Red Sox slugger Kyle Schwarber becomes free agent after declining $11.5 million mutual option for 2022 season

Kyle Schwarber has officially become a free agent after declining his $11.5 million mutual option for 2022, the Associated Press reported earlier Friday morning.

Schwarber, 28, had until Sunday to decide on accepting his end of the mutual option that was part of the one-year, $10 million deal he signed with the Nationals back in January.

It was expected that Schwarber would decline it and instead test the free agency waters based off the strong 2021 season he put together between the Nationals and Red Sox.

After getting traded from Washington to Boston in exchange for pitching prospect Aldo Ramirez in late July, Schwarber later made his Red Sox debut on August 13, as he had previously been on the injured list due to a right hamstring strain.

Upon being inserted into manager Alex Cora’s lineup, Schwarber made his impact felt right away and quickly became a fan favorite in Boston as a result of doing so. In 41 games for the Sox, the left-handed hitter slashed an impressive .291/.435/.522 with 10 doubles, seven home runs, 18 RBI, 34 runs scored, 33 walks, and 39 strikeouts across 168 plate appearances.

Defensively, Schwarber appeared in 15 games in left field and an additional 10 at first base, a position he was learning on the fly so that the Red Sox could get his bat into the lineup regularly without altering their regular outfield picture too much.

In the postseason, the 6-foot, 299 pound slugger batted .205/.286/.432 to go along with one double, three homers, six RBI, eight runs scored, one stolen base, five walks, and 11 strikeouts over 11 games (49 plate appearances) spanning the American League Wild Card Game against the Yankees, the American League Division Series against the Rays, and the American League Championship Series against the Astros.

Because the Red Sox acquired Schwarber, who does not turn 29 until March, midseason, they cannot extend him an $18.4 million qualifying offer. They can, however, make an attempt to bring him back for the 2022 season and beyond.

When the Red Sox were eliminated by the Astros in Game 6 of the ALCS last month, Schwarber did indicate that he would be open to remaining in Boston if the opportunity presented itself.

“This is definitely a clubhouse that I could see myself wanting to stay in,” Schwarber told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith. “These guys are amazing. I said this, it’s two World Series teams going at it. This is a World Series clubhouse, and I would love to hopefully see if that opportunity comes back.”

(Picture of Kyle Schwarber: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Will the Red Sox extend a qualifying offer to Eduardo Rodriguez?

Will the Red Sox extend a qualifying offer towards Eduardo Rodriguez? They have until Sunday at 5 p.m. eastern time to do so.

Rodriguez is one of 160-plus major-leaguers who have filed for free agency since the World Series ended on Tuesday. The 28-year-old left-hander is a few weeks removed from an up-and-down 2021 season.

After finishing sixth in American League Cy Young Award voting in 2019 and missing all of the shortened 2020 season due to myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle) as a result of a bout with COVID-19, Rodriguez opened the 2021 campaign on the injured list. He then made his season debut on April 8.

In 32 appearances (31 starts), Rodriguez posted a 4.74 ERA and strikeout-to-walk ratio of 185:47 over 157 2/3 innings of work. The Red Sox went 20-12 in games he appeared in.

On the surface, the numbers Rodriguez put up this season may not look all that encouraging. Digging deeper, however, the Venezuelan southpaw did produce a much more encouraging 3.32 FIP, 3.43 xFIP, 3.55 xERA, and 3.64 SIERA.

Amongst the 18 major-league lefties who accrued at least 150 innings this year, Rodriguez ranked second in strikeouts per nine innings (10.6), 11th in walks per nine innings (2.7), second in strikeout rate (32.1%), 11th in walk rate (7%), third in FIP, and second in xFIP, per FanGraphs.

All told, it was a relatively encouraging season going into a walk year for Rodriguez, who earned $8.3 million and has now put himself in a position to earn even more.

That being the case because this off-season, the value of the qualifying offer — which is the average salary of the highest-paid 125 players in baseball — comes out to $18.4 million.

If extended a qualifying offer between now and Sunday’s deadline, Rodriguez will have up to 10 days, or until November 17 at the latest, to either accept or reject it.

Rodriguez accepting the qualifying offer would result in him returning to the Red Sox on a one-year, $18.4 million deal for the 2022 season with the chance to test the free agency waters again next winter. Boston would then be prohibited from extending him a qualifying offer for a second time.

