The Red Sox seemingly have enough pitching depth to consider trading some. Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports that Patrick Sandoval, Brayan Bello and Jordan Hicks have been discussed in trade talks. Reporting back in December indicated that both Bello and Sandoval were garnering interest from other clubs.
It isn’t specified which party brought up Hicks in these trade talks but presumably the Sox have been trying to shop him, as opposed to other teams trying especially hard to acquire him. He has some good major league results on his track record but hasn’t been effective lately and his contract is not favorable.
Two years ago, the Giants signed him to a four-year, $44MM deal, hoping to convert him from the bullpen to the rotation. That experiment went well initially before Hicks seemingly ran out of gas. He posted a 1.59 earned run average through the end of April, but then had a 3.99 ERA in May, 5.24 in June and 8.40 in July.
He was moved back to the bullpen later in the year and also spent some time on the injured list due to shoulder inflammation. He didn’t get things on track in 2025. He was eventually included in the Rafael Devers trade as financial ballast and finished the season with a 6.95 ERA between the two clubs.
Prior to signing that deal, Hicks had some decent results out of the St. Louis bullpen, riding his triple-digit velocity to a groundball-heavy approach. At the end of the 2023 season, he had a career ERA of 3.85. His 12.8% walk rate was high but he struck out 24.5% of batters faced and induced grounders on 60.4% of balls in play. Some teams probably have interest in him as a bounceback candidate but he is still owed $24MM over the next two years, so Boston would have to pay down most of that in order to line up a deal.
The commonality with Sandoval, Bello and Hicks as that they’re all making decent money, with Bello still owed $50.5MM through 2029, including the $1MM buyout on a 2030 club option. Sandoval will make $12.75MM in 2026.
RosterResource currently projects the Sox for a payroll of $197MM and a competitive balance tax figure of $266MM. They finished 2025 with a pure payroll of $209MM and a $247MM CBT calculation. If they are willing to spend to last year’s levels, the pure payroll has some wiggle room but perhaps the upcoming higher tax budget eats up some of that difference.
Trading one of these contracts could create some extra payroll room. The Sox could use a second base upgrade, though free agency doesn’t really have any amazing solutions remaining. Guys like Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Ramón Urías are out there but arguably don’t provide a huge upgrade over Boston’s current group of Romy González, Nick Sogard and David Hamilton. The Sox are also looking for catching upgrades and presumably want to add another reliever or two while leaving some wiggle room for in-season maneuvering.
Photo courtesy of Eric Canha, Imagn Images
I have a hard time believing any team actually wants him…
Yeah, I’m picturing Breslow talking to himself in the mirror. I suppose that would count.
Boston would have to attach a prospect to get rid of him. Pure salary dump trade.
No team wants his contract. He’s likely going to get released.
If the Sox pay nearly all of it, why not. Great arm. Maybe a light goes on.
seam – They are trying to bring the payroll back down a bit. All three are making around $10M each this year for CBT. It would be better to attach someone with Hicks, either Harrison or even Bello.
Attach Bello?
Fever, I thought you and others might want to read the following:
bosoxinjection.com/red-sox-fans-have-a-new-reason-…
dewey – Thanks, I hadn’t heard about this.
I’m surprised the Nats were involved too.
Another trick teams like the Rays were pulling was not including the sales tax in ticket prices until right before the sale was finalized. That should never, ever happen. Ticket prices should ALWAYS include sales tax.
I agree that it seems like Hicks would need to be part of a package and with some of his salary offset. Would be great if they could find a taker and free up both the roster space and some of the salary.
I’m guessing that his name popped up in internal trade discussions, such as “man we really need to trade Hicks and free the team if the salary” and not other teams calling them asking about Hicks.
I’m guessing it popped up as, “Call every team in the league, and at least ask if they would pretty please take Hicks and his contract. Maybe we’ll catch someone very drunk or on pain medication”
Perfect trade one for one: Yoshida for Hicks. Oh wait…
dewey – Attach Harrison and Bello (Jose), then all four reminders of the Raffy trade will be gone.
Right! I’m sure the angels had talks about trading Rendon too hahahahahaa
They are having trade talks with themselves.
