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Cubs Designate Mark Leiter Jr. For Assignment

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The Cubs announced Friday that right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. has been designated for assignment. His spot on the roster will go to first baseman Eric Hosmer, whose one-year contract is now official.

Leiter, 32 in March, was drafted by the Phillies in 2013 and made his way up to the majors by 2017. He got into 47 games over the 2017 and 2018 seasons, mostly with Philly but also a brief stint with the Blue Jays after a waiver claim. He posted a 5.53 ERA over that two-year stretch with a subpar 20.5% strikeout rate but a strong 48.2% ground ball rate.

He was outrighted off the Jays’ roster and then required Tommy John surgery in the spring of 2019, which put him on the shelf for a while. He pitched well in the minor leagues of the Tigers’ system in 2021 but didn’t get called up to the big leagues. A minor league deal with the Cubs allowed him to return to the majors last season. He spent the year being shuttled to Triple-A and back, posting a solid 3.99 ERA over 67 2/3 innings with the Cubs, striking out 25.9% of batters faced, walking 8.9% of them and getting grounders on 48.9% of balls in play.

Despite those solid results last year, there are reasons the Cubs are moving on. Leiter’s earned runs were likely kept down somewhat by a .251 batting average on balls in play, almost 40 points below league average. He’s also now out of options, giving him less value from a roster maneuverability perspective. However, if some club is intrigued enough to give Leiter a roster spot, he’ll come with some cheap control since he has just over two years of MLB service time.

Cubs In Agreement With Eric Hosmer

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January 4: Hosmer and the Cubs are now in agreement, per Jesse Rogers of ESPN.

January 3: The Cubs and first baseman Eric Hosmer are close to a deal, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post.

Hosmer, 33, had the good fortune of having the best season of his career just as he entered free agency. He hit .318/.385/.498 in 2017, his last season with the Royals, leading to a wRC+ of 135 that indicates he was 35% better than the league average hitter. He was worth 3.8 wins above replacement that year in the eyes of FanGraphs, with that mark and his wRC+ from that season still standing out as his career best.

Prior to the 2018 season, Hosmer signed an eight-year, $144MM deal with the Padres that went beyond most predictions. That overpay became even more stark once Hosmer’s production dipped with his new team. Since signing that deal, he’s hit .265/.325/.409 for a wRC+ of 100, exactly league average. Though he has four Gold Glove awards, advanced defensive metrics are far less enamoured with his work in the field. All of Defensive Runs Saved, Ultimate Zone Rating and Outs Above Average consider him to be a below-average first baseman for his career. Taken all together, he’s essentially been a replacement-level player over the past five seasons, with his fWAR tally at 0.3 in that time.

Given his large contract and diminished performance, Hosmer’s name has popped up in trade talks for years. The Padres weren’t able to line anything up until this summer. They originally included Hoz in the Juan Soto deal but he used his limited no-trade clause to block that from happening. Luke Voit was put into that deal instead but the Friars then flipped him to Boston along with a couple of prospects, with pitching prospect Jay Groome going the other way. San Diego had to agree to eat all of Hosmer’s remaining salary except for the league minimum in order to get that done.

The Sox promoted young prospect Triston Casas down the stretch and were encouraged enough by his debut to release Hosmer after just a couple of months in Fenway. That left Hosmer free to sign with any team for the league minimum, with the Padres still on the hook for the three remaining years of the deal. The Cubs have seemingly stepped up to be that team. The fit is a fairly logical one for the Cubs, since there’s no real risk for them. If he can make any sort of turnaround towards his previous form, it would be a nice bonus. If not, they’ve made no commitment to him and can simply release him again whenever they want.

The Cubs had no real everyday first baseman in 2022, with the playing time scattered between Alfonso Rivas, Frank Schwindel, P.J. Higgins, Patrick Wisdom and some other role players. Aside from Wisdom, who can also play third base, they all had disappointing years and are no longer on the team’s roster. Higgins and Rivas were both designated for assignment last month while Schwindel is heading to Japan this year.

Arguably, the best in-house option the club has is prospect Matt Mervis. An undrafted free agent who had drawn little attention this time a year ago, he shot up prospect rankings with a monster showing in 2022. He began the season in High-A and completely mashed, producing a batting line of .350/.389/.650, wRC+ of 189. He got bumped to Double-A and hit .300/.370/.596 for a wRC+ of 148. After moving to Triple-A, his line was .297/.383/.593, 152 wRC+. Incredibly, his walk rate improved from 4.6% to 8.7% to 10.4% as he moved up the ladder, while his strikeout rate fell from 24.1% to 20% to 14.6%. The Cubs decided to keep the good times rolling by sending him to the Arizona Fall League, where he hit .262/.324/.590 in 17 games.

