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Nationals Claim Jeter Downs, Designate Reed Garrett

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The Nationals announced they have claimed infielder Jeter Downs off waivers from the Red Sox. Downs had been recently designated for assignment by Boston. To create space on the 40-man roster, the Nats designated reliever Reed Garrett for assignment. Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post. reported the claim of Downs prior to the official announcement.

Downs, 24, is perhaps best known as one of the key pieces of the trade that sent Mookie Betts and David Price to the Dodgers in February of 2020. Downs went to the Red Sox alongside Alex Verdugo and Connor Wong. At the time, Downs was a highly-touted prospect, featuring on the back end of Baseball America’s top 100 list in both 2020 and 2021.

Unfortunately, his stock has completely nosedived in the past two years. After the pandemic wiped out the minor leagues in 2020, Downs spent 2021 in Triple-A, getting into 99 games on the year. His power and speed were still evident, as he hit 14 home runs and stole 18 bases. However, he struck out in 32.3% of his plate appearances and finished with a batting line of .190/.272/.333 for a wRC+ of 62.

2022 was an improvement but only slightly. His strikeout rate dropped but was still quite high at 29.6%. He added another 16 homers and swiped 18 more bags, but his batting line of .197/.316/.412 added up to a 95 wRC+. He also got into 14 MLB games but hit just .154/.171/.256 in that small sample, striking out in 51.2% of his trips to the plate.

The Sox gave up on him by designating him for assignment last week but the rebuilding Nats will give him a shot. He’s still only 24, was a top prospect less than two years ago and has two option years remaining. He also brings defensive versatility, having primarily played shortstop but also some second and third base.

The Nats will have a young middle infield consisting of CJ Abrams at shortstop and Luis Garcia at second. Third base figures to be manned by Jeimer Candelario, though he’s only on a one-year deal and could be dealt at midseason if he’s performing well. Carter Kieboom is also in the mix for work at the hot corner though he’s struggled in the big leagues so far and missed the 2022 season entirely due to Tommy John surgery. Veteran Ildemaro Vargas is also on hand as a utility option, though there are avenues there for Downs to work his way into the picture if he can get things back on track.

Garrett, 30 in January, he has limited MLB experience, getting into 13 games with the 2019 Tigers and another seven with the 2022 Nationals with a stint in Japan in between. He posted a 6.75 ERA in the big leagues this year but was much better in the minors. He logged 47 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 3.04 ERA, 27% strikeout rate, 9.2% walk rate and 47.4% ground ball rate. The Nats will have one week to trade him or pass him through waivers. He still has a couple of option years remaining and had solid minor league numbers this year, which could lead to some interest from other clubs.

Denny Doyle Passes Away

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Former major league infielder Denny Doyle passed away yesterday, according to multiple reports. He was 78 years old.

Doyle appeared in parts of eight big league seasons during the 1970’s. A Kentucky native, he attended Morehead State before entering the professional ranks with the Phillies in 1966. He’d play four years in the minors before cracking the majors a bit after his 26th birthday in 1970. Doyle would work as the Phils primary second baseman for his first four MLB seasons.

Listed at just 5’9″, Doyle didn’t bring much power to the table. He never topped four home runs in a season, but he was adept at putting the ball in play. Doyle struck out in fewer than 10% of his plate appearances in each season from 1971-76, a time when the league strikeout percentage sat in the 13-14% range. Teams clearly valued his up-the-middle defense as well.

The Phillies traded Doyle to the Angels after the 1973 season. He spent the ’74 campaign with California, and he’d remain there through the first few months of the following season. In June, the Angels dealt him to the Red Sox for a player to be named later (eventually minor league pitcher Chuck Ross). That move paid off for Boston, as Doyle hit .310/.339/.429 in 89 games down the stretch. He received some down ballot MVP votes for his performance and, more importantly, earned a key role on the Sox’s 1975 pennant-winning team.

