Red Sox in season discussion

chrisfont9

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Freeman: 32 y.o. LHH, 4.7 bWAR in 2021, only plays 1b
Bryant: 30 y.o. RHH, 3.3 bWAR in 2021, significant recent experience playing 1b, 3b, CF, RF, LF
Castellanos: 30 y.o. RHH, 3.2 bWAR in 2021 (although 4.0 oWAR), mostly RF with some LF

Three pretty interesting choices. Freeman is the best player but the worst fit in terms of need, including the LHH part. Castellanos fits well in theory and probably comes cheaper, but RF in Fenway might expose him. Bryant seems more like the Sox' type, a la Kiké, if you like his fielding at a few different positions.
 

joe dokes

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Spring Training actual games start in less than 24 hours and I’m curious to see who plays in the first one. The first one usually has many ml players but that’s usually in February.
I think I read Cora saying that this week, anyway, it would be mostly, if not totally, guys that have been in camp longer -- so minor leaguers.
 

soxhop411

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I don't think teams are allowed to say publicly that they are not interested in a specific FA, as that gets into collusion which they've been convicted of before.
Poor wording on my part, was talking about reporters (local and other national reporters) pushing back on the Sox interest in him, the fact that has not happened is a bit curious
 

bosockboy

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Poor wording on my part, was talking about reporters (local and other national reporters) pushing back on the Sox interest in him, the fact that has not happened is a bit curious
And if he was going to LAD, it should happen anytime, with other bidders out. The longer this goes on, it does lend some credence to it.
 

BringBackMo

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The Rays' supposed interest in Freeman is just mind-blowing given his age, his position, and his likely salary. Could this interest be legitimate? If so, I wonder if there's something in the ultra-double-secret-fifth-level analytics that hints at the kind of untapped potential that intrigues organizations such as Tamps, Boston, and LAD. Or maybe it's just total bullshit...?

Edit: 9 minutes ago from Heyman
View: https://twitter.com/JonHeyman/status/1504160340237598724?s=20&t=dtkWwYigWnpva1cCXkNNVw
 

pokey_reese

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I think, given the likely years and dollars involved, respectively, I would prefer one of the Bryant/Conforto/Castellanos trio to Freeman. The only real downside in my mind is the defensive weakness of all three of them in the outfield, but if you can put them next to Kiké and/or JBJ, you can probably limit their area of responsibility on FBs.
 

soxhop411

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Rosenthal mentions it but doesn’t make it sound too likely.

View: https://mobile.twitter.com/Ken_Rosenthal/status/1504149097166643210
Red Sox might be in same position with payroll. Extent of interest unclear.
This is weird wording coming from someone as good as Rosenthal...
using "might" makes it seem he is just guessing and not getting that from any source. Even more so since this is the first time this offseason we have heard that they would need to shed salary for any big move.. No other national reporter or Local reporter has even reported anything similar (that I can tell).....
 

chawson

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With the Padres also in on Freeman, maybe we’re involved to the extent that we help them offload Hosmer.

Chris Paddack seems like a Nick Pivetta 2.0-type target. Great rookie season followed by a sophomore slump with some arm issues. Still three years of team control remaining. No projected spot in their rotation.

He wouldn’t alone make up for the burden of Hosmer, but Paddack and Austin Nola could be a solid alternative to Montas and Murphy at far less the player cost. If Preller really wants to make Freeman work, maybe we offer them Vázquez for Paddack, Nola and Hosmer (SD pays 33-50 percent of the contract). They get to offload Hosmer without losing any prospects, and get a stopgap to Campusano. Then we flip Hosmer back to the Royals, the only place it makes sense for him to rebound, for someone like Hunter Dozier.
 

Soxfan in Fla

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What people aren't thinking about is that there is room for both Freeman AND Casas on the team. JD Martinez is a free agent and Casas can slide into the DH role if it looks like he's ready for a starting big league job next year.
Seems more likely Freeman slides to the DH role or they split both between the two of them.
 

LoneWarrior1

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The Rays' supposed interest in Freeman is just mind-blowing given his age, his position, and his likely salary. Could this interest be legitimate? If so, I wonder if there's something in the ultra-double-secret-fifth-level analytics that hints at the kind of untapped potential that intrigues organizations such as Tamps, Boston, and LAD. Or maybe it's just total bullshit...?

Edit: 9 minutes ago from Heyman
View: https://twitter.com/JonHeyman/status/1504160340237598724?s=20&t=dtkWwYigWnpva1cCXkNNVw
I had a similar reaction. If you're Freeman, I would think that you'd have to assume that your time with Tampa would be temporary and there's a high likelihood that they try to move you within a few years to gain payroll relief/prospects. I'm sure a no-trade clause would alleviate some of my concern, but I'd sign expecting to get traded.
 

Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat

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I had a similar reaction. If you're Freeman, I would think that you'd have to assume that your time with Tampa would be temporary and there's a high likelihood that they try to move you within a few years to gain payroll relief/prospects. I'm sure a no-trade clause would alleviate some of my concern, but I'd sign expecting to get traded.
Why wouldn't a no-trade clause alleviate all of your concern?

Having said that, I don't know what's more unlikely, the Rays throwing big money at Freeman or Freeman choosing to sign with TB.
 

soxhop411

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This was my thought when I saw the Red Sox had gotten involved, seemingly late. I suspect Bloom realized Freeman might get a much smaller deal than had been expected, possibly to a point that he was willing to pay.
Yah, and if Freeman was truly LAD bound this whole time, every day that goes by without that becoming "official" makes me think the BOS rumors have legs
 

IpswichSox

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Weird though if it's a smaller package, why did the Yankees and Blue Jays effectively drop out by going in a different direction? Maybe Freeman signaled he wasn't interested in going to NY or Toronto, even at any price.