If Rodriguez were to decline Boston’s qualifying offer and instead sign with another club as a free agent, the Red Sox would then receive compensation in the form of a draft pick from his new club.

For Rodriguez, a client of ISE Baseball, these are certainly interesting times. The 6-foot-2, 231 pound lefty could hit the open market this winter if he so chooses. But he does not turn 29 until next April, so his earning window would still be pretty wide open even if he were to remain with the Red Sox for an additional season.

Last year at this time, a pair of National League pitchers in the Mets’ Marcus Stroman (who opted out of the 2020 season) and the Giants’ Kevin Gausman both accepted qualifying offers from their respective clubs. That decision paid off for both, as the pair of righties are now set to cash in as free agents.

With that being said, though, it is no sure thing that chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom and Co. will even extend a qualifying offer in Rodriguez’s direction by the deadline to do so on Sunday. There seems to be plenty of speculation that the club is leaning in that direction, but that remains to be seen until it actually does or does not happen.

(Picture of Eduardo Rodriguez: Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)

Red Sox pitching prospect Thaddeus Ward plays catch for first time since undergoing Tommy John surgery

Red Sox pitching prospect Thaddeus Ward posted a video on social media of himself playing catch on Wednesday, marking the first time he has done so since undergoing Tommy John surgery.

https://twitter.com/TWard_12/status/1455891775718051847?s=20

Ward, 24, is regarded by Baseball America as the No. 14 prospect in Boston’s farm system, ranking seventh among pitchers in the organization.

The right-hander was originally selected by the Sox in the fifth round of the 2018 amateur draft out of the University of Central Florida and had opened the 2021 minor-league season with Double-A Portland.

Just two starts and eight innings into his tenure with the Sea Dogs, however, it was revealed that Ward would require Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow after he suffered a forearm strain in mid-May. The procedure was later performed by Dr. James Andrews in Florida in early June, thus ending the righty’s year prematurely.

Fast forward six months later, though, and it appears that Ward is on the right track towards a full recovery. While it’s likely that he won’t pitch in a game again until late 2022 at the earliest, the Red Sox will still have an interesting decision to make regarding Ward’s status in the coming weeks.

Major-league clubs have until November 19 to add eligible minor-leaguers to their 40-man roster in order to protect them from the Rule 5 Draft, which is slated to take place during the winter meetings in December.

Along with the likes of Jeter Downs, Brayan Bello, and Gilberto Jimenez, Ward is one of several top Red Sox prospects who could become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft if they are not added to Boston’s 40-man roster later this month.

A native of Fort Myers, Fla., the 6-foot-3, 192 pound hurler is certainly an interesting candidate to be added. In his first full professional season in 2019, he posted a 2.14 ERA and strikeout-to-walk ratio of 157:57 over 25 starts spanning 126 1/3 innings pitched between Low-A Greenville and High-A Salem.

This past spring, he put up a 5.63 ERA and 2.64 FIP to go along with 11 strikeouts to five walks in his two outings for Portland prior to getting injured.

With that being said, there would be some caveats to adding Ward on account of the fact that he is still recovering from Tommy John surgery, which can take anywhere between 12-18 months to heal from.

Put another way, if the Red Sox were to add Ward to their 40-man roster before the Nov. 19 deadline, he would essentially be taking up a spot on their roster going into next season. Boston could place Ward, who turns 25 in January, on the 60-day injured list to temporarily clear a roster spot, but would subsequently be starting his service time clock as a result of doing so.

If Ward were to be left unprotected heading into next month’s Rule 5 Draft, other clubs would have the chance to select him. Any team that picks him up, though, would then ordinarily be tasked with carrying him on their active roster for a minimum of 90 days.

Since that would be unlikely to execute in Ward’s case, his new club would presumably place him on the 60-day injured list for the entirety of the 2022 campaign before being subject to the same set of rules in 2023.

Those rules being that once healthy, Ward will have to remain on his new team’s 26-man roster for the entire 2023 season or otherwise be offered back to the Red Sox.

It’s a fascinating situation, and one that can definitely be classified as unique and maybe even somewhat confusing. That said, all signs seem to point to the Red Sox not adding Ward to their 40-man roster by the Nov. 19 deadline and thus exposing him to this winter’s Rule 5 Draft.