As a reliever hes not bad
Hasn’t exactly been good either
He used to be.
If he had a whole spring focused on just being a late innings guy again he could get it back.
He fell apart under the past 2 years of pretending he’d be a good starter
*that said, 10 mil might be a bit much for a unpredictable reliever
I would love him back with the Cardinals. Was good anticipation sports entertainment.
May figure things out this year and be a value team extension candidate. 2031 will his age 31 season.
Seemed like he started a lot of games off pretty well then folded around the 4-5th inning
Why would anyone want him?
Cause he throws 100+ outta the pen
Does he still throw 100? He was great as a RP for the Jays but it seems like the Giants broke him.
No Devers. No Bregman. What a disaster of a trade.
It’s amazing how different the offense is since opening day last season. The Sox still need to bring in at least one big bat to be taken seriously.
Brent rooker would ne a great fit, if A’s willing to trade him. Red Sox have pitching to spare
Why would an OF be a great fit for the Sox?
I like Rooker, but unless hes gonna play 2B for half his salary, he isn’t a fit for the Sox at all.
Did you miss the playoffs? That trade was one of the best things that has happened to the Red Sox who are a favorite to make the playoffs again.
Red Sox are currently slotted for 3-4 in the east. No where near a favourite
By who, you?
You can’t spell “nowhere” or “favorite.” This makes me doubt you mightily.
The Sox squeaked in to the playoffs (which IS good, for sure), and were promptly exposed as being completely unprepared in all aspects of the roster. Why do you attribute that partial success with trading Devers for junk? Surely we would have been better off with Devers bat in the lineup. And Harrison was no help. Hicks was a negative. Tibbs became Dustin May, who was either neutral or a negative, Depending on how you score. the trade only seemed to benefit Henry and the shareholder’s bank accounts.
Don’t get me wrong, I think the Devers contract was an absurd overpay for a guy that is a glorified DH and I am happy the Sox are out from under it. But I also agree the only way that trade would have looked good is if they re-signed Bregman and added a power bat like Alonso this winter with the money.
Yes, if Devers was still there they’d be WS champs.
AHAHAHAAHAAHAHAHAHAA
That was a good one.
BBB- the playoffs appearance was 98% attributed to Crochet’ amazing year, and 2% to Chapman’s first half for being better than Jansen.
Devers played more games, hit more HRs, had more RBI than Bregman, who only played a slightly above average defense when he was healthy.
So let’s not get too crazy about the benefits of the trade. Because now we’re saddled with Hicks who we can’t get rid of, and Harrison who may not make the team.
At least we got rid of a cry baby.
TBaggins- because thats a necessary part of a productive baseball roster?
Trading away their primary power bat and not replacing it was one of the best things that could have happened? Only if you are rooting for them to lose. Devers contract was an overpay, but we did not have a power bat to get us deep into the playoffs last year and now we don’t have Bregman either. Our pitching is definitely better and would be the main thing that would carry the team if they perform as well as expected. Without the power bat we will only go so far.
Uncle – agreed! You need someone in your lineup that changes the other teams strategy and makes them uncomfortable. Not sure that Contreras is that. Anthony may be one day, but perhaps not tight away
Uncle: The Red Sox made the playoffs last year without Devers. They did better without him. Contreras’ bat should replace Bregman’s bat. So, they could use another bat like many teams and they still have time to get a bat. So, I am pretty optimistic.
All- The pitching was what carried them to the playoffs. They were limited how far they could go without the offense. Devers was not perfect, but I definitely think his bat in the lineup during the playoffs could have been a difference maker.
Their pitching should be even better and Contreras should provide similar offense to Bregman, but Devers’ bat did have an impact during the first half of the year and that power is gone. There is definitely the potential that someone could step up and provide that (Mayer, Casas, etc), but adding another power bat will help ensure that we have the balance of offense and great pitching.
Uncle: The Red Sox had a better record without Devers than with him last year. I think Roman Anthony being out of the lineup in the playoffs was the problem for the offense.
