The Red Sox announced Thursday that they’ve optioned struggling outfielder Franchy Cordero to Triple-A Worcester. A corresponding move wasn’t announced. There will be speculation among Sox fans about the possibility of top prospect Jarren Duran being promoted this weekend in his place, though MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo tweets that it’s likelier Boston will summon an extra bullpen arm for now.
Cordero, 26, was one of five players the Red Sox received in February’s three-team trade that sent Andrew Benintendi to Kansas City. The Sox also picked up young right-hander Josh Winckowski from the Mets in that deal, and they’re still set to receive a trio of players to be named later (two from the Royals, one from the Mets).
The hope was that Cordero, whose raw tools have intrigued teams and fans alike for several years, would blossom into an everyday presence in the outfield at Fenway Park, but things haven’t played out that way at all just yet. Through his first 102 plate appearances, Cordero has slashed just .179/.228/.274 with a sky-high 36.3 percent strikeout rate. He’s homered just one time in that span.
With elite speed and raw power, a plus throwing arm and top-of-the-scale exit velocity readings throughout his career, Cordero has been a fun player to dream on. Injuries and an inability to curb his prolific strikeout rate have hampered him in the big leagues, however, as he’s batted just .222/.285/.393 in 417 plate appearances. A reset of sorts in Triple-A could do him some good; he’s slashed .305/.357/.567 in 517 career plate appearances at that level.
Benintendi has performed fairly well over in Kansas City, shaking off a miserable start of his own with a big month of May to boost his overall season line to .283/.347/.371 in 176 trips to the dish. The trade is obviously looking good for the Royals at present, but while the knee-jerk reaction will be to call the deal a “win” for Kansas City, we won’t really know the deal’s full impact until years down the road. That’s true of all trades, generally speaking, but especially true of three-team, multi-player deals such as this one; we still don’t even know the names of all the players involved in the trade, as the PTBNLs have yet to be announced.
It’s been a disappointing start to Cordero’s time with the Sox, but Boston controls him through at least the 2023 season and he can be optioned freely both this year and next. For the Royals, they’ll enjoy Benintendi’s bat for the remainder of the 2021 season and for the 2022 campaign, barring an extension or a trade. The Mets, meanwhile, acquired a full six seasons of control over young outfielder Khalil Lee, who made his big league debut for them earlier this month.
Please bring up Duran, please Chaim
If he had a brother they could start a band…
Chaim, Chaim would certainly get people’s attention.
Announce Duran on Olympic team, then pull him back 3 days later. Not gonna happen.
Duran, Enmanuel De Jesus,, and Triston Casas have been Placed on the TIA (Olympic qualifying tournament.
Jeter Downs is also participating I believe
As water boy? Are they impressed with his .239 average? Maybe his .929 fielding percentage (Devers clone?) or his .333 OBP? They need to deal him while he still has some value in the eyes of Dodger fans and people who like him for his name.
That makes no difference at all. The Red Sox can recall any of these players off of Team USA if they want to bring any of them up to the majors. I’m convinced that Duran is a future All-Star OF so I too would really like to see him brought up to the big club ASAP. The kid is ready to play at the highest level right now. Downs should be ready in August or Sept and Casas in 2022 if all goes according to plan. Lots of special talent to look forward to here in Boston.
Earth to trade rumors, Casas and Duran are on assignment to the Olympic team
i believe a MLB callup would supersede that
I’m inclined to agree with that. but if they were to be sent back down, could they go back on the Olympic team? I’ve been trying to find somewhere that explains how all this works and I’ve struck out…
40 man players arent eligible. once he’s selected he’s off the roster.
thanks. makes sense
No chance they select him. He’d platoon at the MLB level. Cora said the other day the Olympic qualifiers is huge for this kid as it’s another level of talent for him to play against.
Big deal. Just because Duran is attempting to play for the olympic team does not mean squat that he cannot be called up on the MLB team and guess which one 90% of players would choose?
Boston, as of this moment has Casas and Duran as top 100 kids on the olympic team. 1 is enough.
It’s a small deal to you because you’re not him but he won’t be up until at least after the Olympic Qualifers. Try not to cry about it.
Everybody salivates over power hitters, even the ones who K all the time. Just like they salivate over relievers hitting 100, but who can’t find the strike zone. Every once in a while one of these guys resolves his problem, but for the most part they are a waste of time.
But when they figure it out, they are so good it makes failing on the other 30 toolsy guys worth it.
David Ortiz Minnesota Twins.
Most likely a fresh arm for the bullpen is coming. If its a position player since they just sent Chavis down maybe Arauz?
I thought it was so strange that they sent Chavis down before Franchy. I was hoping they’d give him regular at bats for a stretch but still are so committed to Marwin for some crazy reason.