(Picture of Thaddeus Ward: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

New Podding the Red Sox episode: Red Sox pitching prospect Brandon Walter joins the show

On this week’s installment of Podding the Red Sox: A BloggingtheRedSox.com Podcast, I am joined by Red Sox pitching prospect Brandon Walter.

Walter, 25, was originally selected by Boston in the 26th round of the 2019 amateur draft out of the University of Delaware.

A native of Delaware himself, the left-hander is a few weeks removed from a breakout 2021 season in which he enjoyed much success with Low-A Salem and High-A Greenville.

All told, Walter posted a 2.92 ERA and strikeout-to-walk ratio of 132:20 over 25 appearances (14 starts) spanning 81 1/3 innings pitched between the two levels this season.

Among the topics Brandon and I discussed are what he attributes to his stellar 2021 campaign, what he did during the COVID-19 layoff last year, how he has changed as a pitcher since undergoing Tommy John surgery in college, what his draft experience was like coming out of the University of Delaware in 2019, how he has exceeded expectations as a 26th-round selection, what his plans for the offseason look like, where he would like to begin the 2022 season, and much more!

The episode is available to listen to on iTunes and Spotify, among other platforms.

Thank you to Brandon for taking some time out of his Monday to have a conversation with yours truly. You can follow Brandon on Twitter (@b_walt_) by clicking here and on Instagram (@b_walt_) by clicking here.

Thank you for listening and we will see you next time! Please make sure to subscribe and leave a five-star review if you can!

(Picture of Brandon Walter courtesy of the Greenville Drive)

The offseason is here, which means it’s decision time for the Red Sox

The Braves have won their second World Series title since moving to Atlanta in 1966, as they put the finishing touches on their six-game series victory over the Astros in Houston on Tuesday night to cap off another exciting Fall Classic.

With the Braves officially putting an end to the World Series on Tuesday, the Major League Baseball offseason is truly ready to get rolling. That applies to the Red Sox, as well as the 31 other clubs they are competing with.

For the next five days, the Red Sox will have the opportunity to exclusively negotiate with their five definite free-agents to be in right-handers Adam Ottavino and Hansel Robles, left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez, infielder Travis Shaw, and infielder/outfielder Danny Santana.

All five of those players will file for free agency on Wednesday, but won’t officially hit the open market until Sunday, or five days after the conclusion of the World Series.

While that group of five will all become free-agents later this week, there is a chance more could be added to that list as Wednesday marks the beginning of another five-day window in which teams have to decide on club options and players have to decide on player options.

In regards to how this affects the Sox, right-hander Garrett Richards ($10 million), left-hander Martin Perez ($6 million with a $500,000 buyout), and catcher Christian Vazquez ($7 million) all have team options that chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom and Co. will either have picked up or declined.

On the other side of the scale, veteran slugger J.D. Martinez has the ability to opt out of the final season of the five-year, $110 deal he signed with Boston in February 2018. The 34-year-old would be leaving $19.35 million on the table for 2022 if he were to opt for free agency this winter instead.

Kyle Schwarber, meanwhile, has an $11.5 mutual option for 2022 attached to the one-year, $10 million contract he signed with the Nationals in January. This means the Red Sox and Schwarber would both have to be on the same page in order to have that mutual option picked up, which seems unlikely based off the kind of season the 28-year-old first baseman/left fielder just put together.

To go along with the five-day window to decide on options and whatnot, the Red Sox will also have the next five days to determine if they will be handing out a qualifying offer to any impending free-agent who qualifies for one.

The qualifying offer, which is calculated yearly, by averaging the salaries of the 125 highest-paid players in baseball, will be worth $18.4 million this season.

Of the handful of Red Sox players who will/could be headed towards free agency, it is worth mentioning that someone like Schwarber is ineligible to receive one since he was traded in the middle of the season. Martinez, on the other hand, could be offered one if he were to opt out of the final year of his deal.

Rodriguez, who turns 29 in April, is a more interesting case when considering the rollercoaster of a 2021 season he had. Still, any player who does receive a qualifying offer has the choice to accept, and thus return to their club on a one-year deal, or reject, and therefore become a free-agent.

That being said, the Red Sox would receive draft compensation from whatever team signed a player they had previously and unsuccessfully extended a qualifying offer towards.

If the Red Sox were to extend a qualifying offer towards any eligible player, said player would have 10 days from the time they received the qualifying offer to decide if they want to accept or reject it.

With that, the offseason is here, and while there is plenty more to come for Bloom and the Red Sox, this means it is yet again time to make some key decisions.