Doyle appeared in and picked up a hit in all seven games of that year’s World Series showdown with the Reds, one of the most iconic series in MLB history. Boston would come up short in that set, relinquishing a three-run lead late in the decisive Game 7 and losing 4-3 on a two-out RBI single by Joe Morgan in the top half of the ninth. Doyle went 8-30 with a pair of walks and one strikeout in that series.

After two more seasons in Boston, Doyle retired following the 1977 campaign. He finished his career with a bit less than 1000 games played. Over 3572 plate appearances, he posted a .250/.296/.316 line. Doyle only hit 16 homers but collected 823 hits, including 113 doubles and 28 triples. He drove in 237 runs and scored 357 times.

Doyle’s brothers Brian Doyle and Blake Doyle have also had roles in MLB. Brian played in parts of four seasons with the Yankees and A’s from 1978-81, while Blake served as hitting coach of the Rockies during the mid-2010’s. MLBTR sends our condolences to them and the entire Doyle family, as well as Denny Doyle’s friends, former teammates and loved ones.

Red Sox Sign Niko Goodrum To Minor League Deal

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The Red Sox announced that utility player Niko Goodrum will be a non-roster invitee for their upcoming Spring Training. Prior to the official announcement, Robert Murray of FanSided reported Goodrum had joined the organization on a minor league deal.

Goodrum, 31 in February, seemed to establish himself as a useful player with the Tigers in 2018 and 2019, hitting around league average but adding some defensive versatility and speed. Over that two-year stretch, he hit 28 home runs and stole 24 bases, producing a batting line of .247/.318/.427. That period included the “juiced ball” season of 2019, so that production was actually just below league average, with Goodrum having a 98 wRC+ for that two-year timeframe. He also struck out in 28% of his plate appearances, but was still a useful piece with that average-ish bat and defensive versatility, playing every infield and outfield position.

Unfortunately, he’s been on a downward trajectory since that time. He slid to .184/.263/.335 in the next year for a wRC+ of 63, though that could have been written off as an anomaly of the pandemic-shortened year. He rebounded in 2021, but only slightly, finishing that season at .214/.292/.359, 81 wRC+. He also saw his strikeouts become even more of an issue, jumping to 38.5% in 2020 and 32.9% a year later.

That was disappointing enough for the Tigers to move on, non-tendering Goodrum prior to the 2022 season. The Astros decided to take a flier on a bounceback, signing him for one year and $2.1MM. But things went from bad to worse in Houston, with Goodrum striking out 51.1% of the time in a small sample of 45 plate appearances and hitting just .116/.156/.163. The Astros optioned him to the farm but he got injured down there and only played 20 minor league games. He was designated for assignment and released as the season was winding down.

Like the Astros did a year ago, the Red Sox will now take a chance on Goodrum and hope for a return to form. In this case, it’s essentially a no-risk move for Boston since it’s a minor league deal and they haven’t committed a roster spot to him. They have some uncertainty in their position player mix at the moment with the departure of Xander Bogaerts. It seems like Trevor Story will move to take over shortstop, leaving second base for Christian Arroyo. They have some options who could serve as bench infielders, with Enmanuel Valdez and David Hamilton on the 40-man roster. However, they were both just added in November and neither has any MLB experience. Goodrum’s signing adds a more seasoned option into the mix.

If Goodrum can get back on track and earn his way onto the roster, he’ll be able to be controlled beyond this season. He has over four years of MLB service time and could be retained via arbitration until he gets over the six-year mark. He also has a couple of option years remaining, though players with over five years of MLB service cannot be optioned without their consent. Goodrum is at 4.069 and could cross that threshold this season, with a “year” being flipped at the 172-day mark.

Red Sox Agree To Sign Justin Turner

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6:41PM: Another breakdown is provided by Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, who reports that Turner will earn $15MM in 2023, and then $7.7MM in 2024 if he exercises his player option.  Another $1MM is available to Turner in incentive bonuses in 2023, as he can unlock a series of $200K bonuses if he reaches at least 480 plate appearances.

