Rusney Castillo will make his highly anticipated debut with the Red Sox tonight, and WEEI.com’s Alex Speier breaks down which Red Sox players will be impacted by his arrival. As Speier points out, Castillo batted .293/.370/.463 in his 11 minor league games prior to his summoning to the Majors. He will split time with Jackie Bradley in center field, but if Brock Holt returns from a concussion, Will Middlebrooks could lose some playing time as well.
Here’s more on the Red Sox…
- The one-year, $16MM extension (which comes with a pair of club options) that the Red Sox issued to David Ortiz has proven to be a good move, writes WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford. Big Papi himself said as much to Bradford, noting that critics and doubters have gone eerily silent following a strong season: “It’s all about having the chance by this time [of the season] to say, ’See, I told you it was wrong to sign him.’ That’s what it’s all about, so that’s why I don’t pay any attention to that,” said Ortiz. Papi would’ve joined a thin list of free agent hitters, and multiple execs tell Bradford that at least two years and $40MM wouldn’t have been an outlandish ask on the free agent market. Ortiz doesn’t seem to have any regret that he signed the deal, though he did note that “it would have cost [the Red Sox] more” to sign him had they waited until free agency. Ortiz has batted .263/.357/.508 with 32 homers this season.
- David Ross would like to return to Boston, he tells Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald, but he knows that might not be in the cards. “I feel like if they really want me, they might’ve already come to me,” says Ross. The Red Sox are impressed with Christian Vasquez’s glove behind the plate but may well feel the need to get more offense from their backstops, Lauber writes. Ross is hitting just .185/.264/.356 in 165 plate appearances this season. Lauber adds that Ross would like to play at least one more season for a contending team.
Backup catchers hitting below the Mendoza line typically don’t get midseason extensions, but nice try Ross.
Actually I can see them keeping him on as a mentor for Vazquez.
You mean Swihart. Vasquez is simply too anemic at the plate to survive as our starter.
Actually he could be a mentor for both. I see Swihart as the starter going forward with Vazquez being the next Ross. I think that Ross is a perfect comparison for Vazquez. Doesn’t have a high hit grade but he has a superb glove and arm grade.
I can too, but he’s not getting it until after the season.
“Nice try”? That’s kind of cynical. I think he’s just being honest. He’s been around for a long time. He knows what he is and what he’s not.
One thing that Ortiz has never lacked is a healthy sense of self-worth.
Wrong link to Christian V. It’s Vazquez not Vasquez
Doubt Ross gets extended. He has been pretty bad in Boston. They either need to decide if Vazquez is a starter or if they need a real starter.
I think asking $40MM over 2 years is a bit outlandish for him this offseason.
Beltran was 3 years younger last offseason, had a 131 wrc compared to Ortiz’s 132 wrc, and could actually play the field if needed. He still has value, but I have a hard time seeing that high a price for a DH on his age 39-40 seasons.
Teams like Boston and NY can get away with paying aging stars who made their career with the team larger contracts because their leadership and marketability are intangibles that add to their value. I’d also argue that it shows a decent amount of good will to other players.
2 years at $40MM would be quite outlandish. Ortiz is a one-dimensional guy. He’s a DH who can’t even run the bases any more. His open market value, after being slapped with a Q/O, might be as low as $10MM per season, and no more than $12MM per season. Now, how many teams are going to give up a 1st round pick and pay Papi 8 figures for him to do nothing but hit .275, drive in 100 runs and knock 30 out. The market for his services is very small, perhaps miniscule. Bradford way over-assesses Papi’s leverage.
Vazquez not Vasquez
I will go on record as saying that you should not offer multiyear contracts to players past a certain age. So no mistake was made with Ortiz, no matter how well he has done.
Alphonso Soriano had 31HR, 101RBI and 18SB last season and was released this year. You never know when an older player is going to lose it. There is no reason not to go year to year on their contracts.
Isn’t it about time the Red Sox pull the plug on Middlebrooks? Aside from the high-BABIP 2012, Middlebrooks has stunk, which is no real surprise to me considering his plate discipline issues in the minor leagues. (which is why Javy Baez struggling so mightily is not remotely shocking to me)
As a Red Sox fan, I want Ross back. I don’t care about his batting average, he’s a backup. His impact is beyond a mentor for catchers. Red Sox are going to have lots of young arms and Ross is great with pitchers. There’s a reason Lester wanted to throw to Ross and only Ross this year.
Unless you find someone who is a clear and undeniably impactful upgrade willing to serve in that role….don’t underestimate his value. There is no point in pursuing someone with marginally better stats in limited action at the expense of Ross’s knowledge/attitude/intangibles.