Who knows -- let's just get all this done!
 

Daniel_Son

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I'm warming up to the idea of signing Freeman (at the right price, which seems to lower than I initially thought). He can make an immediate impact on the team - but more importantly, it frees up Casas + Dalbec as trade pieces for starting pitching. Lopez or Alcantara from the Marlins, McKenzie from Cleveland... a return like that is a no-brainer.
 

Dewey'sCannon

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Freeman: 32 y.o. LHH, 4.7 bWAR in 2021, only plays 1b
Bryant: 30 y.o. RHH, 3.3 bWAR in 2021, significant recent experience playing 1b, 3b, CF, RF, LF
Castellanos: 30 y.o. RHH, 3.2 bWAR in 2021 (although 4.0 oWAR), mostly RF with some LF

Three pretty interesting choices. Freeman is the best player but the worst fit in terms of need, including the LHH part. Castellanos fits well in theory and probably comes cheaper, but RF in Fenway might expose him. Bryant seems more like the Sox' type, a la Kiké, if you like his fielding at a few different positions.
It's more interesting when you include the potential terms for each deal, using the MLBTR predictions:
Freeman: 6/180
Bryant: 6/150
Castellanos: 5/115

As noted, Freeman is the best player, but worst fit. And 6/180 is a bit expensive, especially as you don't want to limit options on extensions for Raffy and Bogey. But maybe his price is coming down a little, with the Braves and Yankees now out of the bidding. I just read on MLBTR that the Dodgers are rumored to have offered 4 years at a high AAV. So maybe you can get him for 5/150 with an option year/buyout, and/or an opt-out after year 2. If you got Freeman, you could keep Casas in Worcester this year and then move him to DH net year when JD leaves (using his money to help pay Freddy), or you could trade him (probably for pitching). But you'd still have a hole in the OF, although I'd be tempted to give Malbec a shot in LF since he's a good athlete.

Bryant scares me a bit - I love the positional flexibility, but the bat has dropped off a bit in the last couple of years, and I just don't like him at that price.

Castellanos is intriguing. I dismissed him entirely up until now because of his defensive limitations, but he's starting to look more attractive amongst the remaining options. He can certainly hit. He'd probably look better in LF than he has in RF (definitely not playing RF in Fenway) - we could put him in LF for a year and then move him to DH next year (although that means leaving Raffy at 3B for the foreseeable future, which I can live with).

There's been very little buzz on the Castellanos market, other than the fact that the Marlins were apparently interested before the lockout, and that they weren't going to be after might have contributed to Jeter's departure.
 

Manramsclan

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Jul 14, 2005
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No thanks at 7/182. But the game of musical chairs seems to be speeding up. Correa and Freeman don’t have a ton of obvious landing spots anymore.
Yes AND they will likely command more in the market because of this terrible contract.
 

jon abbey

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Correa and Freeman don’t have a ton of obvious landing spots anymore.
They both still have the most obvious one though, Correa back to HOU on a short/huge AAV deal (4/160 with an optout every year?) and Freeman to LA (no idea).
 

YTF

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So like everyone else here I'm trying to figure out what Chaim is going to do. I'm not sold on Freeman for the years and dollars that he's potentially going to get, BUT... Let's say Bloom brings him in the question turns to what the Sox do with Casas. He becomes a big chip or as some have suggested you can keep him and maybe rotate him and Freeman between 1B and DH. Oakland is obviously retooling and seemingly willing to listen to offers on just about anyone. Murphey, Montas and Manea are popular mentions and the Sox could use any of them, but I wonder if Casas for Ramon Laureano might be an option. That would sure up your OF for this season and replaces Kike' if he moves on after this season. Laureano is a FA in '25 compared to Manea in '23, Montas in '24, and Murphy in '26.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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So like everyone else here I'm trying to figure out what Chaim is going to do. I'm not sold on Freeman for the years and dollars that he's potentially going to get, BUT... Let's say Bloom brings him in the question turns to what the Sox do with Casas. He becomes a big chip or as some have suggested you can keep him and maybe rotate him and Freeman between 1B and DH. Oakland is obviously retooling and seemingly willing to listen to offers on just about anyone. Murphey, Montas and Manea are popular mentions and the Sox could use any of them, but I wonder if Casas for Ramon Laureano might be an option. That would sure up your OF for this season and replaces Kike' if he moves on after this season. Laureano is a FA in '25 compared to Manea in '23, Montas in '24, and Murphy in '26.
Pass on the guy currently suspended for PEDs.
 

BringBackMo

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i do think the higher tax threshold and the universal DH have combined to open the contention window a year earlier by freeing up more money to spend and a potential trade of Martinez. (The rest of the AL East muscling up and Sale’s injury could affect that…?) I think some of the deals Bloom said they’re chasing are trades rather than free agent signings, and I see JD as an obvious candidate.
 

RedOctober3829

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deep inside Guido territory
Also keep in mind: the Sox are shedding a boatload of salary after this season. Per Cot's, they are $152 million below the CBT threshold for 2023. JD, Eovaldi, JBJ, Wacha, Vazquez, Kike all come off the books. It goes up to $172 million below the threshold if and when X opts out. They are in great position to blow through the threshold this year with a big signing or two and still be fine in future years.