Tag: chaim bloom

Red Sox Manager Ron Roenicke Leaning Towards Having 15 Pitchers and 15 Position Players on 30-Man Opening Day Roster

When the 2020 season kicks off next week, the Red Sox will have 30, rather than 25 or 26, players on their Opening Day roster and their roster will stay at 30 players for two weeks, or until August 7th.

During those first two weeks of the truncated 2020 campaign, in which the Sox are scheduled to play 12 games, the club is leaning towards carrying 15 pitchers and 15 position players, manager Ron Roenicke said when speaking to reporters via Zoom on Wednesday.

“We kind of know what we want to do. It’s not locked in on that,” Roenicke said in regards to constructing Boston’s Opening Day roster. “If we get to the last few days and we see that we think maybe we need more than 15 pitchers and we have to go to 16 pitchers, then we’ll do that. I know what I want to do, and that’s probably that 15 (pitchers) and 15 (position players).”

However, despite expressing what he would like to do, Roenicke also acknowledged that his outlook could change after the Red Sox play the Blue Jays in a pair of exhibition games at Fenway Park next Tuesday and Wednesday.

“I think when we get to these last few games, we’ll have a better idea,” the Sox skipper added. “As you know, the starting pitching has a lot to do with that, whether we’re going to go with openers, how much length we’re going to have and if we’re carrying guys who are basically three or four inning guys, which can cover your innings.”

In losing Chris Sale to Tommy John surgery, David Price in a trade with the Dodgers, and Rick Porcello to free agency, Boston’s starting pitching depth has taken a major hit since last fall. Not to mention the fact that left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez, who projected to be the Sox’ Opening Day starter, will likely miss the start of the season due to his testing positive for COVID-19 last week.

As things currently stand, Nathan Eovaldi will likely be Boston’s Opening Day starter, and he will presumably be followed by the likes of Martin Perez, Ryan Weber, Brian Johnson, and perhaps an opener, as Roenicke mentions above.

It’s also worth mentioning that the Red Sox seem to be close to signing free-agent right-hander Zack Godley, last with the Tigers, to a contract, so he could be an appealing rotation option as well.

In terms of position players, the Sox are pretty much set. Roenicke said as much on Wednesday when describing how well the offense has performed since Summer Camp began earlier this month.

“The offense is swinging so well that I keep asking, ‘Is it just that our offense is so good or are we not pitching as well?'” he rhetorically asked. “Maybe it’s a combination of both, but to have this many guys hot this early surprises me because I felt like we would slowly get into this and the last few games, I was hoping we’d swing well.”

As I’m typing this, the Red Sox have 50 out of a possible 60 players in their Summer Camp pool. More guys are likely to be added to said pool by the end of the week, but just for fun, here’s a little Opening Day roster projection from yours truly.

Starting rotation:
Nathan Eovaldi
Martin Perez
Ryan Weber
Brian Johnson
Zack Godley (FA)

Bullpen:
Brandon Workman
Matt Barnes
Marcus Walden
Colten Brewer
Ryan Brasier
Matt Hall
Jeffrey Springs
Chris Mazza
Austin Brice
Heath Hembree

Catchers:
Christian Vazquez
Kevin Plawecki
Jonathan Lucroy

Infielders:
Mitch Moreland
Jose Peraza
Michael Chavis
Xander Bogaerts
Rafael Devers
Tzu-Wei Lin
Jonathan Arauz

Outfielders:
Andrew Benintendi
Jackie Bradley Jr.
Alex Verdugo
Kevin Pillar
J.D. Martinez (DH)

Obviously, take this with a grain of salt, as it is just a rough prediction with exactly nine days to go until Opening Day.

Some guys you would expect to see on here, such as Rodriguez, Darwinzon Hernandez, and Josh Taylor, will likely miss the start of the season due to testing positive for coronavirus. In addition to that, right-hander Collin McHugh, who signed with the Sox in February, has yet to throw a live batting practice at Summer Camp.

Godley, meanwhile, might not be ready for the start of the season even if he is signed relatively soon. The 30-year-old was only released by the Tigers on Monday, so that will certainly be something to monitor if/when he signs his contract with Boston.

For the time being, Roenicke, chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, and the Red Sox as a whole have a little more than a week to sort any roster-related issues out before the sprint that will be the 2020 season begins.

 

Red Sox Reportedly Sign Fourth-Round Draft Pick Jeremy Wu-Yelland for $200,000

The Red Sox have signed fourth-round draft pick Jeremy Wu-Yelland, according to MLB.com’s Jim Callis.

