them up if they thought they were ready.
I think they are letting them develop and not rushing them. Mayer has not played at AAA yet. Anthony, Teel and Campbell were promoted to AAA late last season. Anthony has played 35 AAA games, Teel has played 28 games and Campbell has played 19 games. That is not a lot of games at a developmental level. After they show some sustained success at AAA, we should see them on the Red Sox. It is also not smart to use up 3-4 spots on the 40 man to give these guys a taste when they can use those spots to protect players from the Rule 5 draft. Mayer, Anthony, Teel and Campbell don’t need to be protected from the Rule 5 draft yet.
All in – correct! Brian Abraham, Red Sox farm system director, stated in an interview with Soxprospect, that the promotions to AAA just kind of worked out that way and was not intentional. He also said the promotions to Boston would be as need arises and level of the player progression dictates.
Tff17 – He is better than Bailey Horn!!!!
just surprised they didn’t finalize this AFTER the Rule V draft. Maybe they are doing that.
Dewey – I get where you are coming from, but whoever gets added before Rule 5 does not change this add. Horn, Mata, Shugart, and other will have to be DFA as more signings happen. There are plenty of boarder line useful players who will be upgraded. They all can not be kept.
A trade of Abreu, Crawford, and minor league top 20 prospect for Garrett Crochet (3 for 1) would also open up a 40 man spot…..
Better to expose someone to the Rule 5 draft where they might be picked than to add to the 40 man knowing they will be DFA’d later.
All in the suit is right.
MLB – I just expected a trade or two before the draft. I guess in reality, there’s little interest in those players
Allin – absolutely agree! The Red Sox may add two starters, two or three bullpen, and a right handed bat, so the FAs who will not be re-signed spot on the 40-man will be used for new free agents. Most of the Rule 5s worthy of being added have either already been added to the 40 man or traded (Yorke,…..).
I hope they don’t trade Abreu. I’d rather they trade Casas.
I’m not sure that’s the way to look at it.
First, we have 47 guys requiring a spot on the 40.
Secondly, we have FAs that won’t be replaced (which means I am not counting guys like Danny Jansen. And players that simply will not be added.
So that list includes (probably) Penrod, Shugart, Garcia, Horn, Sims, Garcia, Paxton, K. Jansen, maybe Booser, Gasper, possibly Mata, and maybe Valdez.
So when the deadline comes there might be as few as 35 guys, plus a few 5-year guys. It’s too early to determine whether Wilson is taking the place of a prospect that we should be keeping.
tff – Contending teams go for the best players available first, and THEN fill their remaining needs with lesser remaining players such as Wilson.
The fact they are prioritizing a high risk player like this is not a good sign. Why the rush? It’s not like there’s a bunch of teams rushing to sign someone like him.
I won’t make predictions, but certainly this sort of signing so early in the offseason is concerning.
When I saw this news all I could say is Why? Are there so few left-handers available that you throw away $2 million on someone with an ERA around 6. Ugh, they can’t make a more meaningful move?
I agree with that take, Fever. It isn’t so much that it is a bad signing, as that it fills one of the roster spots on the 40 and 26 that I was hoping could be used to add ace talent. Maybe they still work in that ace talent, but you don’t normally start by filling in the corners. It sounds like they are passing on Scott.
tff17
You are right about the list of 40 man roster.
The Red Sox need to protect Dobbins(SP), Monegro(SP), Jhos.Garcia(OF), who had a good 2024 in the minors and add 4-5 free agents.Needing 7-8 spots on the 2025 40-man roster and adding players like Wilson doesn’t strengthen the team.
With moves like Wilson, the Red Sox have a 40-man roster problem that needs to be filled with quality free agents rather than washed-up 37-year-old relievers.
Sign lefty Minter, closer (Scott, Yates, Estevez), SP 1/2, second catcher.
DFA candidates – I.Campbell, B.Horn, B.Mata, Shugart, Gasper, Valdez.
The Sox already have low-leverage lefties – Bernardino, Booser, Penrod – need a high-leverage lefty like Minter.
You sign the likes of Wilson when there is no problem with the 40 man roster and there is room to hide in the minor league.
Why don’t the Red Sox sign Rich Hill for 2025, he said he’s going to pitch.
These are dumpster diving moves like Bloom did.
Wilson is much better than boose or penrod.. Dfa booser and you have a netter lefty in the pen. Whats wrong with that?
Full throttle 2024.
Give it a rest.
Not a chance. How about they actually do something that moves the needle instead of these dumpster-dive guys?
Boston – Their 300-person analytics department spent a week creating several calculations that determined 1 out of every 9 of these type signings end up working out.
So why spend on proven talent? As John Henry said, players are expensive.