Suit- Contreras will provide a full season of just south of a full season of Bregman’s production. However, Bregman was short of Dever’s offensive numbers. We will have a full season of Anthony, and that’s a big plus, but let’s stop the charade that Devers personality negated his on field offensive production, please.
The SP is poised to be really good, and thats the real difference
There is no charade and I’ll post it again…The Red Sox turned the season around after trading Devers and made the playoffs. Their record with Devers in 2025 was 37-36. After they traded Devers on June 15th, their record was 52-37. They were better without him…and the Giants season went down the drain and they became sellers after acquiring Devers.
Suit- the day Devers was traded they just finished beating up on the Yanks, and moved past a tough part of the early schedule that included a bunch of beat downs by the Blue Jays.
In the rest of June and up to the All Star break they called up Anthony and played a fairly soft schedule. Correlation is not causation! The reason they made the playoffs is Vrochet, not trading the scowl of Devers, which by June 7th had become a half grin.
Giants got Devers and dumped Hicks contact the n Boston.
Andy, if the Sox get that power righty bat to DH (Suárez) and a bigger if here, Mayer and Story stay healthy, this will be a better overall team than last year. Devers became a problem child and while I loved Bregman last year, his production is likely to continue to decline. To me, he’s valuable but also grossly overrated. Story staying healthy was just as important as signing Bregman last year. Both also were equally as important with the youngsters.
Dewey – I agree with you, Story was an integral factor in last year success, and is an even more important part this year.
What do you mean awful trade John Henry would strongly disagree he got rid of all of the Devers money and put in no where back into the team lol.
I file this in the same rumor bucket as the Red Sox Have Discussed Trading Yoshida.
The Red Sox would be improved by finding a taker for either (both!) of these players, but they will need to package somebody else of at least mild value for the deal to be palatable. And need to eat some of the $$
Welp
OK, so Hicks, Masa and $20M to whomever can send back a couple minor league lotto tickets. Maybe even include slightly used utility infielder. That would be the move of the off season for Breslow.
Going to have to make it $40m to get literally anything of value back, even lottery tickets.
You want someone to take Hicks AND Yoshida and the 60M they’re due (after the 20M you throw in) off your books and you want them to give you prospects? Am I reading that right?
Why not trade him to St Louis? The Cardinals need a closer and his value is obviously low. If he bounces back great trade him if not oh well.
I think that ship has probably sailed.
The Cardinals sent $20 million cash with Gray and then $8 million with Contreras. If the Cardinals had some interest in Hicks – and the Cardinals and Red Sox were reasonably close on agreeing how underwater Hicks’ contract is – then it would have made sense to package Hicks in one of those trades and adjust the cash accordingly.
Perhaps they couldn’t agree but the price has now changed. The fit makes sense. Hicks was good as a Cardinal.
Do the Cardinals still have the coaches that were able to get the most out of Hicks? I assume that could impact his comfort, confidence, and success. Unfortunately I agree that it likely would have already happened unless the Sox are willing to sweeten the deal.
I’m willing to give Hicks the benefit of the doubt that starting the season as a starter and then getting shipped cross country to pitch relief with a new team might’ve had him at his absolute worst. I think it’s possible that a full ST as a reliever and entering the season with that defined role could help him lock in more this year. And I doubt there’s any real takers out there anyway, so may as well hope.
Meow – I’m right there with you on the stability issue, but, the best I’m hoping for is useful piece, not high leverage.
Surprise, surprise, surprise. Some teams called about Hicks and offered nothing. Breslow said thanks but no thanks. Now let’s go to Fort Myers.
No Darragh. As usual you are wrong. We shouldn’t presume that the Red Sox were shopping him. We should only look. At the facts as presented. Those facts don’t even intimate that the Red Sox were shopping Hicks. Only that they talked to unspecified teams about him.
The fact is that there are no facts about how Hicks conversations have gone. The author’s speculation holds just as much water as yours. No need to be a jerk about it. I find it quite believable that the Sox might be trying to shop him.
C’mon, Darragh’s NEVER wrong!
Where in the article does it say “teams called Boston about Hicks”?
Hint: it doesn’t.
