Craig Breslow: Red Sox CBO
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On pursuing top free agents....
"I don't see financial limitations as being a factor"
--Craig Breslow
"I don't see financial limitations as being a factor"
--Craig Breslow
2013 was a very different kind of team that was built by adding a number of second-rank players who jelled together and excelled. Koji was an accident that worked. I would be very interested in Brez's take on that kind of roster.
Similarly, I'd like to know his answer about trading prospects that was alluded to earlier
Sure - but the core they were adding those pieces to was very strong.
You already had a first ballot hall and arguably the most important (not best) player in franchise history anchoring the line up; a former MVP, multiple time all-star and gold glove 2nd basemen at the top of it; you had arguably the top prospect in the entire sport knocking on the door; a solid (if injury prone) offensive and defensive CF at the top of the line up, and the pitching staff had a #1 (Lester), a fairly consistent #2 that had performed like an ace both in the post-season (yes, coming off injury, but I believe his only one in his career) and a very talented if mercurial #3 in Buchholz.
Of course the smaller additions helped greatly but a very solid nucleus (Ortiz, Pedroia, Lester, Buchholz, Ellsbury, Bogaerts) was in place. They also of course made a move for arguably the top available SP at the deadline.
For those wondering where ownership was today, John Henry and Tom Werner were in attendance but not sitting on the dais. Werner, as posted above, took questions from the media afterwards.
Paraphrasing: “I know you’re thinking I’m just another Ivy League nerd. And I am. But I’m also a 16 year major league player and Red Sox World Series champion.”
I don't see that as a dig on Bloom any more than it's a dig on Theo, Cherrington, Dombrowski, or any other exec who isn't an ex-player.
The Red Sox need front-line pitching badly. No one disagrees with that. But Brez kept saying that we have a brilliant young core (Devers? Casas?) didn't mention Story and Turner to boot or anyone by name, of course, but I don't infer from that presser that he will add high earners like Ohtani.
I mean only one of these guys was seen as a complete failure and was the immediate predecessor.
I don’t really care and am one of the people that said it seemed obvious having a former player was important. It just took me by surprise when I first heard it as seeming a little on the nose shot at Bloom.
Had to shut this off. I’m expecting them to splash cash and then keep pounding the drum that it was all Chaim’s fault. Kennedy is a prick and this ownership group has lost me completely to be honest.
13th in spending last season, but yeah - it was Chaim’s fault. Get bent.
13th in spending last season, but yeah - it was Chaim’s fault. Get bent.
13th in spending, 19th best record in the majors. Spent more than 6 playoff teams.
That's true. I just don't see how "I'm a former player" is a dig at Bloom, specifically, when 90%+ of MLB execs were not former players and the Red Sox themselves have not had a former player in the role since Haywood Sullivan. It's more Breslow mentioning something that sets him apart from the norm of execs throughout the game.
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Although he didn't say it by name, but at one point I thought he was clearly speaking about Story. When asked about defense, he mentioned a player returning from injury would shore up the middle infield defense
I think he was talking about Adalberto Mondesi. He's a good defensive middle infielder. He hasn't been released (as far as I know). It's possible he's non-tendered, but I think giving him a look at SS or 2B next year is a decent idea if he comes back cheaply.
Mondesi is progressing in extended spring training and hopes to resume baseball activities in the next few weeks.
(Actually, he's now a free agent.)
He is coming off as extremely guarded but with a smile. I recognize this is the opening presser, but one thing I really appreciated about the Dombrowski era and Farrell as a manager is the openness on answers.
That being said, Bill Belichick is also guarded.
That being said, Bill Belichick is also guarded.
Mondesi is a FA. Can't imagine he gets more than a minor league deal from anyone.
The Red Sox were 6th in swinging strike % at 12% this past year. The Twins were #1 in the league at 13% & the Cards were last at 8.2%. The 2 World Series teams were 10th (Rangers) & 22nd (Diamondbacks).
I guess what he's actually talking about is more like Z-Contact % which is the % of times a batter makes contact when swinging at a pitch inside the zone. The Red Sox were 7th in Z-Contact at 85.1%. The league leader was the Angels at 83.5% & the Rockies were last at 88.9%. The 2 World Series teams were 12th (Rangers) & 24th (Diamondbacks).
Of the players who are still around & pitched at least 20 innings this season...
1) Josh Winckowski 75%
2) Kenley Jansen 80.9%
3) Chris Sale 81.1%
4) Joe Jacques 81.8%
5) Chris Martin 82.9%
6) Kutter Crawford 83.6%
7) Tanner Houck 84.3%
8) Nick Pivetta 86%
9) Chris Murphy 86.8%
10) Brayan Bello 87%
11) Mauricio Llovera 89.9%
12) John Schreiber 90%
13) Brennan Bernardino 90.9%
14) Brandon Walter 91%
Paxton was 84.8%, Kluber was 87.3%.
