The A.L. East is getting better, the Red Sox are still bargain shopping
There are two portions of Red Sox nation, one who is supporting the approach that chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom is taking. Then there is the portion of Red Sox fans who are on the verge of becoming Randy Quaid’s character from the movie Major League.
I want to go to the game tomorrow night and just be Randy Quaid from Major League 2. #Phillies pic.twitter.com/KZWh0n5nSz
— Stoned Chomsky (@PinkoPhillyFan) June 24, 2019
On Tuesday night, the Toronto Blue Jays signed center fielder George Springer to a six year, $150 million deal. Toronto has finally been able to land a star in free agency. The Springer deal will be the biggest contract given out in Blue Jays history.
Springer comes to Toronto after playing 51 games during the shortened 60 game season. He hit .265 last season with 14 home runs and 32 RBI’s. Prior to last season Springer has hit at least 20 home runs over the previous six seasons. He leaves Houston as a three time All-Star, hitting .270 with 174 home runs, 458 RBI’s and a slash line of .361/.491/.852.
👍 👍
When you wake up and remember George Springer is a Jay. 😌#BlueJays pic.twitter.com/qS3K5lUoyC
— Sportsnet 590 The FAN (@FAN590) January 20, 2021
“Interest” is causing Boston to fall short
Over the last week, the Yankees have added Corey Kluber and re-signed DJ LeMahieu. The Blue Jays have added Kirby Yates and now Springer while Boston has added Zac Grotz on a minor-league deal. Bloom also did re-sign Martin Perez on a one-year deal on Saturday.
The Red Sox have signed 18 players to minor-league deals with invitations to Spring Training. Ten of those players are pitchers, Grotz who has upside and the Red Sox. He’ll compete for a spot in the bullpen but he lacks the star power Red Sox fans are hungry for.
It’s not only the A.L. East who is adding talent, the Los Angeles Angels signed left-hander Jose Quintana last night and Jon Lester will be staying in the National League signing with the Nationals.
Bargain Bin Bloom?
According to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo, the Red Sox have had conversations with multiple players. Cotillo noted there is one common theme between those conversation with players agents. The Red Sox are looking for bargains and “really team-friendly deals”.
The Red Sox have fallen short in adding free agents this offseason that could have significantly helped their team. The team has shown “interest” in Kluber, Yates, Charlie Morton, Tommy Kahnle, Koheri Arihara, Tomoyuki Sugano and Ha-seong Kim just to name a few. It’s not know as to how much the Red Sox offered to those players and where they fell short.
On Tuesday night, the Boston Globe’s Alex Speier said that Boston “seemed most interested in a clean one-year deal”. Speier added, “the Red Sox might have been able to outbid New York for Kluber but doing so would have meant lowering the bar at other areas of need”.
Corey Kluber “seemed most interested in a clean one-year deal”, per Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.
Kluber signed a one-year, $11 million deal last week w/the Yankees
— Red Sox Podcast to be Named Later (@RedSoxPod_BSS) January 20, 2021
Speier: #RedSox might have been able to outbid New York for Kluber but “doing so would have meant lowering the bar at other areas of need.”
— Red Sox Podcast to be Named Later (@RedSoxPod_BSS) January 20, 2021
There’s Still Time
Despite the rest of the division getting better, it is not all doom and gloom for Bloom and the Red Sox. There are still free-agent options left for Boston even though they will report to Fort Myers in a few weeks.
The Red Sox have shown considerable interest in Jake Odorizzi who remains unsigned at this point. Other starting pitchers are on the market who could help their rotation. Masahiro Tanaka is still available and presumably looking for a new home after the Yankees signed Kluber last week.
Boston still needs to add starters and should look for multiple arms due to COVID still being prevalent. With teams going back to a full 162-game season, teams will need considerable depth within the entire organization.
There is still time for Bloom to make additions to his roster. The pace at which this front office is moving needs to change. It’s been reported that throughout the offseason that Bloom has been methodical in his approach to roster building. Being methodical is one thing, but having a sense of urgency is another. It’s becoming more evident that the market isn’t going to come to him, Bloom is going to need to engage the market. The Red Sox are looking for value but that’s coming at a cost and hopefully it will not impact 2021 like last season.
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– Chris Henrique (@ChrisHenrique on Twitter)
Image: Courtesy Houston Chronicle