Per Callis, the former University of Hawaii left-hander signed for $200,000, a bonus well under the recommended slot value assigned to 118th overall pick in this year’s draft ($487,900).

A 6-foot-2 southpaw out of Spokane, Wash., Wu-Yelland was the first of two college pitchers taken by Boston in Chaim Bloom’s first draft as chief baseball officer.

The 21-year-old junior posted a nice 0.69 ERA and .200 batting average against over seven relief appearances and 13 innings pitched for the Rainbow Warriors before the 2020 college baseball season was shut down due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Regarded by Baseball America as the 261st-ranked prospect in this year’s draft, Wu-Yelland’s pitch mix, courtesy of SoxProspects, includes a 91-95 mph fastball that can top out at 97 mph, a 79-83 mph slider, and a 81-83 mph changeup. All while the lefty throws from a three-quarters arm slot.

Upon drafting Wu-Yelland last month, Red Sox amateur scouting director Paul Toboni said the Central Valley High School product has the chance to to be a starter despite his success as a reliever in college.

“We listed him as a starter,” Toboni told reporters via Zoom. “I think there’s a chance that might be the case. Long-term, still a little bit unsure. But once again, we think the strikes are good enough. We think that he’s able to get his pitches moving in a number of unique directions. Command, I think there’s enough there right now. But we’re hoping he can take a little bit of a jump in that regard, too. Just how big of a jump he makes, which once again, we’re super optimistic, I wouldn’t rule starting out. But I think we can always fall back on the plan of being up to 97 (mph) from the left side out of the pen.”

By reportedly getting Wu-Yelland signed, the only draftee the Sox have left to sign is fifth-round selection Shane Drohan, a 21-year-old junior right-hander out of Florida State University.

As noted by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, Boston can sign Drohan for up to $479,900 without being penalized. That being the case because the club has already spent $4.65 million of their $5,129,900 bonus pool in signing first-round pick Nick Yorke, third-round pick Blaze Jordan, and now Wu-Yelland.

Only one of those signings (Yorke) have been finalized by the Sox to this point, so expect more official announcements relatively soon.

 

Red Sox’ Jose Peraza ‘Excited’ to Begin New Chapter of Career, Play at Fenway Park

Going into this past offseason, Jose Peraza was looking forward to what was supposed to be his fourth full season with the Cincinnati Reds and his first as an arbitration-eligible player.

Instead, the Reds did not feel the need to pay Peraza the $3.6 million he was projected to make in arbitration, and subsequently non-tendered him in early December.

When speaking with reporters at Fenway Park via Zoom on Tuesday, the Venezuela native said through team interpreter Bryan Almonte that he “was surprised” to be non-tendered by Cincinnati.

Granted, the 2019 season was not a great one for Peraza, as he slashed an underwhelming .239/.285/.346 with six homers and 33 RBI over 141 games played. But considering how he experienced some moderate success the year before, it had to have come as a shock to be let loose so quickly.

Just over a week after getting cut by the Reds, Peraza inked a one-year deal with Boston, where he now has the chance to be a part of the team’s infield picture for years to come seeing how he is under team control through the 2022 season.

With the addition of Peraza also comes the addition of more positional versatility, something teams can never seem to get enough of these days. The 26-year-old said that much on Tuesday, stating that he’d be willing to play “second base, shortstop, third base, whatever [Red Sox manager] Ron Roenicke” asks him to do. Not to mention he is capable of playing a little bit of outfield as well.

Prior to joining the Sox over the winter, Peraza had never had the chance to play inside Fenway Park. He now has the chance to do that on a regular basis, and he even said that Fenway will be “a good ballpark for [me] to hit in” and he’s “excited to be playing there.”

Upon signing with Boston, Peraza probably expected to make his Red Sox debut back in March. He has instead had to wait for that to happen due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but the league-wide shutdown did allow him to work out at home in Miami and “make a few adjustments” with his swing.

“The thing I really focused on in the offseason in Miami was just my leg kick,” Peraza added. “One of the changes that I made was altering that. … I’m a little bit more confident. I’m seeing the pitches better as well. At first, when we first got back, I was just trying to get my rhythm going. But now I have the confidence where I’m going out there, (and) I just feel good about where I stand right now in terms of my hitting.”

Because of those adjustments made during the layoff, Peraza now says, on top of “feeling great physically and mentally,” he also feels “more confident” at Summer Camp in Boston than he did at spring training in Fort Myers.

