The Red Sox have avoided arbitration with right-handed reliever Heath Hembree, tweets Fancred’s Jon Heyman. He’ll take home a $1,312,500 salary that checks in north of the $1.2MM projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. Hembree is represented by the Ballengee Group.
Hembree, 30 next month, pitched to a 4.20 ERA with 11.4 K/9, 4.1 BB/9, 1.50 HR/9 and a 39.4 percent ground-ball rate in 60 innings of relief. He also tossed 4 2/3 scoreless innings in the postseason, albeit with five walks against three strikeouts in that time.
The 2018 season was Hembree’s least-effective year since establishing himself as a regular in the Boston bullpen, though his cumulative body of work over the past three seasons has been solid. In 173 innings he’s logged a 3.54 ERA and averaged 10 strikeouts and 3.2 walks per nine innings pitched. Hembree has taken on an increasingly high-leverage role over the years as well, tallying a career-high 20 holds this past season.
Hembree will return to a Boston bullpen that has already lost Joe Kelly and could very well lose fellow free agent Craig Kimbrel this offseason as well. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski still has a fair share of heavy lifting to do this offseason as he looks to piece the relief corps back together. At present, Hembree is slated to join Ryan Brasier, Matt Barnes, Tyler Thornburg, Brandon Workman and Brian Johnson in bullpen.
I look at the remaining bull pen pitchers and CRINGE! DD you have. Lotta work to do if you plan on having above 500 season for the fans. You need to at least get 2 more pitchers, like Britton or bring back our Kimberly.
I don’t think they’ll have much trouble being above 500 idk what you’re talking about
Did you happen to watch the remainders during the season?
You really should’ve thought and typed that out better.
Not many teams finish the season with the same roster they open the season. No need to fret if the Red Sox bullpen looks incomplete on opening day. We all know it’s a constantly fluid bullpen committee and roster. Guys come and go all season long. If there’s a big hole we fill it in July with a big name who comes in and shuts down the opposition. No worries.
You’re dumb aren’t you
Quit your whining it’s pathetic! You just won the World Series you will won a ton of games playing Baltimore & Toronto. He will get some Bullpen ARMS & if not now at the deadline. Jesus….
Genuine question for Red Sox fans – if you’re unable to sign Kimbrel/Britton/Ottavino, who is the best option for closer out of the current mix? My gut thought form the little I’ve seen is Brasier, but I’ll readily admit my Red Sox exposure is mostly limited to fantasy and playoffs. Do Barnes or Hembree deserve more credit than I’m giving them? Is Thornburg thought to be back to his Milwaukee days? Someone else I’m missing? Thanks in advance!
If the season opened today, I’d say it has to be Barnes or Brasier. Personally I would go Barnes just because Brasier has zero track record, but I think Brasier would be better suited to the role if he can stay healthy. Barnes – extremely talented for sure, but I think he’s in his head a little too much. His struggles have been more of the mechanical and mental (I think!) variety.
Hembree and Thornburg should be NOWHERE near the 9th inning. I honestly think Kimbrell will fall back to them at a palatable price because of the draft pick compensation, postseason struggles, and he’s only a 1 inning, 9th inning only old school closer (unlike new wave closers such as Robertson, Miller, Britton, etc.)
“9th inning only old school closer (unlike new wave closers such as Robertson, Miller, Britton, etc.)”
What is old is new again. I guess it all depends on your definition of “old school”
True! I guess I should say late 90’s to early 2010’s closer instead of old school
Yea, it’s fun to look back at guys like Fingers, Gossage, etc and see 78 games, 69 games finished, league leading 35 saves and 132 IP
Sparky Lyle
Nathan Eovaldi
Haha I hope not. Much more valuable to us in a starting role. In the playoffs though, sign me up!
Thanks for the thoughts JB! That seems to mirror my own thinking – Barnes may have the inside track just because of experience (not closer experience, just that he’s been pitching in the majors longer), but Brasier’s raw stuff looks better to me.
MYR – I hadn’t considered that, but that could actually be a good fit if all the other starters stay healthy and effective. The problem is if they don’t, he’s getting a lot of money and he’s shown real effectiveness (last year anyway) as a starter.
I like the fact he throws heat & can spot the ball. Also able to go more than one inning, just like the relievers mentioned above by Cat Mando.
Too early to worry about bullpen roles. In 2013 the Sox bullpen was projected: 1 – 2 Hanrahan &. Bailey (both had surgery and hardly pitched) 3. Tazawa, (failed as a closer but pitched well in the 8th) 4. Andrew Miller (used as a multi inn. guy) 5. Koji (had a great yr as a closer after being non tendered by Tex) Result Sox win the WS.
In 2018 at the trade deadline all the “experts ” said DD needed to address the bullpen. Instead he brings in Kinsler, Pearce and Eovaldi. Result — after months of “the bullpen needs to be addressed” — Sox win WS.
A 2019 “Fantasy” depth chart — after listing the 5 SPs and 3 swing men Johnson, Wright & Velasquez — is currently ranking 1. Barnes 2. Darwinzon Hernandez, 3. Brazier, 4. Thornberg 5. Workman; with Bobby Poyner , Durbin Feltman, Travis Lakin, Coltan Brewer as farm hands likely to contribute this year. And there are always trades if those 17 are not able to fill out a staff.
It’s been a rollercoaster ride but Kimbrel staying in Boston makes sense for him too if a return home to Atlanta isn’t happening. Money talks but his unique current family situation is also a factor. Three to four year deal that sets an average yearly record with an opt out is my guess. Saves face and can try again although his age will hinder that next trip to free agency.
The upper tax limit is 246m I believe. Sox are at 243m today I believe taking arb projections into account.
****, is it really that high already? Maybe no kimbrell then. I have no ****ing clue what they are going to do after this year and next! But we’re set up really well to repeat this year
94yankees……BB Ref has the at “Est. Total Payroll w/ Options (Guaranteed + Options + Arb + Other) $232.1M.
You are right about the surcharge limit…$246 this year and the $248M and $250M in 2020 and 2021.
I’d say Barnes has the small advantage, but not so much that Brazier couldn’t take it from him. Barnes’s numbers were remarkably similar to Kimbrel’s last year — crazy high K rate around 13 or 14/9 innings and a scary BB rate over 4 per 9 innings. Also a fastball plus wicked curve guy and has the same inconsistency that when he loses his command of the pitch he gets killed. Like Kimbrel, he’s feast or famine.
Always liked Hembree and thought he was getting shafted early on during his Sox career when he was getting optioned out solely because he had MiLB options and others did not. He was an effective reliever mostly until late summer of 2018, whether it was from over use or whatever.
His velocity seemed to be down later on in 2018 also from not only earlier in 2018, but also previously with Boston. There were times on the mound where he was down to the 92-3mph range and this guy can usually get several 96-7 pitches in per outing to go with his slider.
I hope he can get it back because am one of those people that believe if he’s only used 2-3 times per week he can be a decent middle reliever for the team going forwards.
I can’t believe that Dom would go into the 2019 season with the bullpen as it is currently constructed. The Sox may very well end up with Kimbrel at a more palatable price than some think, plus, I also think the Sox will get a second high quality bullpen arm. I believe ownership is going to go all out to repeat as champs. They are just going to try to get the best contracts they can on the relievers they eventually bring on board. I would look at what they did last year with JD as a model for the way they are going to approach this matter.