6:01PM: Alex Speier of The Boston Globe has a different set of contract numbers, reporting that Turner will get only $8.3MM in 2023 and then $11.4MM in 2024 if he exercises the player option.  Unless is a signing bonus or buyout also attached to the deal, Speier’s report would indicate that Turner is only receiving $19.7MM in guaranteed salary.  The $8.3MM figure in 2023 in particular looks like a very nice bargain for the Red Sox on what could well end up being a one-year commitment to a 38-year-old player.

5:26PM: Turner will earn $14MM in 2023, Heyman reports, and the 2024 player option is worth $8MM.

4:54PM: The Red Sox have agreed to a deal with infielder Justin Turner, according to ESPN’s Joon Lee and Jeff Passan (Twitter links).  The two-year contract will pay Turner slightly less than $22MM, and Turner can opt out of the deal following the 2023 season.  Jon Heyman of the New York Post (Twitter links) reported earlier today that Turner and the Sox were “looking close” to working out a contract, and that Boston was “heavily” pursuing Turner.  Michael Marino of Fantrax reported yesterday that Turner and the Sox were in talks.  Turner is represented by Vayner Sports.

The Marlins, Diamondbacks, Twins, and Dodgers are the other teams publicly known to have some interest in Turner, and Miami made Turner an offer earlier this week.  Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald described the Marlins’ offer as “competitive,” and though the exact details of the offer weren’t known, Heyman wrote that the Marlins seemed open to giving Turner the multi-year deal he is seeking in free agency.

Turner (who is entering his age-38 season) did find that multi-year pact, though at a significant drop in average annual value from the $17MM he received in his previous two-year deal with the Dodgers.  MLBTR projected Turner for only one guaranteed year, but for $14MM.  The year-to-year breakdown of the new contract isn’t yet known, and the opt-out could indicate that Turner’s camp might essentially view this deal as a one-year pact, with an eye towards getting a larger multi-year contract next after on the heels of a big platform year at Fenway Park.

That said, it isn’t as though Turner underachieved in 2022, as he posted a strong 123 wRC+ after batting .278/.350/.438 with 13 homers over 532 plate appearances with the Dodgers.  However, given how Turner’s usual offseason routine was thrown off-kilter was the lockout and the shortened Spring Training, he might well imagine that he could’ve hit much better had it not been for a very slow start.  Turner had only a .611 OPS over his first 243 PA of the year, but then caught fire with a .940 OPS over his last 289 PA.

Despite this production and Turner’s long track record of success over nine seasons in Los Angeles, the Dodgers opted to decline their $16MM club option on Turner for 2023, instead buying him out for $2MM.  The move was seemingly made to give the Dodgers some extra flexibility in regards to their payroll and luxury tax situation, as the Dodgers could conceivably use any of Max Muncy, Chris Taylor, or prospect Miguel Vargas at third base.  While president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman repeatedly stated that the door was still open for a possible reunion with Turner, the Dodgers’ signing of J.D. Martinez yesterday seemed to hint that L.A. had moved on.

As it turned out, the Dodgers and Red Sox will unofficially swap veteran hitters, with Martinez heading to Los Angeles and Turner coming to Boston.  Turner brings more defensive utility than Martinez, as Turner still saw quite a bit of action at third base last season, basically splitting his time between third and DH.  Rafael Devers of course has priority at the hot corner in Boston, but the Red Sox could now use Turner at third base when Devers (a subpar defender) is given a DH day of his own.  Turner hasn’t played at first base since 2016, but he could also conceivably get some time at the cold corner as a right-handed hitting complement to rookie Triston Casas.

Xander Bogaerts’ departure to the Padres has led to a lot of hard feelings from Red Sox Nation directed towards ownership and chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom.  Though Bogaerts is certainly a major loss, Bloom’s plan is to fill the void with multiple players, as Bloom has stated that he wanted to add roughly 7-9 new faces to the roster.  That long list of needs has now been partially filled by Turner, Masataka Yoshida, and relievers Kenley Jansen, Chris Martin, and Joely Rodriguez.