Though Hosmer’s addition blocks Mervis from the everyday job in a sense, it also shouldn’t prevent Mervis from seizing it at some point. As mentioned, Hosmer can be jettisoned at any time with no real repercussions for the Cubs. If Mervis seems like the better option, either in Spring Training or later, it should be a fairly easy swap to make. If Mervis struggles to carry forward the momentum from his excellent 2022, Hosmer gives the club a passable veteran to hold down the fort.

The Orioles were also connected to Hosmer since his release from Boston, but they will have to look elsewhere, assuming the deal with the Cubs gets finalized. The O’s have been looking for lefty bats to work into their first base/corner outfield/designated hitter mix and seem to be focused on low-cost options. They’ve signed Nomar Mazara and Franchy Cordero to minor league deals and also claimed Lewin Díaz off waivers, though they later designated Díaz for assignment and traded him to the Braves. A similar situation played out with Jake Cave, who was claimed off waivers from the Twins but then lost to the Phillies on a subsequent waiver claim. Earlier today, the O’s acquired Ryan O’Hearn from the Royals, adding another option into the mix.

Cubs, Orioles Interested In Eric Hosmer

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TODAY: It “looks promising” that Hosmer and the Cubs might work out an agreement, Heyman tweets.

DECEMBER 30: Free agent first baseman Eric Hosmer is “on the radar” of the Cubs and Orioles, per a report from Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Hosmer is a free agent after being released by the Red Sox earlier this off-season.

2022 was a challenging year for Hosmer. He was hitting .272/.336/.391 for the Padres at the deadline when they made their move to acquire Juan Soto and Josh Bell from the Nationals. Hosmer was originally part of the return going to Washington, but he exercised his limited no-trade clause to veto that deal. The Padres pushed ahead and ultimately sent Luke Voit to the Nationals instead, and flipped Hosmer (and his remaining salary bar the league minimum) to Boston with prospects Corey Rosier and Max Ferguson in exchange for Jay Groome.

Things didn’t pan out in Boston, as Hosmer hit .244/.320/.311 over 50 plate appearances before landing on the injured list with lower back inflammation and missing the remainder of the season. Given San Diego were paying almost all of his salary, there seemed a chance that Hosmer would remain with Boston in some capacity moving forward. However, the team DFA’d him earlier this month, opening up first base for rookie Triston Casas. There were reports that the Red Sox were trying to trade him prior to the DFA, but they evidently found little interest and Hosmer ultimately found his way back onto the open market.

While it’s been a slightly rocky road for Hosmer lately, and his eight-year, $144MM deal with the Padres has not panned out as planned, he can still be a productive player for a lot of teams. That’s particularly true when considering the fact that the Padres are still on the hook for his $13MM salaries over the next three seasons, and any new team would only have to pay him the league minimum rate for any time spent on the active roster.

Since 2020, Hosmer has slashed .271/.335/.407 with 29 home runs, good for a wRC+ 107. That’s a bit of a drop off from his best years but still represents an above-average player. He’s sacrificed a bit of power in that time, but has lowered his strikeout rate a bit from previous seasons.

The Orioles do make a fair bit of sense as a landing spot for Hosmer. As things stand, the right-handed Ryan Mountcastle is slated to handle the bulk of the reps at first base, with no clear option at DH. Hosmer, a left-handed hitter, could give them another first base/DH option to deepen their lineup, and provide manager Brandon Hyde with another option to tweak the lineup depending on matchups. With a young roster looking to take the next step towards contention, adding a World Series-winning veteran like Hosmer certainly wouldn’t hurt in the clubhouse either.

The Cubs also make sense as an option for Hosmer. They’ve already been linked with free agent first base options Trey Mancini and Dominic Smith this winter, so it comes as no surprise that Hosmer would be on their radar as well. The Cubs have been busy this winter, but Matt Mervis and Patrick Wisdom stand as the likeliest in-house candidates to man first base/DH in 2023, so adding a bona fide first baseman like Hosmer makes plenty of sense.

While both the Cubs and Orioles do make sense for Hosmer, it’s worth noting that there’s a fair few teams that would make some sense on paper, particularly at the minimal cost. The Cubs and Orioles do, however, present as two teams that have a clear path to regular playing time for Hosmer and are aiming to compete in 2023.

Red Sox Release Eric Hosmer

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December 22: As expected, Hosmer has been released, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.

December 16: The Red Sox have acquired right-hander Wyatt Mills from the Royals in exchange for minor league righty Jacob Wallace and opened a spot on the roster by designating first baseman Eric Hosmer for assignment, per a team announcement.