How does SIERA and xFIP “normalize” the flyball to HR ratio? If you give up bombs then you give up bombs. There is no way to nuance HR allowed. So if Wilson pitched at T-Mobile instead of Great America, he would have only surrendered 2 homeruns instead of 10 ?
he would have only surrendered 2 homeruns instead of 10 ?
=======================
He would’ve surrendered less, and I’d make a serious wager on that.
But Joe, one can’t live on hypotheticals. As Samuel would say, real life is not Rotisserie Baseball.
Oh you’re so clever.
36 year old reliever coming off a season with 60 games pitched in and an era north of 5.5. This is going to solve Bostons bullpen issues. I can feel it in my bones.
First time pitching in like 3 years, coming back from multiple injuries. He’s really good when he’s right.
Yay another pitcher who is really good when they’re healthy and has struggled with injuries. I’m so glad yet another one signed with Boston.
Smart signing. If he gets hurt, no loss. If he stays healthy, he’s a rock in that pen.
The move just screams more of the same from the Red Sox. Instead of opening their wallets and signing actual competent players, let’s keep signing recliminaton projects.
Next up: Buehler and Bieber to help out the rotation!
Hey, I want Buehler on the Mets. Stop that.
Getting hurt is fine. But he could be healthy and pitch poorly. That would be a poor outcome for the Red Sox.
Joemo
The move just screams more of the same from the Red Sox.
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$2M for a lefty RP doesn’t scream out anything. Wait until they start spending real money for a guy in the rotation. That’s when you’ll know.
That would be a poor outcome for the Red Sox.
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Of course, And if he pitches well, that will be a good outcome for the Red Sox.
You mean like Nick Pivetta?
I kid i kid
Hey Chris Holt. Welcome to Boston.
Buehler would help absolutely.
That could happen with any pitcher. Wilson pitched well in Minors working his way back on 2023. He also pitched well most of 2024. Near the end of Aug he had some bad games, seemed to work through it and had a few bad games as Sept went on. But all and all he’s got a high ceiling when he’s on and a ton of upside for the cost.
Relief pitchers in general are risky and Wilson has proven he can pitch at MLB level and did so for most of 2024. As far as risk/reward goes I’d say at his current cost this heavily tilts towards reward.
Like the gamble here. Won’t prohibit any other moves.
Sure it will. He takes a 40 man spot. That prohibits exactly one move.
He takes a 40 man spot.
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That goes without saying. The issue at hand is whether he provides more added value than the player he is replacing. We currently have guys on the 40 that will not be kept.
Solid move. Sleeper team.
I for one can barely contain my excitement…
I mean you’re always whining about something.
You call it whining, I call it not being a sycophant. Don’t like it? Block me, but please don’t do that, I’ll miss knowing you don’t approve of my posts!
See, the Red Sox are back, baby!!!!! Dumpster diving for reclamation projects. The Mayor of Boston will probably have to call in the National Guard for crowd control with the masses showing up at Fenway to buy season tickets……….
Next up: Sox sign Buehler and Bieber to bolster the top of their rotation.
The Red Sox need to trade for Garrett Crochet. They have the position players to do so. I’d love it if Chicago would accept Casas, Abreu and a couple of lower-level prospects for him, but I believe the White Sox will want Casas, Mayer and a couple of wildcards to get the deal done (I’d still do it).
If they acquire Crochet, I like Joemo’s idea of signing Walker Buehler to a one year, “prove it” deal. I’m thinking Buehler would take a $14-$15M base with extra incentives based on IP. He’s looking to rebuild his value post TJS in 2025 and if all goes well, sign a big, multi-year deal in 2026.
If the Sox can pull this off, they’ll have plenty of money to build up the bullpen (Tanner Scott would be a great start) and also sign a big RHH bat. Pete Alonso would fit the bill if Casas gets traded. Lastly, they need to find a way to move on from Yoshida. They’ll either have to eat 60-70% of his salary or trade him for another bad contract.
If Boston can pull all of this off, they will become an instant contender in the AL. IMO, they shouldn’t trade Roman Anthony or Campbell, but everyone else, including Teel, could be made available for the right win-now player(s).
Let’s Go Sox!!!
I wouldn’t trade Casas and Abreu for Crochet. I just feel like there will be regression after a drastically increased workload. Add in that he wanted a guaranteed extension to pitch in the playoffs and i feel like something is off
Casas and Abreu is a MASSIVE overpay for Crochet.
I don’t know why the Red Sox fans are obsessed with him. No reason to break the bank to sign a guy like that who has one good season. He was also used as a reliever throughout college and the minors, so there’s no track record of him starting games year over year and he already had TJ.
There’s a strong chance Buehler will return to the Dodgers on a multi-year deal with opt-outs. The franchise rightfully values his legacy and contributions to the team. So, expect him back in Los Angeles pitching alongside his buddy Kershaw.