I’ve been saying that Boston is probably the best bet if the Phillies wanted to trade Nick Castellanos. Boston already had a lefty heavy lineup before losing Rob Refsnyder to the Mariners and Alex Bregman to the Cubs. Castellanos could handle an OF corner at Fenway, and would be an insurance policy on Tristan Casas – coming off a major injury, at 1B.
Phillies acquire:
– Jordan Hicks RHP (2/$25M)
Red Sox acquire:
– Nick Castellanos RF/LF (1/$20M)
Phillies shave $7.5M to add Austin Hays, or even some SP depth like a Chris Paddack. You roll the dice and hope Hicks and his 100mph heat bounces back as a middle reliever. All of a sudden that $12.5M for 2027 looks a little more reasonable, if he does. Boston adds a much needed RH bat to balance out their lineup. A player that is never injured, with a wealth of post season experience. Nick should be plenty motivated in a contract year too.
The Red Sox have Willson Contreras to play first base or designated hitter. They have more of a need to acquire an infielder who is experienced and who is an above average hitter.
Where is Castellanos going to play in Boston?
Castellanos would be a bench guy. He doesnt have to start hes not any good.
More importantly, why should boston want to bust into higher tiers on CBT?
Its not about total money for boston, their actual payroll is WAAAAY below their CBT figures.
Boston wants to find a guy who was really really backloaded heavily on their salary for a contract swap. Actual payroll is one thing, challenging enough for the front office to handle squeezing out of Henry. But increasing your tax hit is the exact opposite of what they need to do, especially to keep in season maneuvering room
I don’t think Philly will be able to trade Castellanos. I think he gets cut. I doubt the Red Sox are interested in him even at the minimum. Both corners in Fenway have their quirks, and he struggled in a more conventional park.
To clear money off the books for 2027, they’ll have an extra $12.5M to play with in free agency.
Spot on GA. Sox are probably looking to trade Hicks for a bucket of balls and with other moves then sign Suarez as their DH.
Agreed on the CBT issue. Not sure there’s a deal out there with which the Red Sox could offload Hicks and reduce their 2026 luxury tax.
Boston could clear a roster spot and reduce their 2026 luxury tax if the Angels and Anthony Rendon could be convinced to trade Yoshida and $1MM each of the next two years to the Angels for Rendon’s now five-year, $38MM contract.
Boston could then immediately release Rendon and be on the hook for just under $8MM of his contract in 2026.
Unlikely for a bunch of reasons, including Rendon still having a no-trade clause that he might just exercise to avoid being moved in a dead money deal.
LF/RF/DH vs. LHP’s. Boston will occasionally sit one or two of Duran, Abreu or Yoshida vs. southpaws. Could also play some 1B and DH. He’s still an above league average hitter vs. lefties. It would be similar to the role Rob Refsnyder played for them.
Yeah, I think that could have worked before Boston acquired Contreras.
Castellanos would be a better fit in Colorado where he could play 1B and they have room to eat the entire contract if the Phillies include a good enough prospect.
AC – Castellanos is less useful than Hicks, sorry , no deal
Not the worst idea, Castellanos could be the short side platoon partner for Yoshida, then if they trade Abreu or Duran for an infielder the lineup looks pretty settled.
Castellanos would be a waste of a roster spot for a young Red Sox team. He’s got no value. If they wanted to clear Jordan Hicks, they can just eat some money and trade him.
I don’t see the benefit for the Sox other than saving $5 million. We have too many outfielders, Castellanos appears to be completely shot so would just be a wasted roster spot and Hicks has more upside along with having two years to try to get something out of him. I will pass on that deal.
You’re right about too many outfielders, yeah it only makes sense if they’re also trading Abreu or Duran. It makes sense from a left-right balance standpoint as they have a lot of lefty hitters with heavy platoon splits, but yes adding a 2B or 3B should be their priority.
Best bet is to keep him a reliever and hope he finds his form in no way would I make him a starter again.
LOL. Doesn’t this go without saying?
I assume the missing context is, “The Angels offered Rendon. Everyone else laughed in Breslow’s face.”