(Picture of Chaim Bloom and Alex Cora: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox)

Red Sox catching prospect Kole Cottam homers twice, delivers walk-off hit for Scottsdale Scorpions in Arizona Fall League action

Red Sox catching prospect Kole Cottam enjoyed a monster day at the plate while leading the Scottsdale Scorpions to a 10-9 walk-off victory over the Salt River Rafters in Arizona Fall League action Tuesday afternoon.

Batting out of the eight-hole while serving as the team’s designated hitter, Cottam went 4-for-5 with a pair of singles, a pair of home runs, four RBI, two runs scored, and one strikeout for the Scorpions in front of 291 spectators at Scottsdale Stadium.

After singling and being stranded at second base in the bottom of the third inning and striking out in the bottom of the fifth, Cottam truly got his productive afternoon started when leading off the bottom half of the seventh inning.

With newly-inserted reliever J.T. Hintezen pitching for Salt River, Cottam greeted the right-hander by crushing a solo shot to deep right-center field off him, thus marking his first home run of the Arizona Fall League campaign.

An inning later, Cottam immediately doubled his home run total when he clubbed a towering, go-ahead two-run homer off Rafters righty Taylor Floyd that gave the Scorpions their first lead of the day at 9-8.

Salt River managed to knot things up at nine runs a piece in their half of the ninth, however, meaning this one headed into extra innings with Scottsdale in search of their seventh win of the season.

Following a scoreless top of the 10th, Cottam came to the plate in the bottom half with the game in his hands, as the Scorpions had loaded the bases for him while only recording one out.

Matched up against Rockies pitching prospect Jake Bird this time around, Cottam worked a full count before taking the sixth pitch he saw from the opposing right-hander and promptly ripping a line-drive single to the opposite field that plated Curtis Mead from third to secure the come-from-behind, walk-off win for the Scorpions.

In going 4-for-5 on Tuesday, Cottam raised his slash line on the Arizona Fall League season to a solid .294/.405/.529 to go along with two doubles, those two homers, eight RBI, six runs scored, five walks, and eight strikeouts over 11 games (42 plate appearances) with Scottsdale so far.

Cottam, 24, was originally selected by the Red Sox in the fourth round of the 2018 amateur draft out of the University of Kentucky. The former Wildcat may not be regarded by Baseball America as one of the top 30 prospects in Boston’s farm system, but he has been recognized as the best defensive catcher in the organization.

This past season, after spending a good chunk of the spring at major-league camp, the right-handed hitting backstop out of Tennessee opened the year with High-A Greenville. He batted a stout .276/.386/.487 (135 wRC+) to go along with 13 doubles, one triple, six home runs, 24 RBI, 22 runs scored, 25 walks, and 64 strikeouts across 46 games (190 plate appearances) for the Drive before earning a promotion to Double-A Portland on July 29.

While his playing time took a dip upon arriving in Portland, Cottam still slashed .282/.337/.526 (131 wRC+) with five doubles, one triple, four homers, nine runs driven in, 11 runs scored, three walks, and 33 strikeouts over 25 games spanning 86 plate appearances for the Sea Dogs.

Listed at 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds, Cottam — who does not turn 24 until next May — can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time in his professional career this winter. The Red Sox would need to add Cottam to their 40-man roster by the November 19 deadline if they intend on protecting him from it.

In the meantime, the 2021 Arizona Fall League season rolls on for Cottam and the 7-11 Scorpions. The Fall Stars Game will take place on Nov. 13, while the season itself will conclude with the championship game on Nov. 20.

(Picture of Kole Cottam: Michael Gonzales/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Red Sox pitching prospect Casey Cobb named to MiLB.com’s organizational All-Star team

Red Sox pitching prospect Casey Cobb was one of several prospects and minor-leaguer’s named to the organization’s All-Star team by MiLB.com on Monday.

Per MiLB.com, the official website of Minor League Baseball, the site “goes position by position across each system and honors the players — regardless of age or prospect status — who had the best seasons in their organization.”

Cobb was selected as the organization’s top reliever this year alongside top right-handed starter Raynel Espinal and top left-handed starter Shane Drohan.

The 25-year-old right-hander originally signed with the Red Sox as a senior out of the University of Alabama with some help from area scout Danny Watkins last June after getting passed over in the pandemic-shortened 2020 MLB Draft.