It would seem like starting pitching, catching, and the outfield remain on Bloom’s checklist, given the other players the Red Sox have at least checked in on this winter.  But with Turner, the club reinforcements the corner infield/DH mix that Boston first looked to address by making a push for Jose Abreu, before Abreu signed with the Astros.  The Red Sox made some room at first base by designing Eric Hosmer for assignment earlier this week, and though Hosmer was essentially a free player since the Padres were covering almost all of his remaining salary, the Sox were looking for either a more productive bat, or at least to more firmly clear a path for top prospect Casas.

After surpassing the luxury tax threshold in 2022, the Red Sox are thus far well under the $233MM threshold.  That leaves Bloom with some opportunity to perhaps stay under the tax line, though given how Bloom and ownership were willing to pay the tax for even a rather remote shot at a playoff berth last year, one would imagine the Red Sox wouldn’t balk at paying another tax penalty for the right upside.  Many of the offseason’s top free agents have already come off the board, but the Sox could still pursue other upgrades on the trade market.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Red Sox Notes: Vázquez, Yoshida, Rafaela

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Despite a mid-season trade from the Red Sox to the Astros, catcher Christian Vazquez remained interested in a potential Boston reunion, even going so far as to reach out to the club before agreeing to his deal with the Twins, per Alex Speier of The Boston Globe. However, Speier adds that the “Sox never showed any interest in bringing back” the veteran backstop.

Vazquez, who is tied for the fifth-most games caught in franchise history, was reportedly offered a one-year extension before Boston picked up his $7MM option for the 2022 season, but the extra year was at a lower average salary than the 2022-23 option. Vazquez subsequently declined the offer, and the two parties never discussed a new deal. This decision to bet on himself worked well for the catcher, who would go on to sign a three-year, $30MM deal with the Twins. Nevertheless, during his introductory press conference, Vazquez noted the difficulty in his free agent decision, saying that the Sox will “be in my heart forever” and that it “was tough to leave Boston.”

Barring an offseason catcher addition, the Red Sox are projected to rely on Reese McGuire and Connor Wong behind the dish. While the duo doesn’t have as successful of an offensive history as Vazquez, McGuire is a career .256/.301/.381 hitter and Wong has a .213/.290/.361 slash line in 70 plate appearances, McGuire hit .337/.377/.500 following a trade to the Red Sox and Wong has hit .276/.327/.471 in two seasons at the Triple-A level.

In other Red Sox news:

  • The Red Sox were quick to pounce on Masataka Yoshida, agreeing to a record-setting five-year, $90MM contract with the Japanese outfielder shortly after he was posted. However, the organization had been reportedly scouting Yoshida for years, per VP of professional scouting Gus Quattlebaum. Quattlebaum cites Pacific Rim coordinator Brett Ward for bringing Yoshida to the Red Sox’s attention long before the NPB star was posted this offseason, telling reporters that “Wardy recognized this bat a long time ago for us, and cited him as one of the better pure hitters that he’d seen since Ichiro.” While comparing Yoshida to Ichiro Suzuki is high praise, the two produced similar batting lines during their time in Japan’s NPB with Yoshida slashing .326/.419/.539 over seven seasons and Ichiro hitting .353/.421/.522 over nine seasons.
  • With the majority of MLBTR’s top free agents inking contracts, general manager Chaim Bloom will be forced to turn to the trade market to improve his team this offseason. While Marcelo Mayer, Brayan Bello, and Triston Casas are considered untradeable, Tanner Houck, Ceddanne Rafaela, Bryan Mata, and Josh Winckowski have been floated as potential trade candidates. However, one National League team official believes that Rafaela is the least likely of the group to be moved, telling Speier that the Sox are “hugging him very tight.” Following a solid 2021 season at Single-A Salem, Rafaela broke out during the 2022 season. Across High-A and Double-A, the speedy utility man hit .299/.342/.539 with 21 home runs, 1o triples, and 32 doubles. The Red Sox’s No. 3 prospect, Rafaela is projected to make his debut during the 2023 season.

Red Sox Have Interest In J.D. Martinez Reunion

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The Red Sox are among the teams showing interest in free agent designated hitter J.D. Martinez, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Martinez is a free agent after spending the past five seasons in Boston. The Red Sox opted not to offer him a qualifying offer at the end of the season.