Roenicke echoed that same sentiment last week, saying he’s “so impressed with what [Peraza’s] doing,” when asked about the infielder’s offensive approach at camp.

A former international signee of the Braves ten years ago, Peraza will earn approximately $1.11 million with the Red Sox in 2020 when taking this season’s prorated salaries into account.

Reintroducing Red Sox Left-Hander Matt Hall

You probably haven’t heard much about Matt Hall since the Red Sox acquired him from the Tigers in January, but the left-hander has a chance to be a key cog in Boston’s bullpen this season.

After Hall finished his three innings of work while striking out five in Monday morning’s intrasquad game which was more of a simulated game/live batting practice session, Sox manager Ron Roenicke seemed pleased with the 26-year-old’s efforts when speaking to reporters via Zoom.

“Matt Hall,” Roenicke said. “Matt is one of those guys… He looked really good today.”

On what he specifically liked about Hall’s outing, Roenicke mentioned the lefty’s curveball, which Hall himself has said is his best pitch.

“We know he’s got a good curveball, and he showed that today,” said the Sox skipper. “Talking to our hitters commenting on the curveball, that is a real nice weapon he has. And he threw the fastball well. He kind of cuts it in on right-handers. I was really impressed with him today.”

As noted by The Providence Journal’s Bill Koch, “Hall’s high fastball and curveball start in the same tunnel – up and away from right-handers, high and tight to left-handers – and appear capable of causing some confusion if he commands them,” which can somewhat be seen in the accompanying video:

Roenicke added that the Red Sox view Hall, a product of Missouri State, as someone who could provide the club with multiple innings out of the bullpen, and he seems best suited for the “bulk-inning guy” role, or the pitcher who comes in after the opener, which Boston will likely employ seeing how thin their starting rotation currently is. Colten Brewer and Marcus Walden are among the candidates for that particular role.

As for Hall, the six-foot, 200 lb. southpaw was originally drafted by Detroit in the sixth round of the 2015 amateur draft. The Tigers designated him for assignment over the winter after a disappointing 2019 campaign in which he posted 7.71 ERA over 16 appearances and 23 1/3 innings pitched.

On January 17, Hall was dealt to Boston in exchange for minor-league catcher Jhon Nunez.

Flash forward nearly six months later, and Matt Hall should certainly be someone to keep an eye on as the 2020 season nears.

Red Sox ‘Have a Chance’ to Sign Free-Agent Right-Hander Zack Godley, per Report

The Red Sox are one of several teams interested in acquiring the services of free-agent right-hander Zack Godley, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.

Per Cotillo, “There are multiple teams interested in Godley, according to a source, but the Red Sox are believed to have a chance to sign him.”

Godley, who turned 30 in April, was released by the Tigers on Monday, nearly seven months after inking a minor-league deal with the club back in December.

Between the Diamondbacks and Blue Jays last season, the 6-foot-3, 240 lb. righty posted a 5.97 ERA and 5.20 FIP over 33 outings (10 starts) and 92 total innings of work.

A former 10th-round pick of the Cubs in the 2013 amateur draft, Godley, a native of South Carolina, is just three years removed from his best season in the majors in 2017; one in which he put up a respectable 3.37 ERA and 3.41 FIP over 26 appearances (25 starts) and 155 innings pitched for Arizona.

According to his Statcast page, Godley’s pitch mix consists of a curveball, sinker, cutter, changeup, and four-seam fastball.

It’s unclear whether the Red Sox would use Godley in a starter or reliever role, but the club could certainly use some pitching help regardless considering the current state their staff is in.

More specifically, Chris Sale is out for the year while recovering from Tommy John surgery, Eduardo Rodriguez’s status for the start of the season is up in the air due to his testing positive for COVID-19, and Collin McHugh has yet to throw a live bullpen.

In other words, Boston’s starting rotation would look something like this as currently constructed:

  1. Nathan Eovaldi
  2. Martin Perez
  3. Ryan Weber
  4. Brian Johnson
  5. Opener

Based off his struggles the past few years, Godley would be far from a sure thing, but the Red Sox are in need for some pitching help and Godley could potentially provide that as a low-risk free-agent signing.

The Red Sox currently have 10 open spots to work with in regards to their Summer Camp player pool, so adding Godley shouldn’t be too difficult if he is signed to a minor-league contract.

