The Red Sox have already signed two free agent relievers to major league deals this offseason: veteran closer Aroldis Chapman and journeyman Justin Wilson. What’s more, Liam Hendriks, another star closer, should be back in the ’pen after missing the entire 2024 season due to injury. Still, Boston’s chief baseball officer Craig Breslow recently identified the bullpen as an area he’s looking to further improve. It makes sense; Red Sox relievers ranked 24th in ERA and 20th in SIERA last season, while finishing with the second-most blown saves in the AL – and that was before losing Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin to free agency.
Thus, Chris Cotillo of MassLive reports the Red Sox have “checked in on a long, long list” of names in pursuit of bullpen upgrades. That includes Tanner Scott, Jeff Hoffman, A.J. Minter, Carlos Estévez, Tommy Kahnle, and Andrew Kittredge. On Wednesday, Cotillo added Phil Maton to that cohort.
Maton, 32 in March, is coming off an up-and-down season split between the Rays and Mets. The right-hander struggled in Tampa Bay after signing a one-year, $6.5MM contract (with a club option for 2025) last offseason. Over 40 games and 35 1/3 innings with the Rays, he pitched to a 4.58 ERA and 4.52 SIERA. By the end of his brief tenure in Tampa Bay, his strikeout rate was sitting at a career-low and his walk rate at a career-high. Despite the highest groundball rate of his career, he was struggling to prevent runs.
Yet, after a midseason trade to the Mets that was little more than a salary dump on the Rays’ part, Maton bounced back. Across 31 appearances for New York, he tossed 28 2/3 innings with a 2.51 ERA and 2.97 SIERA. His strikeout rate rose to 26.5% – the same above-average level it was at in 2022 and ’23. Meanwhile, his 5.3% walk rate was lower than ever. Although his groundball rate dropped substantially, he gave up just one home run to the 113 batters he faced, thanks in large part to a much lower average exit velocity and barrel rate.
Despite Maton’s successful denouement in Queens, the Mets chose to not exercise their $7.75MM option for his services in 2025. Nonetheless, there is no reason to think he’ll have trouble finding a major league deal elsewhere, although it will probably come with a lower salary. He has already been linked to the Blue Jays this winter, and the Red Sox are the second team known to have interest.
By the end of the 2024 season, Maton’s overall numbers were perfectly respectable: a 3.66 ERA and 3.82 SIERA in 64 IP. It marked his third consecutive campaign with an ERA under four and his fourth surpassing 60 innings of work. Since his first full season in 2020, Maton has a 3.87 ERA, 3.54 SIERA, and a 26.7% strikeout rate in 294 games. In that time, he ranks among the top 10 MLB relievers in appearances and innings pitched. He may not be a dominant, high-leverage arm, but there is certainly value in a reliever who stays on the field and consistently provides average to slightly above-average performance. To that point, the Red Sox already have several high-ceiling back-end hurlers in Chapman, Hendriks, and Justin Slaten. What they could use, however, is a reliable, middle-inning arm to raise the bullpen’s floor. Maton could certainly be that guy.
2 years/$12M
Flanster – He had a big decline last year, especially with K%.
I’m neutral on him, seems like more of a backend of the pen.
But at least the Sox are going after legit MLB pitchers, instead of sifting through the trash bin like last year.
A couple of days ago I was seeing they were favorites to sign Scott in an article. This seems like a big drop off. I know relievers don’t always work out with long term contracts, but I really wish they would focus on a relatively young proven closer like Scott. You add him with Hendriks, Whitlock, and Chapman that should give them a an impressive bullpen.
Interest. Interest. Interest.
Dividends Dividends Dividends
Kicking the tires!
You sound like my mortgage loan officer.
Interest kings
Is there anyone in the Red Sox haven’t shown interest in???
Are they ever gonna spend money ???
They even checked in on me!!
acent – In a few more weeks when the blue light specials begin, the Sox will sign somebody at a discount that nobody else wants.
They’ve already spent some money.
Cool, must be nice. I wish Jed Hoyer showed some initiative and tried to fix Cubs’ weak bullpen and bench.
What a waste to trade controllable talent for a superstar in his walk year and not build a competitive team around him. 84 wins to watch him walk and take $400M+ this time next year.
Good thing they dumped Bellinger to save that salary so Ricketts can pay the electric bill… Ridiculous.
Maton would be interesting. I’m not very familiar with him, but the second half performance (less gb, more K’s) would be a good fit for the Sox.
He was utterly useless in the playoffs.
Gotta make the playoffs though.
The Sox have typically burned through relievers and their bullpen is shot come August, so any extra arms are much appreciated.