I would build an even-money trade around Rendon and either Hicks or Yoshida in a heartbeat and immediately release Rendon now that his contract has been renegotiated to a five-year deal with an approximate CBT value of $7.6 million between now and 2030.
It’s as if the Angels got to use an NBA-style stretch provision and *still* trade his dead money contract away.
To any team considering this I have two words: don’t
If Hicks gets to Spring Training and is consistently throwing strikes in the upper 90s, other teams may show interest in him, especially if one or more of those teams suddenly loses their closer or set-up man to a long term injury.
Go1962- its a lot to ask for Hicks to consistently throw strikes. He hasn’t since 2023. That said, hes 29yo, so I wouldn’t completely rule out a slight return to form, but not anything close to dominate.
Sad- Is there any chance that the right pitching coach could get him straightened out? I know he has bounced around and it hasn’t happened yet, but maybe a different approach. Who knows? I would imagine there might be a team if we ate some of the salary who might take a shot.
Uncle – i think in an out of the spotlight situation, with a team that has a strong player develolment structure yes. Cleveland and Milwaukee come to mind. Unfortunately, they probably wouldnt be willing to pick up much of the money left.
I think the best case scenario is a well defined role, outside of high leverage, to build his confidence back could produce some good, but not great, results
Hicks had that opportunity last year, and he actually got worse as the season progressed. He has no idea where his pitches are going. The Red Sox can only hope he figures it out because they are not going to be able to trade him.
Teams are always trying to pawn their junk off .
I’d love to see the Mets and the Red Sox put something together involving Baty and Bello
The Red Sox are not trading Bello…. and have no need for Baty.
Wally – i think the Mets and Sox could lineup for a trade, but i dont think youre getting Bello for Baty, Mauricio or Vientos
Wally- That would be great for the Mets, but not for the Sox. They need a right handed power bat and that is not Baty.
Still can’t believe Boston legitimately traded Rafael Devers for Jordan Hicks straight up at the MLB level. Kyle Harrison is like 10th on the depth chart
Yup. I still can’t believe that some Sox fans still try to pretend it was a good thing.
Buster fleeced them !
You people just don’t get it. It was never about the players coming back. We dream of blondes and brunettes but Henry has dreams of how to reinvest $300m.
It wasn’t $300M after Hicks, Bregman, and Devers ’25 salary with Boston, all shave into the savings of no paying Devers to be a 1B. Adding Contreras’s money could also be considered.
dewey – Hence the refusal to give NTC. The Raffy extension was a panic move, they never planned on keeping him for a long time.
Cleveland, disregard Bregman’s 25 contract. They did not expect to trade Devers in 25 (probably after 26 or 27). Even $200m, you get the idea. The pattern began when Crawford, Gonzales and Beckett were dealt. The Devers deal was no different.
Fever, while they never planned on keeping Devers as I think you stated when he signed the deal, the trade was not a panic move. They found the opportunity before they expected it and Henry pounced like a cat finding his toy mouse.
dewey – I said the EXTENSION was a panic move, not the trade ;O)
Dewey- I think part of Devers’ future would have been dependent on if they could have continued to pitch him as the face of the franchise. A likable guy always with a smile who can hit 30+ homers every year. If they could have transitioned him to first base sooner in a way that would have kept him in a positive state of mind (telling him he is the next Big Papi), the contract would not have seemed quite as bad.
Obviously things went south last year and they put all their eggs in the Bregman basket which did not have the outcome they would have hoped. My preference would have been to have a happy Devers at first because I think that could have worked. Now they still need to figure out how to replace his bat.
Dewey — Bregman being signed was integral in starting the chain reaction of the avalanche. The drama necessitated a party who could be used to logically justify prying and pushing Devers out from 3B.
Otherwise, there is no justification yet to dump him. Bregman provided a simple answer for all that and therefore must be included in the cost of removing Devers’ guaranteed monies.
Sorry for my mis-reading your post….
Fever still thinks he’s the smartest guy in the room…
Dewey – No worries, all good. We agree the Raffy trade was a necessity.
Cleve – Great point! Definitely need to count Bregman’s $32M against the cost of dumping Raffy’s salary, along with the $26;M for Hicks..