Guaranteed money+friends with Cora=roster spot for Marwin
Marwin plays good defense.
Chavis = Cordero. Both need a full season of ABs in AAA. Chavis had a 13/0 K/W. That’s not something you can figure out at the pro level.
I like the choice of photo. Someone at MLBTR has a sense of humor.
lololol I didn’t even notice it. niiice
By the way can someone explain the wave. I haven’t heard it yet on the broadcasts. Every successful trip to First seems like they wave back to the dugout.
Is it just a cutsie thing like the laundry basket? Or the routine in the Outfield at the end of game?
Same thing we salivated over as Padres fans. His swing is is little long. Tons of athleticism but can’t seem to string together any consistency. Always a fan though
Same, big Franchy fan here. The mystique, the aura, the presence, the speed, the power… always reminded me of Ruben Rivera, just a slightly more raw LH 2.0 version. Hoping he can figure it all out.
Even if it’s not Duran at this moment, we are a step closer to him being called up very soon
Not really. He’s not even on the 40-man roster which means the team has to either trade or DFA someone who is on that to call up Duran. That’s not likely to happen before the second half of the season at the earliest. And even then they aren’t going to call him up to sit half the time. The most likely scenario is Duran plays the entire year in AAA and gets considered for a starting position next Spring.
Cordero being optioned just creates more PT for Santana. I don’t see Duran coming up unless two of Verdugo, Hernandez, and Santana are hurt or completely ineffective.
Is it PTBNLs? Or PsTBNL?
In this case it’s PsTBNL. Red Sox have two players coming to them.
They have three
If the intention is to bring a reliever up, I wonder if it’s time for Brandon Workman homecoming. He’s certainly got the most upside of any of the guys down there, and AC had some glowing words about him a couple of days ago.
I think you might be on to something.
I wonder if our old buddy Workman is coming up
Mets, Pirates, Braves Etc could use him
They’re not gonna punt on Franchy, though they might be better off if they did.
Nah, no need to put on him. Let him get it figured out in the minors. If could cut down on his strikeouts and become a .225-.260 hitter with power and speed to go along with is powerful arm. Then he would be an access to the Red Sox as a 4th outfielder or a platoon player.
Use him for what? An automatic out? He’s way too close to the plate but still does it! I’m glad he’s not on the main roster.
I guess he is Franch Toast.
Franch fries and franch dressing too
He’ll be back. Someone is bound to get Il’d.
Danny Santana has been playing well so this makes sense. As I stated above, I’d love to see Duran put on the 40 man and get called up, but if not, they have enough players in Boston to cover all OF positions right now (Verdugo, Kiké, Santana, Renfroe, Gonzalez & JDM) so another pitcher or IF makes sense. If Marwin continues to struggle at the plate, I could see the Sox DFA’ing him and replacing his spot on the 40 man with Duran. Both Kiké & Santana offer the same versatility that Marwin does so they wouldn’t really lose much on the defensive side by going this route. They might need to option Dalbec and his 39% K rate too if he can’t start pulling it together soon. I’m just happy they have plenty of depth options to choose from this season. 2020 was a nightmare!
I’m greatly, greatly looking forward to watching Jeter Downs and Jarren Duran play over Marwin Gonzalez and Franchy Cordero.
About time, Franchy needs to get his head right in triple A. With regards to Duran, it’s hard to understand why so many fans thinks he’s going to be the next great Red Sox player. He’s not a defensive standout and he is currently striking out 25% of the time. If you read the scouting report on him and look at his numbers they aren’t eye popping. He’s got great speed and upside but he isn’t banging on the door to be promoted either.
He’s young but I’ll bet he becomes a superstar
I definitely hope he does
Fans need to realize all players go through streaks. How he responds to a tough start could be telling. Just because player A does amazing at 21 doesn’t mean that’s the age for all player call ups. The same at the opposite end of the spectrum. Have faith in when he’s ready or needed, he’ll be called up.
Fans need to realize all players go through streaks. How he responds to a tough start could be telling. Just because player A does amazing at 21 doesn’t mean that’s the age for all player call ups. The same at the opposite end of the spectrum. Have faith in when he’s ready or needed, he’ll be called up.
Wily Mo Cordero is AAAA.
That’s actually a pretty good comparison, except Wily Mo could actually make contact with the ball every once in a while, as opposed to never.
One trade we’d love back. All those high leg kicks in a Reds’ uniform still bother me.
… I hope Benintendi hits .300 this year. Best of luck to AB. Terrible trade now & later.
looiebelongsinthehall
One trade we’d love back. All those high leg kicks in a Reds’ uniform still bother me.
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It’s a 100 years later, and I still cannot believe that he couldn’t hit for us. He had a dreadful K/W with Cincy, which I hate, but he hit 45 HRs in 647 ABs in 2004/5.