As noted by SoxProspects.com, Cobb had intended to use his extra year of eligibility to return to Alabama for the 2021 college baseball season, but instead signed with the Sox for $20,000.

With no minor-league season last year on account of the COVID-19 pandemic, Cobb had to wait until this past spring to make his professional debut, as he began the 2021 campaign at Low-A Salem.

Listed at 5-foot-10 and 200 pounds, the Georgia native debuted for Salem on May 4 and established himself as key contributor out of the Red Sox’ bullpen.

In 24 appearances (one start) with Salem, Cobb posted a solid 2.18 ERA and 3.38 FIP to go along with 58 strikeouts to 13 walks over 53 2/3 innings of work before earning a promotion to High-A Greenville in late August.

With the Drive for the last stretch of the minor-league season, Cobb put up a miniscule 1.35 ERA and 3.27 FIP while recording 24 strikeouts and just three walks in 20 innings pitched between Aug. 22 and September 17.

Among the 73 pitchers who threw at least 50 innings in the Low-A East this year, Cobb ranked 30th in strikeouts per nine innings (9.73), ninth in walks per nine innings (2.18), 16th in strikeout rate (28.2%), 14th in walk rate (6.3%), seventh in batting average against (.199), sixth in WHIP (0.95), fourth in ERA, and eighth in xFIP (3.59), per FanGraphs.

Among the 233 pitchers who accrued at least 20 innings in the High-A East this past season, Cobb ranked second in walks per nine innings (1.35), fifth in walk rate (3.9%), 10th in WHIP (0.85), and fifth in ERA, per FanGraphs.

According to his SoxProspects.com scouting report, Cobb — who does not turn 26 until next June — throws from a three-quarters arm slot and operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of a 91-93 mph fastball that tops out at 94 mph, an 81-83 mph slider, and an 80-83 mph changeup that “is primarily used against left-handed hitters.”

There was a point in time not too long ago where Cobb was planning on enlisting in the United States Navy once his collegiate career at Alabama came to a close. It now appears as if going pro with the Red Sox was not too bad of an alternative.

(Picture of Casey Cobb: Gary Streiffer/Flickr)

Red Sox expected to promote Peter Fatse to become team’s new hitting coach

Red Sox assistant hitting coach is expected to replace Tim Hyers as the team’s new hitting coach, according to The Boston Herald’s Steve Hewitt.

Per Hewitt, the Sox will promote Fatse to the role of hitting coach after Hyers informed the club that he would not be returning to Alex Cora’s coaching staff for the 2022 season.

The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier first reported on Hyers’ departure on Monday morning, citing that the 50-year-old “plans to pursue other opportunities, possibly college openings, but more likely with another team, perhaps including a broader role in another organization.”

Along with Hyers, the Red Sox announced last week that they had parted ways with first base coach and outfield instructor Tom Goodwin.

Fatse, meanwhile will become Boston’s hitting coach after spending the previous two seasons as the team’s assistant hitting coach under Hyers.

The 34-year-old out of Hampden, Mass. was originally named to Cora’s coaching staff in October 2019 to replace former assistant hitting coach Andy Barkett.

A product of the University of Connecticut, where he was teammates with future All-Stars such as Red Sox reliever Matt Barnes and Blue Jays outfielder George Springer, Fatse was selected by the Brewers in the 24th round of the 2009 amateur draft.

Listed at 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds at the time, the left-handed hitting infielder/outfielder played two seasons in the Brewers organization and two additional seasons of independent league baseball before calling it a career in 2012.

Two years prior to retiring, Fatse — a graduate of Minnechaug Regional High School who resides in Wilbraham, Mass. — founded the Advanced Performance Academy in Palmer, Mass. in 2010. He additionally served as the academy’s director of player development before joining the Minnesota Twins as their minor-league hitting coordinator in January 2019.

After overseeing Minnesota’s farm system throughout the 2019 season, Fatse was officially added to Cora’s coaching staff as assistant hitting coach on Oct. 31 of that year.

As noted by Speier, Hyers and Fatse developed a strong working relationship while overseeing one of the more potent offenses in all of baseball. There were even discussions between Hyers and the Sox to elevate Fatse to co-hitting coach before the former announced that he would be leaving.

That being said, Speier took to Twitter earlier Monday to note that while “Fatse is expected to be promoted,… the precise approach to the hitting coach roles is still being worked out by the Sox.”