Until they sign a real player, I think we simply look at this off season like the last three. They will kick the tires on everyone, and sign no one healthy or helpful.
Worth noting that Bernardino could have been MORE comfortably projected for the 2024 bullpen than the 2025 bullpen, but they surprised by optioning him to begin 2024.
rhs – That’s because in their infinite wisdom they felt Joely was worth having on the roster more than Bernardino.
Joely, the guy with the 6.20 ERA over his 2 seasons combined in Boston.
Joely, the guy whom the Red Sox graciously gave $4M for the aforementioned 2 seasons of 6.20 ERA pitching. LOLOLOL!!!
Never really understood why Bailey Horn can’t seem to ever get a shot. He has been good with the Cubs and Whte Sox and Breslow knew that and obviously brought him to Boston. now it seems he’s in the same boat as always. The invisible man. I hope he gets a shot somewhere, Sometime because I have a feeling he’ll prove me right.
Unclemike1525 – Bailey Horn:
WHIP – 1.78
BA against – 2.93
In 18 innings he allowed 5 HRs
That sucks !!!!
The Red Sox AAA and AA is fairly devoid of left handed pitching and has been for several years. They do not have any high end left handed pitchers in the farm system other than the 2nd round draft pick from the 2024 draft.
The Red Sox signing a lefty with a MLB resume beats signing waiver claims in the middle of the year and plucking them on the MLB pitching mound.
The Red Sox have not had an elite lefty in the pen in 12 years. Shocking but true. I don’t know what is more surprising, them thinking they could get away with it with so many elite lefty hitters in the pros, or not being able to develop or sign one with a big market payroll for over a decade approaching 13 years.
Uncle – Maybe it was Bailey/Cora’s fault, but Horn was God-awful in his 18 games with the Red Sox ….. 6.50 ERA and 1.778 WHIP.
I’ve seen Horn pitch in the Minors for the Cubs and White Sox. He has good stuff and the usual young mans curse of his control leaving for awhile. Because yeah everybody comes up to the Majors and rips it up the first time. Just needs a little patience and he will probably be fine. But if I was positive I’d be working for a team I guess. Just an opinion. Nothing more. Sometimes you just need a longer leash ala PCA.
Uncle – I totally agree with you, I just don’t think it’s wise to rely on someone like Horn until he proves himself. Not if the team plans to contend.
I didn’t bring him up last year. Breslow knew what was when he got him. IDK , Everybody needs to play in the best level just to see what needs to be one to stay there. I wouldn’t put a bunch into a cup of coffee . But some people do.
I actually had him circled as a depth lefty (in case Bernardino’s arm injury is more significant than we realize) so I don’t hate the player…but I do hate that it’s a major league deal! He shouldn’t guaranteed a roster spot after the last few years. More dumpster diving. They really only need to add 2-3 premium relievers (and lord knows they have the money to do it) not more of this.
The Sox need to sign top 5 free agents out there.Snell,Buehler,Soto must lead the signings.That will get fans in a positive mood.We need tickets sales.Need to fill the stadium and buy more merchandise.Taking soto away from the Yankees will move them ahead.No more bottom feeding.must spend and spend.
No, no and no. Snell is too mercurial as well as Buehler to a lesser degree and Soto is a terrible fit. LH bat and questionable defense.
@Pedro To an extent I agree with you. However I recently saw a spray chatt showing how last yr plays out with home games at Fenway. He’d have still done quite well and adding him would also come at expense of Yankees lineup. But overall I think the AAV he’s gonna end up with would b best spent on others.
reddit.com/r/redsox/comments/1gqfg3d/juan_soto_spr…
Pedro – I spoke to Jobu, he said:
“Soto has no L/R splits, he hits both very well”
“Snell gives you 180 innings of sub-2.30 ERA pitching, he’s the guy you want carrying your rotation in the postseason”
“I’m low on rum”
“
lolwhy
Why not?
Seems like a low risk signing. If he gets hurt or remains ineffective, it costs the Red Sox $1.5 mill. If he returns to form, it will be a bargain.
Love playing the cheaper long shots it seems. Hope it works out!
Sox need to sign fried and trade for crochet. rotation should be fried crochet Bello houk Crawford. then invest in veteran relievers and a right handed bat. preferably id trade for arenado to get raffy off 3rd.
Honestly I don’t hate this. He’s been a solid lefty reliever when healthy and we definitely could use one of those. For that low of a price tag I’ve got no problem taking a look to see if he can return to form. As long as this doesn’t preclude real moves – it shouldn’t – I’d call this a worthy dart throw.