30 Parks
I hope Benintendi hits .300 this year. Best of luck to AB. Terrible trade now & later.
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Yup, it’s hard to get a poor-fielding LF, with a .734 OPS, for only $6M.
One could easily make the argument that, given a choice between Kike at $7M, or Benni at $6M, one would be better off paying Kike and releasing Benni.
Simply non-tendering Benni, even in retrospect, was a legitimate option.
… so fast to write-off Benintendi. So quick to defend Cordero. Straight up? I take Benny.
I’m not sure there is a single poster in here that is defending Cordero.
That said, I don’t think it is unfair to describe Benni’s season as roughly replacement level.
But at a cost of $6M, the better comparison is would we be better off with someone like Benni, at $6M, or someone like Kike, at $7M. Kike is a much better player right now. Had this been a simple 1-on-1 trade of Benni for Kike, we’d be well ahead.
I think the thing that confuses the issue is that we got Cordero + prospects. That should make the trade even better for Boston, but not every sees it that way.
Yet a 3rd way of looking at it is, if Benni gets the usual 3rd year arbitration bump-up, will KC keep him with his .734? I doubt it.
True, HB. The urgency behind the Benintendi trade remains puzzling.
“Rule of 7”: The value that the traded players gave each team can be determined seven (7) years after the trade was made.
Red Sox still really don’t miss Benintendi.
Never been the same player he was in 2018.
Pete Abraham ( one of the two Boston writers that are not baseball-illiterates) had a column on that. He said that, given all the positive publicity and love that Benni is getting from the Boston press, he was surprised how weak Benni’s stats are this year.
Since bottoming out to a .483 OPS as of April 21st, Benintendi has hit .346/.400/.481, so it’s possible that he figured out an early season funk and will be strong the rest of the way. But, note the .481 slugging over what is currently a “hot” stretch…the concern with him is that he just isn’t consistently driving the ball, and heck, he only has 2 2Bs over that stretch. Add is the CSs, the limited-at-best defense, and the talk for a few years of diminishing foot speed (which affects multiple aspects of his game and perhaps hints at physical troubles in general), and Benitendi looks like a very talented baseball player who is either prematurely declining or working to play through issues.
I haven’t given up on him and I’m rooting for him, but it’s worrisome. Which seems to be why Boston decided to cash out.
Since bottoming out to a .483 OPS as of April 21st, Benintendi has hit .346/.400/.481
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Since topping out at .764 on May 5th, his OPS is .687, despite a BAIP of .353. It’s basically 1 XBH in 64 ABs, with a 13/5 K/W.
Honestly, most of this is meaningless. I think most of the publicity is from Boston writers, who mostly subsist on a diet of ‘let’s find something to criticize the RS for’. In the big picture, had they simply non-tendered Benintendi, it wouldn’t be an issue. If this was another LF, on another team, no one in Boston would even notice a guy projecting to 17 2Bs, -0- 3Bs, and 13.5 HRs
And it goes without saying that, had we held onto him, the critics would say his .734 OPS is worthless, and that we missed a golden opportunity to cash in on his value.
JB – Interesting take on Boston baseball writers. I find the opposite to be true. I think most report the organization’s viewpoint not their own. McCaffrey is a perfect example. I have spent time on Over The Wall, the Athletic and other sports sites and I find the writing here to be the best and the least Red Sox mouthpiece oriented.
Benintendi creates facts that are displayed by his stats. You are spinning the data to support your argument. Benny’s 734 OPS is being taken out of context. That’s why most folks use OPS+ because it reflects the player versus the league. In a year when offensive numbers are down it’s easy to suggest a player isn’t doing well but the fact is he is doing better than league average for yet another season. His only non league average season was 2020 when he was hurt and it was a short season. Otherwise, Benny has consistently performed above league average and his 108 OPS+ supports the fact that versus the rest of the league he’s doing better than most. I’m a big Benny fan and I’m not going to let you mislead folks with numbers that don’t present the full facts!!
Also, your last comment simply isn’t true. Folks won’t be pointing to his .734 OPS they will be pointing to his 108 OPS+ and saying for $6.6M we have an excellent value for our money..
REMEMBER The RED SOX are paying $2.8M of Benny’s salary in KC and KC is paying $3.8M for an outfielder with a 108 OPS+!!! So Frenchie Cordero is effectively costing the Red Sox $3.6M per year versus Benny would have cost $3M more. Is the 108 versus 39 OPS+ worth the $3M more to a team with hundreds of millions of dollars in their coffers that they refuse to spend to be competitive?
Just one more fine example of how bad Bloom is at his job!!! Between Price and Benny he has flushed $18.8M of payroll down the toilet in 2020!! Since the team isn’t exceeding the cap that means $18.8M of a possible $190.5M is wasted payroll. Close to 10% thrown away on bad trades. Bloom clearly isn’t a guy who understands finances and apparently whoever briefs ownership on finances prior to trades should be fired as well!!