Unexciting but acceptable
A decent reliever that would be worth a look if the team didn’t already have too many pitchers. Almost certainly starting the year with a 6-man rotation, so only 7 bullpen slots: Chapman, Wilson, Slaten, Bernardino, Hendricks, Weissert, and Whitlock are likely those 7, with Winckowski, Criswell, Fitts, Priester, Zac Kelly and (later) Sandoval and Murphy providing a surplus. No room for Maton unless multiple guys are traded IMO.
Criswell, Fitts and Priester will be in the Worcester rotation. They should be able to keep the bullpen fresh by optioning guys up and down. Having too much pitching is like having too much sex. It’s a good problem to have.
With a decent if not unspectacular starting group and a shaky (to this point) offense a strong bullpen is a must for the Sox if they have even the slightest intention of contending
Hendriks
Whitlock
Chapman*
Slaten
Wilson*
Winckowski
Guerrero
Bernardino*
Kelly
That’s probably their top nine bullpen arms at present and they’ll probably only carry seven at a time, assuming they carry six starters. Hendriks, Chapman, and Wilson are the only ones without options (although Whitlock’s contract may require his approval). I’d be fine plugging Maton in the middle to rely less on guys like Kelly, Guerrero (who I’m high on) and Winckowski.
I’d be fine plugging Maton in the middle to rely less on guys like ……
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Which I think is very reasonable. But I also wonder if Maton provides enough of an upgrade over our lower-end guy, and wonder if we should up the ante and get a more dominant RP.
Really showing Interest at unprecedented levels this week!
Red Sox outperform everyone in “interest.”
Maton was horrible down the stretch and worse in the playoffs. He’s only effective in low leverage situations or garbage time.
He was terrible in the postseason.
If BOS is interested in Maton or any other pitcher, there is almost certainly something they see in him that they can improve. So his performance last season is almost irrelevant. That’s not what they’re evaluating him by.
I guess looking at the back of a baseball card counts as interest.
Even with last year’s results, Maton has plenty of postseason experience. 26 appearances and a 2 and a half ERA. He is very serviceable, not a bad pickup at all.
Doesn’t matter they will be a 500 team or just under. They didn’t do this offseason what they needed to do. If things break right maybe they finish a few games over. I’m not sold on Crochet or Buehler. Plus the bullpen is most likely going to be worse. Way to raise the ceiling Breslow.
For a good many years there wasn’t much to like about Maton. He was a fringe bullpen piece. Not terrible, but certainly not very good. This is the kind of signing you pass on, save the money, and hope you have one pitcher in your entire organization that can replicate mediocre.
I mentioned something similar above. How much better is Maton over whomever we drop into AAA?
hard pass on Maton. I think Minter would be a smart signing. That being said, one of last years starters is headed to the pen as well, so keep that in mind. The Sox have 6 starters, with a couple of kids knocking at the door.
Word has it that Hoffman wants a shot at a starting gig. I’d offer him a decent 3-year contract. Tell him Y1 is as a RP, Y2 he gets a legitimate shot in the rotation, to replace Giolito and/or Buehler. Then give him a convoluted opt-out after the 2nd year, so he can capitalize on being a starter if he succeeds. And if he is dissatisfied with how we treat him vis-a-vis being a starter, he can always seek greener pastures.
And maybe give the RS an option to override Hoffman’s opt-out with a 3-year $60M deal. That gives Hoffman something to shoot at, without too much RS risk.
@JoeBrady. That is a fascinating scenario if true on a multi-year deal. Signing a reliever to a multi-year contract and converting them to a starter is incredible upside if it they succeed in the transition.
Elite relievers are usually priced at about a third of an elite starter, or even less. Getting a guy like him at 15 per for 3 years but getting 20+ return on it is always very intriguing. Especially when you know you can revert him back to the pen and at least retain the original value.
Especially when you know you can revert him back to the pen
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That’s what I was thinking as well. Anyone can fail, but Hoffman looks pretty solid at this point. He has a 2.70/3.02 ERA/FIP over the past three years, so I think his past is behind him.
I think the floor is a slight overpayment for a useful RP, and the ceiling is that we get some control over someone that could still fulfill his #1/9 draft promise.
I agree. If priced as a starter, no. As a reliever, I would be on board. If I were a team, it may be a good strategy to offer slightly above his relief value (slightly) on a multi-year and allow him opt outs for the team’s protection if he fails, and the players ability to build value as a starter to re-explore the market if he has success. That might entice him.
I am not sure though a team like the Sox, with so many question marks in the rotation could afford yet another gamble in a starter on Hoffmans successful transition. It sounds great though for a lot of teams.