And all the talk about Bregman playing 2B was total crap, he was never gonna play 2B under any situation. Same thing with Cora saying there would be a “competition” during ST for 3B, total crap.
Fever PitchGuy — Yeah, total crap. It was used to justify sending the trojan horse through the gates. This is why ethically this whole situation bothers me. The results may be justified in the end if they win a title. But goodwill and trust has been spilt.
Another domino that need to fall was Campbell’s extension. It specifically filled 2B to quash any discussion Bregman should be the 2B once Devers became healthy.
The Campbell extension was unique because it cleared away doubts off of what was an uneven spring training for him to start at 2B on Opening Day. It also helped quell calls for Anthony to join the roster early.
If Boston held on to Tibbs it’s a fair trade.
But sending him to LA for a few months of May lost them the Devers trade.
Harrison still has value and if you attach him to Hicks and shed all the contract you’re back at ground zero. Not a bad place to be. Boston still has all that salary flexibility.
Dave – currently Harrison carries very little trade value, and certainly not enough to be attached to Hicks.
He didnt come over and exactly dominate Worcester. I know Bailey is high on him, but barring injury he doesnt have a clear path to the starting rotation this year. Best hope is trade deadline craziness.
When and where was Tibbs ever going to play in Boston? Let alone was he even good enough?
or the Sox could just eat the salary and keep Harrison which would be a much better move.
dave – They’ve basically already maxed out for this season though. Only $29M away from the top CBT threshold, not gonna happen. Their bad decisions are coming back to haunt them.
Cleveland, it was trading him to the Dodgers for someone who had nothing to offer in 25 when he could have been used in a different deadline or offseason deal.
FPG – for the past four years I’ve been saying that this idiotic “pay for two years, get one on the mound” theory is both a waste of time AND money. Now look! At least Giolito gave us four months of useful starts. Now, we’re paying Sandoval to NOT start, and, Bres doubled down and picked up Oviedo to move past Sandoval in the depth chart. Could’ve used that salary space…..
Spot on, Dave. The D. May trade, as the clock ticked down at the trade deadline, was pure panic-mode by the Sox FO. What a disastrous move. Keep an eye on that kid, Tibbs.
Dewey — Having no path to play hurts his value in negotiations. In hindsight, yeah the deal wasn’t good with how Dustin May played. The idea of getting in the door on May wasn’t a terrible idea given what he once was billed.
And Muehler’s numbers were better than May after they just released him for nothing. That whole series of events will never make sense to me.
Uncle – Agreed! One of my two complaints about Breslow is the lack of a cohesive multilayered plan of action. DFA’ing Buehler was just flat out dumb. Then renting May to get the same production you would’ve gotten from Buehler(?)
That said, hes done basically the same thing again. Waiting and paying Sandoval, and then as soon as hes ready to pitch trading for Oviedo, why?
Cleveland, when you get experienced starters who last pitched for the Dodgers,!you need to second guess the move.
I assume they feel they were getting someone with a high upside in Oviedo. I am still not sure if getting so much depth in the pitching is more to be prepared for injuries (Sandoval/Kutter not having recovered) or to have trading options. Sandoval was a bit of a head scratcher because they knew one of the years was for recovery so it was quite an investment for at most one year.
Dewey — Red Sox made a connection with a former top prospect. May only signed with the Cardinals for a short period. At least the door could be open in the future. May is still a young guy and could easily turn it around and find success.
dewey – I agree with you again!
Buehler, May, Paxton … I’m sure there’s more, plus relievers like Ramirez.
All were busts.
Last week I was wondering which Dodgers pitcher the Red Sox will acquire at this year’s trade deadline ….. Wrobleski? Treinen? Scott? Miller? Knack?
FPG- I thought that Emmett Sheehan was a potential Dodger for the Sox to trade target. He’s 26, originally from CT.
Uncle- i do think there’s upside with Oviedo, his health is the issue.
The pitching depth also has to be a plus for the team. The problem is paying Sandoval to not pitch
Fever- With Eugenio still available and what looks like limited interest you wonder if the Sox could pick him up for a reasonable short term contract. I know they have already extended themselves more than I would have expected with the signing of the other Suarez and the trades, but they could still unload a pitcher for prospects during spring training. He doesn’t fit the improved defense Breslow has said he is focused on but definitely gives you home run potential.