Is he? He has less than 6 years of service so don’t the Red Sox own his rights for one more season?
IMO, that makes it a great question. (Although "yes," with no follow-up, would be problematic.)
That kind of jumped out at me as well.
Savant has a Wiff% which is swing+miss/total swings. The Sox have a bunch of notable pitchers who rank well among qualifiers, including Whitlock and Houck, and a bunch that don't, like Bello: https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/leaderboard/percentile-rankings?type=pitcher&year=2023&team=Red Sox&sort=12&sortDir=desc
These are the raw % numbers by pitch type, ranging from Whitlock's sweeper down to Chris Martin's sinker (still effective, just not a swing and miss pitch): https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/leaderboard/pitch-arsenal-stats?type=pitcher&pitchType=&year=2023&position=undefined&team=BOS&min=10&sort=11&sortDir=desc
I'm sure it's not the single thing he'll focus on, and missing bats is always good in the abstract. But I'd rather have a Bello than a Houck.
"No" would be a great answer. "Yes" would trigger a really obvious follow-up question. And, in all likelihood, Breslow would give a squishy answer along the lines of "ownership wants to win and are ready to spend the money necessary to do that" but at least there is a chance of getting some information, as opposed to a series of rambling four part questions with no chance for anything of substance in return.
I was thinking about overlaying Z-Contact % with strike % because part of getting lots of swinging strikes in the zone is actually throwing strikes. Might continue that analysis in the '24 starting pitcher thread.
Yeah, I would hope he would not make all his decisions on 1 stat that doesn't seem to tie that closely to results.
Per B-Ref, Mondesi was at 5 years and 88 days of service time as of 1/2023. With this season now complete, he should have 6 years and 88 days of service, making him a free agent.
To be clear, I don't think they're going to sign Ohtain either. But I think they're going to allocate major resources toward the top half of the rotation this off-season.
Maybe Yamamoto. I personally want Nola. Montgomery would have been pretty high on my list, but he probably pitched his way into much more of a contract than we were thinking about at the end of the regular season.
I also think it means they're going to allocate some massive resources (in the terms of prospects) for another starting pitcher.
My point relative to the 2013 was that it wasn't a team that was lacking "star power". They could make adds around the edges because you already had the face of the franchise (and one of the faces of the sport) and a borderline star (Pedroia was a star here, and an all-star, but I don't think he was a superstar nationally by any stretch). You also already had a #1 SP (that had won a WS clinching game), a #2 SP that I believe also won a WS clinching game (I think he won the game for LAA in 2022) and a highly regarded (and mercurial) #3. Plus whatever you want to call Ellsbury. Not to mention having arguably the best prospect in the game (Profar might have been #1, now that I look it up, but Bogaerts was #2 across the board).
So you could add here and there knowing that you had 2 championship caliber 1-4 hitters and 2 championship caliber SPs at the top of your rotation. The present situation is nothing like that.
I already voted. He doesn't understand modern pitching like us. Add in Werner and Henry not being on the dias and you 118% know this is doomed to fail.
Yeah, it was a joke. Which apparently some people have taken as not a joke. The fact that I constructed a whole fake pitching staff around it in the starting pitching thread may not help people realize it's a joke...
They haven’t even won a game since he took over. At what point do you pull the plug?
On these fora on person's joke is another person's huge axe. We all know there are many Sox fans who are concerned that Breslow is not the guy, just based on the current available information. Heck people here made note of his physical proximity to ownership during the PR - that's a thing for some folks. I tend to find all of this stuff humorous including your post. But I also believe some people really think that way.
If the '23 team had finished at .500 like Breslow is now, Bloom might still have a job.
Typcial Yale egghead with the yak yak and no action. WHEN ARE WE GETTING OHTANI! He should be here by now.
I'm not saying one of these perspectives is right or wrong -- I for one think Bloom got a little bit railroaded, but I didn't lose any sleep over it -- but it seems pretty clear to me that the broader fanbase had turned against him. From a pure perception standpoint, they were at much greater risk of losing the fanbase from keeping him than by moving on. (Of course, winning would have reversed that, and may well have happened next year.)
The Red Sox did make the 1st 3 transactions of the Breslow era today...
https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/minor-league-transactions-oct-15-30/
Santos & Booser were Minor League free agents who last played for Worcester who would have been available to anyone on Monday, & Morillo is an IFA from the Dominican Republic. They still have until 12/15 to use the rest of their IFA budget.
Yeah. The World Series is over, this should have been announced by now.
Plus he got rid of Justin Garza from the 40-man.
View: https://twitter.com/alexspeier/status/1720179900558999885