Benny will be missed in Boston until a long-term solution (like he was) can be acquired that is better than Benny. I don’t see that happening anytime soon with Bloom as GM.
Franchy, Dalbec and Chavis–all have the same MO–they swing wildly without watching the ball–the old adage ‘see the ball–hit the ball’ does not apply to these three. ‘Swing and hope to make contact’ seems to be their philosophy. With the Xman and JD on your team you’d think some of their contact hitting would rub off. Go with the pitch. Hit it where they aint..
Hunter Renfroe is more in the category of the three free swingers.
There will be another team next season that will covet Franchy, Dalbec, Chavis and Renfroe.
They all appear to be good teammates. They are basically all AAAA players that could help you bring more prospects to the Sox.
JD-DH
Duran , Verdugo and Hernandez would be my choice for OF.
Devers, Boggie, Arroyo and Gonzales–infield.
Vazquez & Plawecki–C
Santana–Super Utility
Renfroe–4 th OF
I don’t disagree, but the difference between Renfroe and the others is that he has supplied GG-level defense. 25 HRs with a .220 is useless from a corner OF, but if you bring a glove with you, then at least it isn’t a real problem.
To all Redsox fans……Patience.
Why patience? Nobody forced management to dismantle a WS Championship team !! Injuries happen and if a team wins a ring the way the Red Sox did in 2018 they should have earned the luxury of dealing with injuries (and an idiot manager) and not been blown up a year later.
Patience is bs, demanding a comparable team is what fans should be seeking. There was ABSOLUTELY NO REASON TO DISMANTLE THE WORLD CHAMPS!!!!!
Boston turned 2 years of the disappointing Benintendi (and about 3m of his salary) into a 3 year chance to turn Franchy into something, plus three minor leaguers who presumably will be more than milb lifers.
Not bad. Though why they gave Franchy as long a leash as they did is puzzling.
Jen McCaffrey @jcmccaffrey
4m
RT @theradiomike: Josh Winckowski (part of Benintendi trade) hurls seven scoreless on one hit and nine strikeouts for @portlandseadogs
Red Sox Stats
@redsoxstats
·
2h
Winckowski currently has a 1.71 ERA in Portland.
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I think this will be the last we hear from Boston writers about ‘how well’ Benni is doing. It’s too early to call this either way, but right now, I much prefer the RS side of the trade. Benni’s .725 in LF is kind of weak.
That said, yeah, it feels like we were a week or so too long on Cordero. But that could be related to Kike and Arroyo being hurt, We’re a bit thin.
JB – Anything written by Jen McCaffrey is biased and must be thrown out. She’s a Cora suck up and lacks integrity in her writing.
That said, Winchowski has started well in Portland. He’s also trended well as he has progressed through the minors. Both are excellent signs for the future. I need to see the quality of teams he faced at AA since the sample size is so small but he looks like one of the exceptions to choices Bloom has made in trades. He might actually turn out well, unlike so many others Bloom has chosen. (see Downs etc.)
Also, you are playing down the fact that Benny is a huge loss to Boston. Not that he’s a super star but what they got for him makes it a huge loss. Benny had an OPS+ of 107 with his one bad year bringing it down significantly (118, 103, 123, 100 and 27). His current OPS+ in KC is 108 and rising. During normal years he averaged over 110 and I expect he will do the same in KC.
Frenchie on the other hand had a 99 OPS+ during 3 years with the Padres and then a 94 his one year in KC prior to being traded for Benny.. Consequently, all of the PTBNL in the deal need to make up the difference and as of now none have. By the time they hit the majors, if they make the majors, the OPS+ data on Benny will have accumulated in KC and it will be that much harder to offset the Benny loss with the PTBNL gains. All trades must be evaluated in Net Present Value not by comparing future value.
Bloom still only has only 1 trade that has gone well and that’s the one with Pivetta. Not the mastermind people thought he would be!!
JB – Anything written by Jen McCaffrey is biased and must be thrown out. She’s a Cora suck up and lacks integrity in her writing.
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She wrote nothing but the stats of the game. I’m not sure how one could interpret that as biased. Winckowski either “hurls seven scoreless on one hit and nine strikeouts” or he didn’t.
Interesting, that this site invariably closes comments on any story having to do with a domestic violence allegation.
JackStrawb – It makes perfect sense to close them. First, it’s not a baseball issue, it’s a baseball distraction caused by some very bad decisions made by baseball people off the baseball diamond. Second, it illicits comments for both right and left extremists that have nothing to do with baseball. I applaud the website for keeping the discussions focused on baseball.
If you want to talk about the other topics, there are plenty of other websites to do so.