When? When has he been a solid lefty? 2020? That’s not last year that’s almost 5 years and multiple injuries ago. He pitched his most innings since 2018 last year. 5.59 ERA. looking for a “return to form” on a 37 year old seems wishful at best. His fastball speed was his second highest in like 8 years. He’s not coming off injury he’s off injury and the result he gave is what Sox should expect.
2013: 73 IP, 2.08 ERA/3.41 FIP, 1.05 WHIP, 2.11 K/BB
2014: 60 IP, 4.2 ERA/3.62 FIP, 1.32 WHIP, 2.03 K/BB
2015: 61 IP, 3.1 ERA/, 1.13 WHIP, 3.3 K/BB
2016: 58.2 IP, 4.14 ERA/3.18 FIP, 1.33 WHIP, 3.82 K/BB
2017 before deadline w/ Detroit: 40 IP, 2.68 ERA/3.23 FIP, 0.94 WHIP, 3.44 K/BB
2018: 54 IP, 3.46 ERA/3.64 FIP, 1.42 WHIP, 2.09 K/BB
2019: 39 IP, 2.54 ERA/3.91 FIP, 1.33 WHIP, 2.32 K/BB
2020: 19.2 IP, 3.66 ERA/3.04 FIP, 1.37 WHIP, 2.56 K/BB
2021 after trade to Reds: 16 IP, 2.81 ERA/3.55 FIP, 1.3 WHIP, 2 K/BB
And then missed 2022 and 2023 with injuries. He was worth about 8 WAR over these periods, that’s perfectly fine for a middle reliever so I don’t get why you’re so adamant that this would not qualify as having been solid. I’m aware at his age he might well be done, that’s fine. The financial barriers to dumping him if he’s not any good are zero. Wilson was never a guy who relied on overwhelming velocity or crazy movement, It’s not like we’re asking him to discover a fountain of youth to give him back a 102 MPH heater or some kind of unhittable breaking ball. He hasn’t lost any velocity or “stuff” from his career norms, that’s the exact kind of pitcher who could return to form if anyone is going to at that age.
And for the Red Sox’ part, remember we are talking about a team whose bullpen in 2024 included massive contributions such as the following:
Chase Anderson: 52 IP with a 4.85 ERA/5.59 FIP
Brad Keller: 24 IP with a 5.84 ERA/5.17 FIP
Bailey Horn: 18 IP with a 6.5 ERA/7.00 FIP
Luis Garcia: 15 IP with 8.22 ERA/5.06 FIP
Lucas Sims: 14 IP with a 6.43 ERA/6.1 FIP
Joely Rodriguez: 13 IP with 5.93 ERA/4.92 FIP
AND is losing Jansen and Martin to free agency, who were two of our best and most heavily used relievers. There are a number of intriguing internal options on hand, but the bullpen basically needs to be mostly rebuilt if they’re serious about 2025. Given they have currently one starter who can consistently get past the fifth inning, there are a TON of innings up for grabs for the bullpen that they need to figure out a plan for. It will require signing a high end guy or two, it will require some internal guys emerging/taking a step forward, and it will also require signing some JAGs like Wilson and hoping they can give you some decent innings.
Interesting post about Wilsons past. It is why I said this would have been a good signing a decade ago when he was healthy, and people had hypothetical high hopes for a promising career. In other words, people thought he may be good.
Forward a decade, and we have a proven middling reliever with poor control that is better used in non-leverage spots because of his poor control. So……………the argument can’t be that our lefty relievers are so awful that signing a middling lefty reliever is a solution to anything, because we hope he is simply mediocre and not terrible.
But, but, but, but, no buts. You just spent 2+ million that could have gone towards the contract of an elite lefty reliever. You just took up a 40-man spot to sign a middling reliever (coming off a major injury) days before the rule 5, instead of 30 seconds after it. A guy that NO ONE is knocking the door down to sign. Anyone at all think we just beat 29 other teams to the punch with this?
I don’t see this as a bad signing per se for teams, there is no real upside, but he could be depth. I just see it as a stupid signing for the Red Sox based on timing, everything we know we need, and everything we know about the player.
@TheGr For most of 2024 he was solid. Hit 2 bad stretches end of Aug and end of Sept. Could possibly have just been arm fatigue. The guy missed time with injury and spent 2023 working back in Minors, where he also was solid.
The comment you gave is the comment one would expect from someone who glanced at stats and did not objectively look at results and came to an opinion based off of a glance at the surface.
I will say that he is a little prone to HRs. Maybe he suffered from some arm fatigue as season went on. He was very effective til late Aug so it’s quite possible.
And to be honest your comment is that of someone who wants to be on both sides of the outcome
“Could possibly”
“Maybe”
“Quite possible”
Way to take a stand to support your argument lol
I stand by my comment. He’s 37. He’s healthy by evidence of his workload. He wasn’t good. Period. Why are people expecting anything other than what the guy is showing you?