Those details, as well as who could serve as Boston’s new assistant hitting coach under Fatse, will likely be revealed once the Red Sox make the promotion official, though it is not yet known when that will take place.

(Picture of Peter Fatse: Billie Weiss/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Tim Hyers not returning as Red Sox hitting coach next season

Red Sox hitting coach Tim Hyers will not be returning to manager Alex Cora’s coaching staff for the 2022 season, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Per Speier, Hyers “declined the team’s offer to return” for 2022 and instead “plans to pursue other opportunities – possibly including college openings, but more likely with another team, perhaps including a broader role in another organization.”

Hyers, who turned 50 last month, was initially named Boston’s hitting coach in November 2017 after previously serving as the team’s minor-league hitting coordinator from 2013-2015 and as an assistant hitting coach with the Dodgers from 2016-2017.

In the four seasons Hyers was in command of the club’s offensive approach, the Red Sox — as noted by Speier — led all of Major League Baseball in runs per game (5.31), batting average (.266), slugging percentage (.455), and OPS .790. They also ranked third in on-base percentage (.335) and fourth in wRC+ (108) over that stretch, per FanGraphs.

With Hyers opting not to return to Boston next year, the Red Sox will now have another vacancy to fill on Cora’s 2022 coaching staff after the club parted ways with first base coach and outfield instructor Tom Goodwin last week.

That said, the Sox still expect to retain the rest of their coaching staff going into next season, and that includes assistant hitting coach Peter Fatse.

Fatse, a native of Hampden, Mass., was named Boston’s assistant hitting coach under Hyers at the conclusion of the 2019 season. Together, the two not only oversaw one of the American League’s most potent offenses the last two years, but they also developed a strong working relationship.

On that note, Speier reports that Hyers and the Red Sox had been discussing the idea of elevating Fatse to the role of co-hitting coach, so it should be interesting to see how much consideration the 34-year-old gets from the team to take over for Hyers fully.

UPDATE: The Boston Herald’s Steve Hewitt is reporting that Fatse has indeed been promoted by the Red Sox to become the team’s new hitting coach in place of Hyers.

(Picture of Tim Hyers: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Xander Bogaerts on Jerry Remy’s passing: ‘He will be missed’

Longtime Red Sox player and NESN color analyst Jerry Remy passed away at 68 on Saturday night after a lengthy battle with lung cancer.

Remy often described Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts as his favorite player to watch from the broadcast booth.

“Bogaerts is very special,” Remy told MLB.com’s Ian Browne last April. “He can do everything. I love his style of hitting. He’s not a launch and lift guy. He basically tries to hit line drives. He now has the ability to play with the whole ballpark line to line with his offense which makes him, to me, an outstanding hitter. To top it all, he’s just a tremendous person.”

Remy and Bogaerts share plenty in common. Both are infielders, both were All-Stars and fan favorites in their time with the Red Sox, and both had/have spent the majority of their major-league careers in Boston.

When it was revealed by the Red Sox on Sunday that Remy had indeed passed away following his fight with lung cancer that dates back to 2008, Bogaerts was the lone active player to offer some words of condolence in a series of statements released by the club.

“This is a such a sad day. My thoughts are with Jerry’s family and his loved ones,” Bogaerts said. “As a player, I always loved seeing Rem in our clubhouse at Fenway every day. He was the first person you’d see when you came in. Whether it was just to say hello or to talk baseball, he was always there. You knew he loved the Red Sox and that he was always pulling for us. He will be missed.”

Red Sox manager Alex Cora also made a statement in regards to Remy’s passing, adding that: “Like everyone else in Red Sox Nation today, I’m absolutely devastated by Jerry’s passing.

“We connected because of our love for the game of baseball. I will miss all of our conversations about the game and just passing time together throughout the years, whether in the clubhouse or dugout,” added Cora. “Jerry was so passionate about the Red Sox and even though he had to step away for treatment late in the season, he was with us every step of the way — especially in October.

“We kept in touch just about every day and encouraged each other to keep fighting. It was great seeing him at Fenway when we started our run; he was a source of inspiration for so many of our players. My condolences go out to his wife, Phoebe, and his children and their grandchildren. We will miss you, Rem!”

Cora took to Twitter as well and ended his tweet by writing “Descansa en Paz, amigo,” which translates to “Rest in Peace, friend.”

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)