The Red Sox don’t have a clear DH locked in for 2023, but there have been some concerns raised over the outfield defense of new signing Masataka Yoshida, and he has seemed like someone who could at least spend a decent chunk of time at the spot when he’s manning left-field. Martinez did not make a single outfield appearance in 2022, so bringing him back would be a vote of confidence in Yoshida’s ability to handle left on a day-to-day basis.

Martinez, 35, slashed .274/.341/.448 with 16 home runs over 596 plate appearances in 2022. While that was a bit of a drop from his best years, it was still good for a wRC+ of 119, or 19 percent better than league average. A year prior, Martinez hit .286/.349/.518 with 28 home runs and 43 doubles. While his strikeout and walk numbers remained steady between ’21 and ’22, his HardHit% dropped almost eight percentage points.

Originally developed by the Astros, Martinez spent three unsuccessful big league seasons in Houston before being released ahead of the 2014 season. He signed on with Detroit, and his career took off, as Martinez slashed a combined .300/.361/.551 with 99 home runs over three-and-a-half seasons with the Tigers. With the Tigers out of contention and Martinez in his walk year, they flipped him to the Diamondbacks at the 2017 deadline, and Martinez hit a staggering 29 home runs in 62 matches for Arizona, setting himself for a huge payday in free agency.

It was a lengthy free agency as Martinez batted away concerns over a foot injury the previous year, but in late February of 2018 Martinez signed with the Red Sox on a five-year, $110MM deal. Over the next five years in Boston, Martinez would mash 130 home runs and compile a .292/.363/.526 line. He’d also earn MVP votes in two of those seasons and go to the All Star game four times.

While Martinez’ career numbers speak for themselves, they have slowed down a touch as he’s aged, and his restriction to the DH spot makes his market hard to predict. Any number of teams, including the Red Sox, could do with a bat like Martinez’, but many teams prefer to keep the DH spot more open to cycle players through. As such, there’s not been a ton of reported interest in the veteran slugger. MLBTR predicted a two-year, $30MM for Martinez, and while the Red Sox are now the only team with reported interest, teams such as the Rays, Orioles, Twins, among others, could all have make sense as speculative fits.

AL East Notes: Blue Jays’ Catchers, Yoshida, Red Sox

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All off-season it’s seemed a matter of when not if the Blue Jays trade one of their three catchers – Alejandro Kirk, Danny Jansen and Gabriel Moreno. According to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, the Blue Jays were open to trading Jansen to bring in a starting pitcher, but after landing Chris Bassitt on a three-year, $63MM deal Feinsand reports that a trade is no certainty now.

In any event, Toronto is in a strong negotiating position as there’s a few paths they could go down. The clear top two free agent options – Willson Contreras and Christian Vazquez – are off the board, while the Braves have acquired Sean Murphy, making the Blue Jays the clear and obvious fit for any catcher-hungry teams. They could also opt to carry three catchers on the active roster, cycling players through the DH spot, or option Moreno back to Triple-A and go with a Kirk-Jansen tandem to begin the year at least.

The additions of Bassitt to the rotation and Kevin Kiermaier to the outfield decrease the clear needs for the Blue Jays to address this winter, but in a competitive AL East, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them ultimately opt to pursue further upgrades, whether via trade or free agency. As Jon Heyman of the New York Post notes, the Jays were finalists for Masataka Yoshida (the Dodgers were the other finalist) before he signed for the Red Sox. It’s not clear whether the Kiermaier signing arose because they missed out on Yoshida, or whether they tried to sign both, but given the former’s injury history and declining production it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them seek another outfielder.

Boston’s signing of Yoshida addressed the need to upgrade their offense following the departure of Xander Bogaerts to San Diego. It also likely spelled the end of any chance of Eric Hosmer, who was DFA’d yesterday, receiving regular at bats. The Red Sox look to have locked in youngster Triston Casas as their everyday first-baseman moving forward, while Yoshida (and others) could well take a few DH at bats as the Red Sox cycle through their outfielders. Boston’s chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom addressed the DFA of Hosmer to Chris Cotillo of MassLive.