Yeah the 9.1 innings he threw in 2023 split between Rookie and AAA sold me he’s a get!!!
Dirty – So no Tanner Scott because they’ve already got Wilson, Bernardino, Booser, Horn, Murphy, Penrod?
If they truly plan to contend next year, they need a proven closer.
Liam, Whitlock, Slaten …. none are proven to be experienced and/or healthy.
No, just the opposite. I wrote enough above I don’t want to spend the time or effort to re-write the same comment, so I’d refer you to my response above.
But the gist of it is I am fine with this as long as it’s a piece of the puzzle. We have interesting internal guys we will need to step up. We need to infuse high end talent from the trade or FA market. And unless several of our starters suddenly become workhorses who go deep into games, we are also going to need some JAGs who are better than the JAGs we ran out last year. If Wilson can return to form or at least something resembling what he used to be, he fits that bill.
And two million dollars to Wilson should neither preclude them from continuing to pursue the high end upgrades we sorely need, and nor should it preclude them from DFA-ing him immediately and giving his spot to one of the internal guys if he looks washed in spring training or April.
@Dirty Well said, I agree with you completely it’s only $2M and they can easily move on.
As far as him being effective, he actually was most of last season. Had 2 stretches end of Aug and Sept where he was giving up HRs. I’d guess arm fatigue given his history but very easily I could b wrong. He did show he still has it and his velocity is up. I for one think this was a good signing especially if the savings go towards additions elsewhere.
I’m a Tigers fan first and anti-Yankees 2nd. Thats made me a defacto BoSox fan most of my life except for when it gets in way of any meaningful games of Tigers. That said I’m hoping they add to rotation and get a RH batvto bolster lineup and retake the AL east for next half dozen years.
Better than signing with the White Sox.
Wilson is the clear winner on this deal.
Welp, it was a nice rivalry while it lasted.
With a move like this, I see the Red Sox are once more resigned to having their team and fan base again play the role of spoilers.
Im not sure where you got the high horse from as in recent years like this century the red sox out number the yankees in titles 2-1 own thier current “ace” and were only 7-6 head to head last year..go away troll lol
By all means, read all the old newspapers and watch past Red Sox glories on YouTube. There is obviously nothing with the current team worth watching.
But then you know that already, thus the weak response is hidden behind an even weaker lol but then you should try to find laughter while you can because there is a lot of crying ahead of you.
Lol.at you
no doubt a graduate of the Forrest Gump School of higher learning or was that the Academy of D.U.H
More Analytical dumpster diving. If I hear “his underlying metrics are great” I’m going to throw my computer out of the window.
Please address some meaningful holes on this roster. Second, or third, lefty out of the ‘pen is a First Place team’s priority.
It’s like lighting $3mm dollars on fire.
SadSack – The season does not start for 4 1/2 months…..LOL
Results matter but the underlying numbers matter too. They help ascertain whose results appear to be repeatable and whose don’t. If you think it’s so preposterous to say a guy who struck out a lot of batters and walked comparably few – but had ugly top line results because he got bombed in the most homer-friendly park in the league – represents a good bounceback candidate now that he’s out of Cincinnati, please enlighten us on what criteria to look for instead.
DirtyWater – Those are all excellent points. Getting out of Cincinnati will help Wilson. In the same thought, I am usually skeptical of any pitcher acquired from Seattle or San Diego, because their numbers explode once they arrive in Boston…..park matters…..and how they are deployed matters….
Dirty – 5.11 ERA away from Cincy this year.
It’s a very risky signing.
With his salary being next to nothing I actually look at it as a no-risk signing. There are some things you can point to (K rate, BB rate) that suggest he could bounce back. The ERA and WHIP suggest he might be cooked. But here’s the thing – he shouldn’t ever be needed in many leverage situations if he doesn’t pitch his way into the high leverage mix, because Bernadino is still the top lefty. So if he’s mediocre, he will likely be the last guy in the ‘pen and not put into many situations where he’ll cost games, and eventually probably gets replaced at the trade deadline or someone tearing up AAA getting his roster spot. If he returns to form, he could pitch his way into the high leverage mix and then he’d be a bargain. But if he turns out to be done, there are no financial barriers to waiving him and moving on. I think that’s the perfect type of risk for the Red Sox to be taking with a move like this.
Dirty – I disagree on that. Typically only 2 of the 8 relievers in the BP are lefties, which means multiple situations come up in games where a lefty is needed.
Assuming Bernardino remains their top LHR, he’s not gonna pitch more than 3 times in a week. In fact he’s never pitched more than 51 innings in a season which is an average of less than 2 innings a week. A second strong LHR is very important because high leverage situations will frequently crop up.