Red Sox Likely to Add Top Prospects to Summer Camp Player Pool by End of Week

The Red Sox are likely to add to their 60-man Summer Camp player pool this week, manager Ron Roenicke said Monday following Boston’s intrasqaud game at Fenway Park.

Per Roenicke, he is going to meet with Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom and a few other people to discuss who should be added to Boston’s Summer Camp pool.

As things currently stand, the Sox have 50 players in their pool after adding left-hander Mike Kickham to the roster over the weekend. In other words, they have 10 open slots to work with between now and Friday if they want to be at full capacity.

Players added to the pool this week, as well as the players who are optioned or reassigned to minor-league camp, will report to the club’s alternate training site in Pawtucket on Friday, as noted by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.

With 10 open spots in the roster pool available, who could Bloom, Roenicke, and Co. choose? Well, that’s a somewhat difficult question to answer.

There seems to be two realistic possibilities here, with the first being add top prospects from within the organization, and the second being to add players from outside the organization.

“We’ve talked about both ways in doing it,” Roenicke said on June 29 when asked which direction the Sox will take in filling out the rest of the player pool.

With there being no minor-league baseball at all in 2020, top Red Sox prospects like Jeter Downs, Triston Casas, Bryan Mata, Tanner Houck, Jay Groome, Thad Ward, and Jarren Duran could benefit from being under the watchful eye of their parent organization as they continue to develop.

None of these aforementioned propsects are quite ready for the majors yet, but they could certainly use the playing time if they are in the Sox’ long-term plans.

On the other hand, Boston could pursue veteran free agents who already have plenty of major-league experience under their belts and would be ready to contribute right away. The club has recently been linked to outfielder Yasiel Puig and right-hander Aaron Sanchez.

Of course, who the Red Sox add is likely dependent on COVID-19 testing results. That is mainly why the team has waited this long to fill out the rest of the 60-man player pool.

 

Red Sox’ Jonathan Lucroy Continues to Impress at Summer Camp

Veteran backstop Jonathan Lucroy has been with the Red Sox for less than five months. He signed a minor-league deal with the club back in February, put up solid numbers in 12 Grapefruit League games, and then the COVID-induced shutdown happened.

During that layoff, the 34-year-old stayed busy and got acquainted with a few of his new Red Sox teammates – Ryan Brasier, Colten Brewer, and Brandon Workman – at a facility in Dallas. There, Lucroy, a native of Florida, caught bullpens for the trio of Texans frequently, thus potentially forging a stronger relationship with those Red Sox relievers.

When the Sox announced their initial 47-man player pool for the start of Summer Camp, Lucroy was not included on said roster, which raised some eyebrows considering how well he looked earlier in the year.

It turns out that the reason Lucroy was not originally included in Boston’s Summer Camp pool was due to contract-related issues. That dilemma did not last too long, obviously, as the two-time All-Star was added to the Sox’ Summer Camp player pool as a non-roster invitee on July 2.

Since then, Lucroy has picked up from where he left off in Fort Myers and continues to prove that when healthy, he can contribute.

You see, one of the reasons Lucroy had to take a minor-league deal this year was because of how poorly he had played the previous three seasons.

Over that span, in 315 games between the Rangers, Rockies, Athletics, Angels and Cubs, the former third-round draft pick has posted a wRC+ of 76 and an fWAR of 0.2, ranking 17th and 19th among 19 qualified big-league catchers.

One of the main reasons for those struggles were injuries. Between a herniated disc in his neck that has been a bother the last three years and a concussion-broken nose combo suffered in a home plate collision with Jake Marisnick last summer, Lucroy, as he puts it, has “played in pain.”

Now, following an offseason procedure to replace the aforementioned herniated disc in his neck with a metal facsimile, Lucroy is feeling much better health-wise. He showed that during the initial version of spring training, and he’s showing it again at Summer Camp.

Through the Sox’ first two intrasquad games at Fenway Park, Lucroy has racked up four hits while also catching a handful of innings behind the plate. If all goes according to plan, he’ll likely be the third catcher on Boston’s Opening Day, 30-man roster alongside Christian Vazquez and Kevin Plawecki.

“I do feel really, really good,” Lucroy said Friday. “I do feel like I can compete at a very high level and be consistent. I’m grateful for the opportunity to be here and have a chance to do that.”

Red Sox Add Left-Hander Mike Kickham to Summer Camp Player Pool as Non-Roster Invitee

UPDATE: It looks like this move is now official.

