I am watching when Duvall plays RF with some interest, because if he can handle playing it in Fenway resigning Duvall and trading Verdugo + prospects for pitching could help out two positions.
I deliberately left Duvall off this list because he's not under any contract for 2024. But yes, he appears to be a solid RH power bat that this team could use. The problem is that they really need a BETTER RH power bat. The question is: how to get it?
And also where will this RH power bat will play if two of the traditional power slots at 1B and 3B are covered, and this team can't carry a full time DH.
It would make an enormous difference if they could get 20 homers and an .800 ops from Story for a full season, while also getting similar production from the right side from the DH spot (like Turner this year). I think it won't be long before Teel is their full time catcher, and he's fantastic (and hopefully will be great at the MLB level), but he's also a lefty.
Yeah, Rafaela is a big question mark. The team needs him next year because they need the outfield defense to improve. Much as I love Duran and Verdugo, Verdugo is merely above-average and Duran is below average.
I don’t see this team flexing to another DH-only type player. I feel like the value of Turner to this management was the versatility of playing the field.I’d expect them to rework a deal with Turner or use the DH role in a “resting players” fashion. We do need RH hitting, but the last thing we need are more limited defensive players.
I think that's fair, though I'm not sure how much difference there is in defensive value between a 39-year-old Justin Turner playing 1B and Bell, who has ranked as a slightly below-average first baseman the last few years.
I think he'd be great at 2B, but unless you think Urias is going to net you something decent, I don't see why they don't head into next year with both of them. 5m is cheap for a guy with 2-3 WAR seasons in the immediate rearview, and Ceddane's value right now is that he can back up all three outfield positions and give the infielders a break.
I'm still not ready to just toss him into a FT starting role. I think he could hide his likely struggles a bit by being a super-sub at CF, SS and 2B for next season but Urias should be penciled in as the starter for next season IMO. Casas was penciled in as the starter at 1B this year, but Turner was absolutely brought in to take that position if Casas was really struggling.*
Based on the other replies it seems like I’m on an island, as I think just having him someplace consistent will accelerate adjustment.
Why? Strikes me as recency bias. Reyes had a pretty good month before getting hurt, and Urias has been bad this year, but Urias has been a solidly above average second basemen for much longer, is younger, and arguably still has upside.
Yeah, that too. I also think the expectations for offensive production out of 2b would be pretty low- given what the Sox got out of the position this year, slotting him there would likely be an easy way to improve. I don’t see the same thing happening in CF, which also requires moving a pretty good player.
I agree with this, especially the Rafaela starting the season in Worcester part. While he put up great numbers during his brief time with the WooSox this summer, I'm not convinced he can be a regular major leaguer yet. Certainly not as a starter. If I'm Bloom/Cora, I'm treating him like Duran was at the start of this year. Let him start in Worcester and be the first call up when someone goes down. And with Rafaela's versatility, who that might be could be just about anyone in the lineup outside of Casas, Wong, and McGuire.
Absolutely. I'd honestly rather see him in RF next year than Verdugo, and include Verdugo with prospects for a starter as a part of a 3 team trade. I don't see them extending Verdugo and I also think Duvall is a better fit in our lineup due to his power.
If it's just about 2024, I'd prefer Duvall to Verdugo too. But Duvall turns 36 next year and doesn't have anywhere near the long-term value that a Verdugo extension might give. Gotta at least try to agree on a Verdugo contract first before exploring trades.
This makes sense. The Sox could stand to turn multiple players/quantity into a quality upgrade. Verdugo seems emblematic of the offensive inconsistency we can't keep falling into, at a position that they can deal from.
Yeah I think you have to at least see if he can give you 2021/2022 Urias before just moving on from him. He’s a super valuable piece of a contending team if he does that.
I spent a few minutes thinking through the framework bloodysox proposed above, and here is a three-team fake internet trade for you all to criticize:
Verdugo has been getting unfairly maligned here. I don’t know since I only really watch the Sox, but are offensive inconsistencies more the norm across all players? I suspect that they are outside an elite dozen or so. At the end of the season he’s a good defensive RF in a tough RF with a good overall offensive profile.
As someone who has speculated about Verdugo being traded, let me say I don't want to malign him.
Sure, that’s a decent return on his current contract, but between that, his negative defensive numbers last year, his need for pep talks to stay focused… I think it is very much worth wondering if he will be a decent or even acceptable value on his next deal.
I'm not saying that he's got to be on next year's roster, but if you dump McGuire (1.23 M this season, arb eligible next season) you're still going to need to replace him and he's not making a ton of money. I suppose that it's possible, but if he goes I don't see the position being filled with an equally competent or better player at much of a savings. Hernandez is on the 40 man and has shown a bit of power in AAA these past 2 seasons, but from what I'm reading he's not very good defensively.
As a 2025 question I think that's valid, but I see his final year of control as a slam dunk to retain rather than try to trade away.
Slight nit, but Hernandez is not on the 40-man. Wong and McGuire are the only catchers on the 40-man at present.
I hear you, but they've protected Ronaldo,(EDIT: they have NOT protected him according to the above post) so I think they at least think he might be viable. His passed ball and CS numbers are good for his age and level, as far as I can tell, and Wong has a reverse split... so McGuire has never really a good match for Wong.
Right I was thinking he was put on the 40 and was with the team back in July (?), but that was Caleb Hamilton.
Hernandez was outrighted off the 40-man (so cleared waivers) in December and was not selected in the rule 5 draft, so I think they feel safe in his not going anywhere being left unprotected.
Fair enough.
Well, they definitely felt safe last year. He has improved a lot year over year, though.
Well, Bobby D is still striking out 35% of the time down there, so I don't know how much of an effect the automated strike zone is having. It's been a league with a lot of offense, but I think everyone's looking for explanations for the offensive explosion there other than the obvious one, which is there's a lot of pretty good hitters down there.
I don’t think it’s a slam dunk. His trade value is probably higher than the value of the comp pick. And if you’re trading for a starting pitcher, you’d rather hold on to the inexpensive Little Raffy rather than the more expensive pending free agent.
I think you’d have to sign Duvall in conjunction with the trade. Righty hitter, short deal.