“Our roster isn’t complete yet, but as we build our club, we feel it’s important to give Triston a clear lane, and that carrying two left-handed hitting first basemen would leave us short in other areas. Given that, it’s important to do right by Eric and give him time to find his next opportunity. We knew when we first got him that this day would come at some point, and wanted to make sure we treated him right.”

Cotillo also reports that the Red Sox tried hard to trade Hosmer prior to DFA’ing him, but found minimal interest in the league. Hosmer did receive a full no-trade clause as part of the trade that sent him from San Diego to Boston at the deadline, but Cotillo’s report said that the lack of trade interest meant the no-trade clause didn’t even come into play. The Red Sox can still trade him while he’s on waivers, but it seems likely he’d be released onto the open market.

While an outgoing trade of Hosmer seems unlikely, the team is working on incomings, and recently asked the Marlins about Miguel Rojas, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Rojas was one of the top defensive shortstops in the sport last season, and as Rosenthal notes, the Marlins value that defense and rebuffed Boston’s inquiry. Rojas is under contract for one more year at an affordable $5MM salary.

Latest On Dansby Swanson’s Market

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Dansby Swanson is the best remaining free agent, the only of the top four shortstops who has yet to agree to terms. Teams like the Cubs, Twins, Dodgers, Red Sox and incumbent Braves have all been tied to him, although there’s no indication he’s especially close to a deal.

Minnesota, Boston and the Dodgers each lost a star shortstop of their own to free agency, making them all natural fits to look to Swanson as a possible replacement. However, various reports have cast some doubt on each of those possible landing spots. Both Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic and Jon Heyman of the New York Post have written recently that Los Angeles is presently more on the periphery of the Swanson market. Rosenthal and Heyman each suggest L.A. might only jump into the mix if Swanson’s asking price dips into a range they find especially palatable.

That at least partially stems from luxury tax considerations, with various reports suggesting the Dodgers are eyeing the possibility of dipping below next year’s $233MM base threshold. The Dodgers have paid the tax in each of the last two seasons, setting them up for heightened penalties as repeat payors. A team can reset their payor status by dipping below the threshold for one year, and doing so next season may free L.A. up to aggressively target free agency during the 2023-24 offseason. Los Angeles is presently projected around $32MM shy of the tax marker by Roster Resource, leaving room to add Swanson without going past the threshold. However, there’s apparently some organizational concern they could find themselves on the hook for money owed to Trevor Bauer if the pitcher’s two-year suspension is overturned or reduced on appeal, which is expected to be heard in the next month.

Heyman wrote yesterday the Red Sox are “seriously considering” Swanson after watching Xander Bogaerts head to San Diego. Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom recently told the media the club was looking to add players at up-the-middle positions, but the presence of Trevor Story means they’re not locked into a shortstop pursuit. Boston reportedly offered Bogaerts, whom they’d called their top offseason priority, $162MM over six years before he landed in San Diego. Pivoting with a similar or higher proposal to Swanson would raise some eyebrows, and Jen McCaffrey of the Athletic wrote yesterday it seems unlikely Boston would make such an investment.

The Twins had been in contact with Swanson even before Carlos Correa agreed to terms with the Giants, putting themselves into the mix for a fallback option. Both Darren Wolfson of SKOR North (Twitter link) and Dan Hayes of the Athletic (on Twitter) suggest the Twins remain involved, but both reporters characterize it as more of a longshot for Swanson to actually land in Minneapolis. The Twins do still have a fair bit of payroll flexibility, even after this afternoon’s $11MM agreement with Joey Gallo.

Regardless, Swanson’s sure to find a significant deal from some team this winter. The next-best remaining free agent shortstop is Elvis Andrus, while the trade market doesn’t have many obvious solutions. Swanson is coming off an All-Star campaign, one in which he connected on 25 home runs with a .277/.329/.447 line while appearing in all 162 games for the Braves. He also secured his first career Gold Glove after rating as 15 runs above average defensively, per Statcast. At the start of the offseason, MLBTR predicted a seven-year, $154MM contract.

