- There’s still no clarity on the status of Red Sox righty Carson Smith, who has been working back from Tommy John surgery. But president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and manager John Farrell weren’t exactly brimming with confidence yesterday, as Jen McCaffrey of MassLive.com reports. It has now been ten days since Smith last threw, and he’ll be evaluated by medical personnel before picking up a baseball again. At this point, there’s no clear timetable for Smith to make it back to the majors, though Farrell says the organization has “not closed the book in a sense on anything Carson can contribute this year.”
Red Sox Rumors
Red Sox Sign Jhonny Peralta
The Red Sox have agreed to a minors deal with veteran infielder Jhonny Peralta, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe was among those to tweet. He’ll report to Triple-A for the time being, where he’ll line up at third base and attempt to give the organization another option at that area of need.
Boston has struggled to find a solution at the hot corner this year. The ineffective Pablo Sandoval, currently on the DL with an inner-ear infection, seems likely to undertake a rehab assignment and join Peralta at Triple-A. It remains to be seen how the club will ultimately handle things at the major league level when both are ready, and a deadline move still seems plausible as well.
Peralta, 35, was cut loose recently by the Cardinals after a rough start to the season. He failed to record an extra-base hit in 58 plate appearances while reaching base at a meager .259 clip. Once a quality defender at short, in spite of limited ranger, Peralta has also seen his defensive ratings slip in recent years.
Previously, of course, Peralta was long an everyday regular. That included a run with the Tigers, then run by current Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. Boston also added former Detroit stalwart Doug Fister today. Boston will only owe Peralta a pro-rated portion of the league-minimum salary for any time he spends in the majors, with the Cards responsible for the rest of the $10MM he’s owed in 2017.
Red Sox Claim Doug Fister Off Release Waivers
1:15pm: Cotillo tweets that Fister will be added directly to the Red Sox’ Major League roster.
12:40pm: The Red Sox have claimed righty Doug Fister off release waivers, reports SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter links). The signing is a reunion of sorts for Fister, who previously spent two and a half seasons with the Tigers when Dave Dombrowski was Detroit’s general manager. Because he was claimed off release waivers, Fister will have the option to reject the claim and hit free agency, though he’d be turning a way a spot on Boston’s 40-man roster, so that route seems unlikely.
By making the claim, the Red Sox are agreeing to take on Fister’s existing contract, which came with a $1.75MM salary (pro-rated) for any time spent in the Majors, Cotillo reported at the time of the signing. He can also earn up to $1MM worth of incentives based on games started or $200K based on relief work, per the associated press. It’s not clear whether Fister will head to Triple-A or join Boston’s big league staff, though he is tuned up to the point where he could conceivably step into manager John Farrell’s rotation.
Fister made three starts with the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate, totaling 15 2/3 innings with 10 strikeouts against five walks. Of course, most of his success came in his first minor league outing (five innings, one run on four hits and a walk with seven strikeouts). Fister was hit a bit harder in his second and third outings, yielding six runs in 10 2/3 innings with more walks (four) than punchouts (three).
Fister, though, has a lengthy track record of success in the big leagues and should provide some depth to a rotation that currently has options Steven Wright, Eduardo Rodriguez, Brian Johnson and Roenis Elias on the disabled list. While it’s been a few years since he posted above-average marks as a starter, Fister did take the ball for 32 starts as a member of the 2016 Astros, working to a 4.64 ERA across 180 1/3 innings in the Houston rotation.
Red Sox Have Room To Add Without Hitting Luxury Tax
- The Red Sox should be able to add about $9MM to their payroll this summer without crossing the luxury tax barrier, per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe. While around $2MM of that sum could be set aside for the salary that’ll need to be paid for internal promotions, Boston should have the remaining funds to address one, if not two needs, provided they don’t break the bank for a starting pitcher. Speier again lists Todd Frazier as a possibility, and Heyman linked the Red Sox to the Royals’ Mike Moustakas in his aforementioned column. Feinsand notes that Boston is indeed “in the market” for third base help as well, with Pablo Sandoval back on the DL and not playing well even when on the field.
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Red Sox Outright Kyle Kendrick
The Red Sox have outrighted right-hander Kyle Kendrick off of their 40-man roster, Evan Drellich of CSNNE.com reports on Twitter. He will remain at Triple-A Pawtucket, however, suggesting he has already cleared waivers.
Kendrick, 32, was previously optioned after making two rough starts at the major league level for Boston. He consented to that move and evidently wishes to continue on with the organization despite now losing his 40-man spot. It’s not yet known what the team will do with the new roster opening.
Over 54 2/3 innings through nine starts at Triple-A, Kendrick owns a 5.93 ERA with 6.1 K/9 against 1.3 BB/9. His most recent substantial work at the MLB level came with the Rockies in 2015, when he turned in 142 1/3 frames of 6.32 ERA ball.