Sad – You’re correct, but he actually has good potential which means the Sox won’t get him ;O)
Uncle – I’m thinking maybe $44M/2 yrs? I can’t imagine him going much lower than that, even with the big spending teams out of the mix.
Keep the walks down. Which is like saying you need to hit your free throws.
**Larry Andersen says Hi***
as a yankee fan i was thrilled with the devers trade. he went from figuratively out of our league to literally out of our league
Dever’s not gonna age well. Wonder how that contract looks in a couple of years. Not exactly a team player.
The contract will definitely be burdensome in years to come, but Devers was very much willing to go with wherever the Giants played him and it was clear from the initial press conference. He was bitter at the Red Sox organization, but so are many Red Sox fans in general. It can’t be ignored that the Giants did fall flat on their faces after Raffy came on board, so maybe he is a POS in the clubhouse.
Nah. If you were watching them play, it can easily be ignored. There are a thousand reasons why the Giants fell flat. The Devers one is just very very convenient for Red Sox fans hell bent on their “I told you so!”
Provost – without you taking this personally, because I am not saying this to you, but the idea of what Devers is gonna be like in 7 years is one of the dumbest arguments for trading him.
If the Giants win one world series in the next five years, do you think they’re gonna care about year 7 and 8? Spoiler alert, they’re not.
The Blue Jays signed Cease for seven years, they’re rightfully thinking about the 8th inning of Game 7, not the 2032 season and salary
dasit – He’s arguably the greatest Yankee-killer in my lifetime. Should be fun to see what he does in the season-opening series. Cole must be glad he’s starting the season late.
If they can harness his control (and isn’t that why they have coaches), he could be a solid 7th or 8th inning guy. He definitely has the stuff.
wino – That is the most common storyline in baseball …. great arm, throws very hard, can’t find the plate.
Fever, do I get a job if I have one of the three? I don’t need a great arm nor throw hard to miss the plate…
dewey – It’s the allure of trying to “fix” them.
Nobody has ever said “we can add 10MPH on his fastball”, but everybody has said “we can improve his control”.
Fever- I think in the case of Hicks you only have to go back a couple of years and he was a solid pitcher. Even in 2024 he was not bad. With his age it seems like there is still some potential that the right coach might be able to “fix” him. Unfortunately his contract reduces the temptation.
Uncle – You know what’s frustrating? Last year they did finally “fix” Bello, and now they are looking to trade him I guess it’s the “sell high” motto.
Fever, while arm release angle, leg extension and rubber position can all help, typically if one suddenly gets better control, it’s at the expense of giving up MPH.
Fever- I hate the idea of trading Bello. I know he is not an ace, but he is solid for the back of the rotation even if his numbers are not as good as last year. What they do over the next month or so is going to be very telling.
dewey – Agreed! No different than a hitter making contact more often when they don’t swing the fences.
BTW – Have you noticed how often we’ve agreed recently ;O)
Uncle – Based on last season, I think it’s possible he could become a Top 30 SP this season.
FPG – I dont want to trade Bello either, especially not for Paredes.
I think that would be a terrible move. I just don’t think Paredes would add enough to the team to lose an important part of the rotation. He doesn’t seem like he would be a significant enough upgrade to the in house options.
I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s someone like Paredes for Abreu and Hicks. Something like that
Astros71- there’s question as to where Paredes is going to play for the ‘Stros, I dont think that bringing back 2 players. Maybe straight up for Hicks, no money involved
Who is doing Paredes for Hicks?
Astros71- neither team is doing it, thats my point. The Sox aren’t looking to bail the Astros out of their predicament with having one extra infielder any more than the Stros are gonna take Hicks’ contract.
So, not only does it not work at its foundation, but you we’re also asking for Abreu……
You must be reading Ari Alexander right? I would rather keep Paredes than trade Bryan Abreu and Paredes for Wilyer Abreu, if that’s all you want.