Braves Acquire Hoy Park

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The Red Sox announced that they have traded infielder/outfielder Hoy Park to the Braves. In exchange, they will receive a player to be named later or cash considerations. Park was designated for assignment earlier this week.

Park, 27 in April, has been bouncing around the league over the past couple of seasons. Originally a Yankee farmhand, he got out to a blistering start in 2021. In 48 Triple-A games, he hit .327/.475/.567 for a wRC+ of 180. On the heels of that torrid stretch, he went to Pittsburgh in the deal that sent Clay Holmes to the Yankees.

Unfortunately, his performance since that deal has made that hot streak look like a mirage. He hit .195/.297/.336 in 45 games for the Pirates after the deal. In 2022, he spent most of his time in Triple-A, getting into 89 games and hitting just .225/.332/.354 for a wRC+ of 86. He also got into 23 big league games but slashed a meager .216/.276/.373, 79 wRC+.

The Pirates designated him for assignment in November and then flipped him to the Red Sox for prospect Inmer Lobo, only for Boston to send him back into DFA limbo again a few weeks later. Despite the tepid offense over the past season and a half, Park continues to get interest due to his defensive versatility and speed. He regularly posts double-digit steal totals and can play all three outfield slots as well as the three positions left of first base. If his bat can even take a little step forward to be average-ish, he could be a valuable contributor.

For the Braves, they have most of their infield set with Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley in place. Shortstop is still a question mark with Dansby Swanson having hit free agency and still on the open market. If he ends up signing elsewhere, it seems the plan would be to install Vaughn Grissom there. In the outfield, Michael Harris II and Ronald Acuña Jr. have two spots accounted for with Marcell Ozuna, Eddie Rosario and Sam Hilliard candidates for another. Park still has two option years remaining, which will allow the club to keep him in the minors as depth to be brought up as needed. But he could also compete for a bench/utility role with the likes of Orlando Arcia, Braden Shewmake and Ehire Adrianza.

Red Sox Designate Jeter Downs For Assignment

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The Red Sox have officially announced their signing of outfielder Masataka Yoshida. To create space on the 40-man roster, infielder Jeter Downs was designated for assignment.

Downs, 24, is perhaps best known as one of the key pieces of the trade that sent Mookie Betts and David Price to the Dodgers in February of 2020. Downs went to the Red Sox alongside Alex Verdugo and Connor Wong. At the time, Downs was a highly-touted prospect, featuring on the back end of Baseball America’s top 100 list in both 2020 and 2021.

Unfortunately, his stock has completely nosedived in the past two years. After the pandemic wiped out the minor leagues in 2020, Downs spent 2021 in Triple-A, getting into 99 games on the year. His power and speed were still evident, as he hit 14 home runs and stole 18 bases. However, he struck out in 32.3% of his plate appearances and finished with a batting line of .190/.272/.333 for a wRC+ of 62.

2022 was an improvement but only slightly. His strikeout rate dropped but was still quite high at 29.6%. He added another 16 homers and swiped 18 more bags, but his batting line of .197/.316/.412 added up to a 95 wRC+. He also got into 14 MLB games but hit just .154/.171/.256 in that small sample, striking out in 51.2% of his trips to the plate.

Despite making him a key piece of a franchise-altering trade, it seems the club has run out of patience with him. They will now have a week to trade him or put him on waivers. Despite the rough results in the past two seasons, it seems likely that some team would take a flier on him. He’s still only 24, was a top prospect less than two years ago and has two option years remaining. He also brings defensive versatility, having primarily played shortstop but also some second and third base.

For the Boston fans, trading away an elite talent like Betts was always going to be a bitter pill to swallow, but it seems to be getting worse with age. While Betts helped the Dodgers win the 2020 World Series, Verdugo seems to have settled in as an adequate but unexciting outfielder. Wong has yet to establish himself at the big league level and Downs is now potentially leaving the organization on a low note.

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