Justin Wilson wasn’t just bad in Cincinnati, he was also bad on the road to the tune of a 5.11 ERA.
Fenway actually is more hitter friendly overall than GABP (107 vs 105 park factor), and the Sox already have enough problems with home run prone pitchers.
Justin of the 5.59 era last year.
hmmmmm
We have spent 4 plus years watching mediocrity in the front office. This move fits. Will it win a world series? NO. Will it cost us games? Maybe if better alternatives were available and affordable in the minds of the people making all the bizarre choices. I’m actually surprised we didn’t get more dumpster diving reactions but maybe that too is getting too mundane to even mention. The souls of the fan base are now callused so seeing a pretty worthless pick-up for next to no money is a fairly routine event.
It’s moves like this one that make me so impressed with the fans who still believe something good is going to happen. You really have to have faith when you watch nearly a half decade of bad choices and still think the next one is going to be the one that turns things around. I admire your faith but I’m just to pragmatic to buy into it. Until something good actually happens, I expect more mediocrity. No all-star signed since JD Martinez says everything about the actions of the owners and front office. At this point it doesn’t even matter who is to blame, without change there is no progress just a bunch of improved farm system guys wishing they were joining a roster with all-star throughout it, like the teams they are competing against.
Apathy my friend apathy
If you’re going to go fishing for help, you might as well do it on a guy named Justin Wilson.
Here we go
Nice. Yankees can’t hit LHP so this will help the Sox keep the Yanks in check.
York – Yanks had the 4th-best OBP in MLB against LHP.
And the 5th-most homeruns against them.
Should they have waited until after the Nov 19 rule 5 draft and put someone on the 40 man to protect?
Of course they could/should have. There was no courting war for this guys services, so singing him even a week before spring training may have been doable.
There was no courting war for this guys services
======================
But you have no way of knowing. You are just assuming that none of the other 29 teams offered him $2M.
Looks like they likely have everyone on the 40 man they want to protect. They already added Guerrero, Priester, Fitts and Penrod. If they want to protect more, they can DFA people like Mickey Gasper.
Not yet. They have to get Hunter Dobbins onto the 40-man. He’s the only lock. Some people think they’ll put Michael Fulmer on the 40 because they’ve been nursing him and his contract for so long. The one loss that I fear is Yordanny Monegro, who can be hidden away in a bullpen by a bad team for 40 innings and an IL stint in 2025
Horace: Thanks. I forgot about Dobbins. I think Jhostynxon Garcia has a chance to be added too. There are a few DFA candidates. So, it shouldn’t be a problem.
Middling reliever with poor command in and out of the strike zone. I wouldn’t have minded landing him a decade ago when he was a promising arm instead of now when we know this pick up has close to zero value (except for that fat check he gets). Anyway solid arm if he stays in the minors, if he makes the team he can’t be trusted in nearly any pressure spot where being able to hit your spots against a disciplined hitter matters. Enjoy
william – Excellent post!
He’s on a major league contract, so don’t think he will be spending time in the minors.
I am aware. I was just pointing out that as far as lefties of his ilk, we are all set. If this was a minor league signing for depth, I would be fine with it, but it isn’t. I wouldn’t trust him in close games in the majors. He walks to many guys as is, but my major issue is that even when in the zone, he has trouble throwing to his targets, which explains why he gets banged up so badly. Bad counts and missed spots.
Yeah, I posted earlier I didn’t like signing him before the rule 5 draft. Taking a 40-man spot for a guy that no one is knocking the door down to get seems to me to invite losing the best prospect of those left unprotected.
This makes perfect sense if they honestly see something left in him and are making a trade prior to that draft that makes the 40-man irrelevant. For some completely warranted reason I do not think that is happening, so this is probably a completely unnecessary signing and risk.
Don’t care either way about the player, but the 40 man being filled already poses some interesting questions I’d imagine.
Boston is going to make a big trade or 2. Wait and see.
If it is before the rule 5 than bravo. If not, this makes no sense to me in not waiting till after and removing one prospect from being taken.
Blackpink – Tongue in cheek or serious? If serious, then why now after 5 years of waiting? Are you suggesting a couple blunders like signing Devers, Story, Yoshida will happen in the form of trades? That I could believe. Big blunders have been a way of life for half a decade. If you are suggesting it will continue, I can see that happening but I see inaction as a more probable future. No money being risked seems to be the big concern.
The Red Sox have prospects to trade. They will trade some before opening day. I have no idea if they will make a good trade or not but they will make a trade.
Blackpink – I hope you are wrong but nothing surprises me when it comes to moves by an inept front office and ownership. My issue is – will they trade pretenders or real prospects? Jeter Downs was a pretender who was highly ranked and coveted by the front office until he proved what I wrote the day of the Mookie deal. We have similar misconceptions about key prospects and that concerns me.