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The Red Sox have added left-hander Mike Kickham to their Summer Camp player pool as a non-roster invitee, per Major League Baseball’s transaction wire.

Kickham, 31, signed a minor-league deal with Boston back in December and appeared in three games for the club during the initial version of spring training.

Over that stretch, the St. Louis native allowed four runs, only one of which was earned, on six hits and one walk to go along with six strikeouts over 4 1/3 total innings of relief.

Prior to joining the Sox on said minor-league contract, Kickham spent time in the Giants, Cubs, Rangers, and Marlins’ farm system. The last time he saw major-league action came during the 2014 campaign, when he appeared in just two games for San Francisco.

Per his SoxProspects scouting report, Kickham’s pitching arsenal is comprised of a 90-91 mph fastball, an 88-90 MPH sinker, and an 80-83 MPH slider.

By adding Kickham to their player pool, the Red Sox now have 50 players on their Summer Camp roster, meaning the club still has 10 open slots to work with.

Red Sox Sign Top Draft Pick Nick Yorke for $2.7 Million

The Red Sox officially signed top draft pick Nick Yorke on Tuesday, per Yorke himself.

According to MLB.com’s Jim Callis, the 17-year-old Yorke signed with Boston for $2.7 million, which is about $900,000 below the slot value assigned to the 17th overall pick in the 2020 first-year player draft.

By doing this, the Red Sox were able to sign third-round selection Blaze Jordan for $1.75 million, which is well past the 89th pick’s recommended slot value of $667,900.

Regarded by Baseball America as the 96th-ranked draft-eligible prospect ahead of this year’s draft, Yorke went as early as he did because, as Callis notes, the Sox “legitimately loved” his bat.

The prep second baseman out of Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif. slashed .457/.552/.709 with 11 home runs and 77 RBI over four seasons and 94 games played for the Monarchs’ varsity baseball team.

Many were surprised that Boston went in the direction of taking Yorke with their top pick, but as previously mentioned, they had legitimate reasoning to do so.

When speaking with reporters after the 2020 draft, Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said that Yorke “has a chance to be a special bat who is going to play the infield.”

On top of that, amateur scouting director Paul Toboni added, “We feel like if there would have been a full spring, there probably would have been industry consensus that this kid was a first-round pick.”

Yorke was committed to play college baseball at the University of Arizona. He will instead become a professional and will likely have to wait a while to actually start playing in organized minor-league games due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

On another note, as brought up by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, the Red Sox now have approximately $679,900 to work with to sign fourth-round pick Jeremy Wu-Yelland and fifth-round pick Shane Drohan.

Dodgers’ Mookie Betts Says He Has No Regrets About Turning Down $300 Million Contract Extension From Red Sox

Former Red Sox star and current Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts says he has no regrets about turning down a 10-year, $300 million contract extension from Boston during the 2019 offseason.

According to WEEI’s Lou Merloni, the Sox had made that offer to Betts in their third attempt to keep the 2018 American League MVP in Boston long-term.

Betts countered that offer with $420 million over 12 years, and things only fell apart from there as the four-time All-Star was dealt to Los Angeles in February.

At the time he was traded, Betts was gearing up to become one of this winter’s most coveted free agents and seemed locked in on signing a record-setting deal with whichever team would be willing to pay up.

Flash forward a little less than five months later, and the 27-year-old may have to settle for less of a payday than he was originally expecting due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that has placed financial constraints on a many major-league ballclub.

Despite facing that potentially harsh reality, Betts still has no remorse about turning down that aforementioned extension from the Red Sox. He said as much at press conference at Dodger Stadium earlier Monday.

“I don’t regret turning down that [offer],” the Tennessee native told reporters. “Once I make a decision, I make a decision. I’m not going back and questioning myself. I don’t worry about that. The market will be what it is. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”

Added Betts: “Free agency is really on the back-burner. That’ll come. That’s nothing that I’m really thinking about right now. Right now, the main concern is (health and safety). There’s a lot going on, we haven’t gotten tests back and we don’t know who’s sick and not sick. There’s just a lot going on that needs to be addressed and free agency is not one of those things right now. That will come when it comes.”

It’s also worth mentioning that Betts is one of a number of players who don’t seem entirely confident that this truncated 2020 season will reach its conclusion even though Opening Day is less than three weeks away. He even said that he still has doubts about playing for the Dodgers in a real game.

How things continue in terms of adequate COVID-19 testing and protocols for teams will certainly be something to monitor moving forward.