Red Sox Fans, You Should be Hoping for NO BASEBALL in 2020!
The world is a mess right now with everything going on. Usually, people watch sports to get away from everyday life, besides obviously enjoying sports as a whole. Sports are trying to make a comeback. The NHL is making progress. It looks like the NBA will come back in late July. The NFL looks like it’ll start right around on time. What about the MLB? Well…it looks like the MLB is very far away from getting back to being on the field.
News at @espn: If Major League Baseball and the players can't come to an agreement on a return-to-play deal, the league has discussed implementing a season in the 50-game range and paying players full prorated salaries. On the latest twist in negotiations: https://t.co/qFNgat86hh
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) June 1, 2020
This is the latest from Jeff Passan. Here’s a look at what’s been happening between the MLB and MLBPA.
Players want 114 games, league counters with 50.
It bears noting that 50 was not an arbitrary number. The middle of those two figures offered is 82, which was the league’s original offer
— Starting 9 (@Starting9) June 2, 2020
So with this information, how does this pertain to the Boston Red Sox? Well, if you’re a Red Sox fan like me, you might want to think about this. Wouldn’t the best possible situation be that the less baseball the Red Sox play, the more it would benefit them? Let’s discuss!
Chris Sale
#RedSox just announced Chris Sale will undergo Tommy John surgery.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) March 19, 2020
Remember this tweet? Yeah, this happened. Chris Sale got Tommy John surgery. That means that your best pitcher is done for the year. With no baseball, Chris Sale wouldn’t miss any time. Even with a 50 game season, he misses what, 10 starts max? That’s not a big deal. But obviously, a full season gone benefits Sale and his recovery time.
The Cap Situation
The cap situation is heavily in favor of the Red Sox next offseason. They need reinforcements, especially in the bullpen. The infield is pretty set, excluding first base if Mitch Moreland leaves. The OF can use a boost (which we’ll get to in a second) and the pitching could use another starter or two. There’s a lot of money that can be used to address a lot of areas. What could that money be spent on?
Mookie Betts
This is what the Red Sox should do in my honest opinion. Go give Mookie Betts the money he deserved from the start. Mookie can be in CF, Benintendi in LF, and Verdugo in RF if he’s healthy. In that case, you can then trade Jackie Bradley for a reliever. It gets Bradley’s contract off the books, strengthens your OF, and strengthens your bullpen. Win, win, and another win! The Red Sox can do it. It’s all dependent on whether Mookie wants to come back to Boston or not.
In Conclusion
The Red Sox playing baseball in 2020 could do more harm than good. Chris Sale gets healthy. The cap makes the Red Sox a spender in the 2020 off-season going into 2021. Mookie Betts could come back if the Red Sox give him a good deal. I love baseball as much as anyone. But I’m also realistic in the sense that the Red Sox will probably struggle if they play in 2020. So one hand, give me MLB baseball back now. On the other hand, it wouldn’t hurt the Red Sox to punt on 2020. We’ll see what happens going forward.
-Al Nahigian (@BigAl2793)