I disagree with the evaluation of the farm players dramatically. I hope we don’t trade the following prospects:
1 – Duran (not really a prospect but highly disrespected)
2 – Campbell (Minor League Player of the Year!!)
3 – Rafaela (disrespected similarly to Duran)
4 – Houck (disrespected similarly to Duran)
5 – Casas (disrespected similarly to Duran)
6 – Teel (I still believe Wong is a pretender so Teel is needed)
7 – Anthony (excellent prospect but currently over rated)
8 – Crawford (improving mid rotation pitcher)
In my opinion here are pretenders we can move if we can get ownership to return to normal activity with regard to trading.
1 – Mayer (over rated, hurt frequently, 2024 only good season)
2 – Abreu (over rated as a platoon hitter and fielder who has the yips when it comes to running for fly balls behind him near the short fence in right field)
3 – Bello (over rated for money already paid to him)
4 – Criswell (over rated based on his stuff or lack of)
5 – Whitlock (can’t stay healthy like Mayer)
6 – Yoshida (never should have been contracted)
7 – Story (never should have been contracted)
8 – Giolito (never should have been contracted)
9 – O’Neill (FA that needs to go elsewhere)
10 = Devers (needs to be DH or traded)
11 – Hamilton (the infielder version of Robles, he stinks)
12 – Wong (don’t expect a repeat performance, sell high)
13 – Cora (worthless, no integrity, no skills, uninspired)
Here is the catch, I don’t think there will be any significant movement this off season just like previous off seasons. The game played by ownership is to suggest actions will happen and then try to satisfy the fans with a minimal effort in the spring. I would be ecstatic if something changed but the current pattern suggests no such thing. 2025 should be another .500 season unless actions actually happen.
I guess monitoring the farm system and watching Casas rebound, watching Duran take more steps toward stardom and watching the daily Cora mistakes will have to do for this coming season. I now have Devers approaching 300 real errors despite the score keepers only counting 141 while Baseball Reference tracks all of them. Without steps forward on defense, balancing the starting line-up, playing the best players and the further removal of Cora from all coaching activities so Breslow’s coaches can improve the roster, there will be a lot of frustration by fans with big market expectations and a lot more delusional comments by contributors who keep seeing the glass half full and filling up.
Best Christmas present in 2024 would be an actual acquisition of an all-star quality player for the 2025 roster. The JD Martinez move was so long ago as the last acquisition of an all-star that it’s a distant memory and completely irrelevant to the Red Sox future. Change is desperately needed.
Many relievers have variability in results year to year – even the best.
This signing seems to have a chance to have high upside for a low cost (on a relative MLB salary standard)
If he passes the physical and any medical scans (elbow, shoulder etc.) and you have confidence in your coaches to prepare there’s no reason Mr. Wilson can’t be used for about 45 IP and be productive)
You’d be surprised a pitcher with experience can change his pitch mix, sequencing (pitch in reverse), different grips (other coaches or teammates may show him), arm angles (Manaea Sale like change) Throw off the mound more from right side vs left side. There are a lot of things he can do.
For a chance at MLB money it seems like a good investment of his time
You have to trust your GM and coaches that there is a good reason to be optimistic but not expecting Tarik results.
A Bridge Too Far
Good Luck. Hoping he has Great success against NYY. 😉
YaGotta – Certainly mechanics can change the success of a player. You pointed out Sale as an example and he’s a perfect example. He starred in Chicago, came to Boston on a team friendly deal, had a great year with Farrell and then Cora started advising him on how to pitch. You know the rest of the story. TJ surgery resulted and then he came back and continued with the bad advice from Cora and then was given away along with $17Million to go win a Cy Young in ATL!! With the crap advisor gone he got to pitch like he did the first part of his career.
Another thing to consider is that Wilson has thrown roughly 150 innings since the start of 2018 and while his ERA has been all over the board his WHIP as a reliever has been nearly 1.50 for that whole time. He’s being paid $2.25 Million as a lefty reliever. For fun I went out to SPOTRAC and looked at lefty relievers available in free agency to compare him to what they could have had.
Costing $2.25 Million as estimated by SPOTRAC are the following
Scott Alexander – 35.3 years of age
Jalen Beeks – 31.3 years of age at $1.675 Million per year
Ryan Borucki – 30.6 years of age at $1.6 Million per year
Genesis Cabrera – 28.1 years of age at $1.51 Million per year
Taking a 37 year old and paying more for them than three younger guys that could have filled the same role for a half million less and all have experience in the AL East (Beeks, Borucki and Cabrera) makes no sense to me. The ship does NOT have anyone at the stern. Even the penny anti pick-ups lack logic or a direction.