Red Sox Expected To Land Top Venezuelan Prospect
- It seems the Red Sox are positioned to land the top Venezuelan prospect when the new July 2nd signing period opens, Ben Badler of Baseball America writes. Catcher Daniel Flores draws rare praise for his skills behind the dish. And while there’s still some work to do with the bat, Badler says there’s still power to be tapped into for the switch-hitter. You’ll want to read the entire post for a full sense of just why Flores is seen as such a special prospect. It seems Boston could return to the international market with a bang after finishing a one-year ban on bonus pool-limited signings.
Red Sox Sign First-Rounder Tanner Houck
The Red Sox have signed first-round selection Tanner Houck, per a club announcement. He’ll earn a $2,614,500 bonus, per MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter), the exact slot value of the 24th overall pick.
Houck is a 20-year-old righty out of the University of Missouri. Entering the draft, he drew varying assessments from pundits, ranking as high as 20th (on the MLB.com board) and as low as 40th (from Eric Longenhagen of Fangraphs).
The debate is a familiar one: will Houck stick in the rotation or end up as a reliever? In this case, the question stems from his unorthodox arm angle and lack of polish on his offspeed offerings. But he’s working from a big fastball (in terms of both velocity and movement), with some promise to his oft-utilized slider and still-developing change.
Boston seems to believe that Houck has a legitimate chance of reaching his lofty ceiling. Even if he ends up working in relief, though, the 20-year-old could perhaps turn into a compelling late-inning arm in relatively short order.
Red Sox Notes: Sandoval, Devers
Tim Britton of the Providence Journal takes a look at where the Red Sox’ contract with Pablo Sandoval stands historically in comparison to other large contracts. As might be expected, it doesn’t fare well at this stage of the analysis. While there’s still time for the former star to add back value, it seems likelier than ever that he won’t hold onto a roster spot for the rest of the season. (Currently, Sandoval is taking a DL stint for an inner ear infection.) As things stand, says Britton, Sandoval has posted the worst performance (by measure of WAR) of any player to sign a deal in excess of $90MM.
- Sandoval’s struggles have helped frame the trade deadline for the Red Sox, as third base presently stands as a glaring need. But there is perhaps one other possibility: top prospect Rafael Devers, who has hit well at Double-A. Boston, presumably, would want to have a look at Devers in the majors before deciding whether to forgo a significant outside addition. That won’t happen immediately, though; per skipper John Farrell, via Rob Bradford of WEEI.com (on Twitter), Devers’s next promotion will be to Triple-A Pawtucket, not to the majors. With less than six weeks to go until the trade deadline, this raises the question whether the club is seriously considering Devers as the near-term answer at third. That said, it’s possible to imagine that Boston will hold out such a possibility while also moving to add a veteran piece at the hot corner, perhaps preferring a player who could also see time elsewhere on the diamond (in the middle infield, at first, or even in the outfield) over a pure third bagger.
Red Sox Place Pablo Sandoval On 10-Day DL
The saga of Pablo Sandoval has taken another interesting turn, as the Red Sox announced today that he has been placed on the 10-day DL with an inner ear infection. The underperforming veteran has long been rumored as a candidate to be replaced, but the move at least buys the team some time to plot its next steps.
Boston also announced that righty Austin Maddox was optioned back to Triple-A. First baseman Sam Travis and infielder Deven Marrero will come up to take the open spots on the active roster.
Sandoval, 30, now owns a .212/.269/.354 slash through 108 plate appearances. That’s obviously far shy of the kind of output the Sox need from a regular third baseman. And if he’s not capable of manning that spot with some regularity, there’s not much function to keeping him around.
Of course, there’s more to it than just that. The Red Sox owe Sandoval $17MM this year, $18MM apiece in 2018 and 2019, and then a $5MM buyout on a 2020 option. While the club is obviously going to pay that regardless, it would no doubt prefer to hold out the possibility of receiving some return on its investment.
Indeed, there seems to be a sense within the organization that there’s still some glimmer of hope for Sandoval after he worked hard to get in shape over the winter and showed well this spring. And it’s not as if the in-house replacement options are terribly appealing, either. Marrero will likely pair with Josh Rutledge at third, at least once Dustin Pedroia is able to return at second, while Travis will offer an alternative another right-handed bat for the first base/DH mix.
Eduardo Rodriguez Nearing Rehab Assignment
- While the Red Sox wait to learn more about the status of second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who took a pitch to the ribcage on Sunday, the club has continued to receive good news on lefty Eduardo Rodriguez. As Rob Bradford of WEEI.com tweets, skipper John Farrell says that Rodriguez will face live hitters this week and possibly head out for a rehab assignment thereafter.