But Paredes will help the Red Sox. If the Red Sox were really looking to bail out the Astros, they would take on Walker’s contract by the way.
It’s not a clean roster fit but they don’t -need- to trade Paredes at all, they’re certainly not dumping him for a bad contract. The Red Sox’ infield situation is the one that needs bailing out. I think 71’s suggestion is that the Astros could eat Hicks’ contract as a bonus to push across a Paredes for Abreu/Duran swap.
Taking Hicks would mean crossing the CBT unless we then find a way to make Sanchez go away.
Chandler, who is the HOF player? Mookie wasn’t traded for Hicks…
On behalf of all Giant fans , we want to thank Red Sox nation.
Ur welcome. And on behalf of Devers albatross contract ur welcome
Ha ha. I’m pretty sure they will cope with that “albatross” contract. Too funny. Giants have been trying to sign one of them albatross contracts for years.
fopp – If Raffy can manage to stay healthy and play even just a passable 1B, his contract will turn into a bargain. Final year is his Age 36 season, it’s not like Xander whose contract runs through Age 40.
Exactly. 36 is ok. The proviso is he has to look after himself.
While I agree the contract seemed like an overpay, I think we need to give it a few more years before we declare it an albatross. If he ends up as an adequate first baseman and continues to put up the offensive numbers, it may end up being reasonable the way these contracts are going.
Uncle – To put it in perspective, since 2019 Raffy has 25.6 WAR and .872 OPS
During that same time Alonso has 23.3 WAR and an .857 OPS
During that same time Schwarber has 16.7 WAR, and 858 OPS.
Alonso is making $31M AAV
Schwarber is making $30M AAV
Raffy is making $29M AAV
Fever- Also Devers is the youngest of the bunch. I would not be surprised if he ends up with a greater value at first than Alonso. We need to see how he handles a full year at the position, but I think he will be adequate.
Alonso will likely end up as the worst contract of the three over the next 5 years as I expect he will soon be relegated to DH and he can be inconsistent with his bat (not that I would have been upset if the Sox got him because he would give that immediate boost to the offense with his power).
You know Schwarber is a DH at this point and I think he will age well as an offensive player so you are getting what you paid for.
Uncle – I’ve listened intently to several guys who actually did make the switch from 3B to 1B in the majors, and they all strongly believe Raffy will be a very good 1B.
Loomer really breaks it down on TC’s podcast, such as the fact Raffy was strong with balls to his right but struggled mightily with balls to his left …. something that wouldn’t impact him much playing 1B. Same thing with bad throws, the 1B doesn’t make many throws. It all makes sense why Raffy would do well at 1B, and why Red Sox scouts and management pegged Raffy as a 1B even before he was signed as a teenager.
There were those that were tricked through ignorance, those whom willingly followed blindly out of “loyalty”, and those who were appalled. You can’t ever get leaders to be accountable if there are even some who follow along providing enough voice to counter the truth. Trading Devers was covered by those who appease, applaud, and apologize on behalf of Henry. It was the same with previous egregious trades.
One of the many bad contracts Farhan Zaidi handed out.
I’m glad they traded him. Let him rot in SF. Terrible town for a terrible teammate.
TBaggins- pretty harsh for a guy that started with a team when he was 16, and then had the carpet pulled out from underneath him
After he pooped on it…
Be careful what you wish for…
Can he hit? Put him at second base. That way they’d have the Hicks up. Good night.
lol – might be able to get some office supplies for him
hicks’ only bad year, really, was last year. i wouldn’t have no hope for him.
ray – We are talking Jordan Hicks, not Liam Hicks.
Jordan’s only good year was 2019.
His last two seasons he’s got a 1.531 WHIP …. that is horrendous.
I haven’t been following hick but his #s look rough. I thought he looked pretty good at first when he was converted back to a sp but I think it’s time to go back to the pen forever if he wasn’t already
Devers isn’t going to be a hall of famer. He never was.
bass – He’s on pace to be, it could go either way. Health will be a huge factor.
The guy is still in his 20’s and already has 235 HR. The 500 Club is definitely within reach.
I wonder if Craig Brealow’s calendar is stuck in December.