Your fundamentals about pitching were spot on in that things can get better with the right influences. Unfortunately, they can also get worse and Boston has done that to many pitchers since Cora arrived. So unless he is taken out of the equation, guessing someone will improve because he’s in Boston has no basis. There is hope thanks to some of the new pitching coaches but they don’t make final decisions about pitching, the manager does.
He meets all the check list components.
Eligible for Medicare.
This is the star power we have been waiting for. Look at the savings over Soto!
GL with that….his stuff looked good last year but he still sucked.
He’s a shadow of his former self. Not even close. Unless he was tipping his pitches he’s probably done.
They just filled their 40th spot on the roster with a 36yr old retread who didn’t pitch in 2023, and did with Cincinnati in 24 to a 5.59 era… F these idiots. They need a wakeup call like America sent the democrats. Stop spending empty Fenway… F these guys. Full of S . Don’t give me some advanced metrics horse S either!
Another clown show reliever with a 2024 FIP higher than Mount Everest. Just what we need. Let’s hope he’s more like his career numbers.
I am so tired of the Cheap High Upside signings. If this is what Breslow is going to do this offseason then this team is sunk again next year.
Wait, what was this high upside scenario? He remains healthy? Low 4’s ERA in non-leverage situations?
JK, I know you think this is a useless signing too that addresses no needs and doesn’t provide any upgrade.
William-2 = I wish ownership would start addressing opportunity cost if they aren’t going to spend money. No reason to take an old guy who performs less and costs more than better available alternatives on the free agent market.
If we must under spend, then lets do it efficiently. That way ownership can make even more money and fans can have even more leverage on ownership for under spending.
Wilson couldn’t even pitch a clean inning when healthy.
I’m supposed to be excited about a 37 year old reliever that hasn’t figured out you throw your most effective pitch more than ya least effective? This don’t do it, he can’t be that bright throwing his least effective pitch twice as much as his most effective.
Desperation signing this dude went into the offseason thinking “I should get a couple spring training invites” and got this. Guarantee he gave his agent a palm up hand job from behind when he got guaranteed money in November. This is a guy you sign in March when someone gets hurt. Good start to his career but he hasn’t had a solid year in 4 years. Yes he was hurt that still counts and probably adds to where he’s at today. You paid him for 2020 and it’s 2025
It’s he the Cajun cook I used to watch after Bob Ross?? He was 84 twenty years ago….
Has Boston hired Cashman because now they are dumpster diving for Pitching. Very interesting. Why not Shreve? Next, he’s a LHP.
mlb you brought back some long lost memories with the Cajun cooking Justin Wilson reference!!! I once tried making his crab dip recipe with not good results…. Thanks for the memories!
Whoooo I guaranteeee if this is the redsox big move here comes last place!!!…. I loved that show!!
You should totally set odds in vegas yer on it man!
Ooooui, I gaaaruuntee you gonna like whatda sox be doin dis winta.
Much better will 2!!! lol!!!
World Series year! World Series!
It’s a small, smart move with an upside that does not impact any other potential move. We need several swing-and-miss left-handed RPs, and we should not run the same guy out all seasons (Beradino).
Some of the comments add nothing to the discourse. Go to the Boston Globe and post the “full-throttle” and “start the duck boat” sarcasm. Avoid REDIT and this board for legitimate discussions; save MLBTR for real baseball conversations.
Prophet – small, smart move? You call that a real baseball conversation?
With all the FA lefty relievers available at a lower cost with better performance numbers, how can we take your comment seriously?
The sarcasm is more than well deserved since the owners have done nothing since signing JD Martinez in 2018. That’s 7 seasons ago. Pretending a pick-up of a washed up reliever is a good move so a positive perspective can be maintained sure seems hypocritical to me.
Let the people vent over and over until something improves. If you are satisfied with ownership’s actions you are not a typical fan who roots for good things for their ball club. This isn’t a religion where faith is your driving motivation, it’s reality and the reality is the ownership has let the city and the fans down since 2019 when they fired Dombrowski. Nothing good has happened since and 15 years of success after 86 years of pain isn’t an equal off set. The fans of the Red Sox deserve better like so many other fan bases that have apathetic owners.
Sagacity…November 15th is a great day to sign this type of player with some upside.
Venting?
I’m willing to wager that the Sox will spend big money now that they can bring in 2 rookies of starting quality each year (Anthony and Campbell in 2025, Teel and Mayer in 2026) for the next few years. It was pointless to do it until the development system was sustainable. They will sign and draft pitching and add a big bat to the middle of the lineup.
The bullpen needs help, too….this is a fringe move with upside. That’s all….but venting is kinda boring.