Hosmer came to the Sox in a deadline deal just a few months ago. The Padres signed him to an eight-year, $144MM contract going into 2018, a deal that most observers considered an overpay from the moment it was announced. Hosmer’s production dipped thereafter, which only added to the albatross nature of the deal.

In 2017, his last year with the Royals, Hosmer hit .318/.385/.498 for a wRC+ of 135, indicating that he was 35% better than league average. But in his first season as a Padre, he produced a line of .253/.322/.398 for a wRC+ of 95. Apart from a surge in the shortened 2020 campaign, he’s been around league average in each season and frequently mentioned in trade rumors with San Diego hoping to get rid of him. As the deadline approached this past summer, Hosmer was originally included in the blockbuster deal that was to send Juan Soto and Josh Bell to San Diego. However, Hosmer had a limited no-trade clause that included the Nationals, allowing him to veto the deal. Instead, Luke Voit was sent to Washington in his place, but the Padres then quickly dealt Hosmer to the Red Sox, who were not on his no-trade list.

As part of that deal, the Red Sox would only have to pay Hosmer the league minimum salary, with the Padres remaining on the hook for the rest of it. With this move just a few months later, it seems the trade was more about the young players involved, as Boston sent pitching prospect Jay Groome to the Padres but received a couple prospects as well in Corey Rosier and Max Ferguson. It’s also possible that the club viewed Hosmer as a bit of a safety net at first base, where Bobby Dalbec had been struggling and prospect Triston Casas had yet to reach the majors. Casas was called up in September and launched five home runs down the stretch as well as walking in 20% of his plate appearances, leading to a batting line of .197/.358/.408, wRC+ of 120. Perhaps that debut gave them enough confidence to proceed without Hosmer.

Whatever the motivation, Hosmer’s time in Boston seems likely to end after just 14 games. The club will have one week to trade him or put him on waivers, though a trade will be difficult to arrange. As part of Hosmer’s contract, he gained a full no-trade clause after being dealt by the Padres. It’s also possible that a team might have interest in claiming Hosmer off release waivers, as his minimal salary would create a no-risk scenario for the claiming club. However, players on release waivers are allowed to reject claims and elect free agency, which likely means no team would bother putting in a claim. It seems the most likely scenario is that Hosmer ends up released and returns to the open market.

Though he hasn’t produced more than 0.8 fWAR in any season since 2017, it’s likely some teams that need help at first base or designated hitter would have some interest. The Padres are on the hook for the $39MM owed to Hosmer over the next three years and any team that signs him would only have to pay him the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster, with that amount subtracted from what the Padres pay.

Over the last three seasons, his batting line is .271/.335/.407 for a wRC+ of 107, or 7% above league average. That doesn’t lead to a lot of value overall as he is generally graded as a poor defender, but it’s possible he could find a bit of uptick at the plate next year. The upcoming rules on defensive shifts are expected to primarily benefit left-handed hitters like Hosmer, as teams stack the right side of the infield with defenders. Hosmer’s worst trait as a hitter is his incredibly high ground ball tendencies, as his career rate is 54.5%. For reference, this year’s league average as 42.9%.

Many of the top first baseman from this winter’s free agent class have already been signed, with José Abreu, Josh Bell and Anthony Rizzo off the board. For clubs still looking for upgrades there, Hosmer will likely join the remaining options, such as Trey Mancini, Brandon Drury, Matt Carpenter, Wil Myers and Brandon Belt.

As for the other players involved in today’s announcement, Mills, 28 next month, was designated for assignment by the Royals when they signed Ryan Yarbrough earlier this week. The Royals had only acquired him a few months earlier as part of the Carlos Santana trade. He tossed 29 1/3 innings for the Royals with a 4.60 ERA, but the Red Sox are likely more interested in his minor league numbers. In 33 2/3 Triple-A innings this year, he posted a 2.14 ERA while striking out 29.9% of batters faced, though he also walked 12.7% of them. He still has an option year remaining, giving them an intriguing depth option with roster flexibility.

Wallace, 24, was drafted by the Rockies but came to the Red Sox as the player to be named later in the Kevin Pillar trade. He spent this year in Double-A, tossing 56 2/3 innings with a 3.81 ERA and 30.4% strikeout rate, though a huge 19.6% walk rate.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

AL East Notes: Blue Jays’ Catchers, Yoshida, Red Sox

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All off-season it’s seemed a matter of when not if the Blue Jays trade one of their three catchers – Alejandro Kirk, Danny Jansen and Gabriel Moreno. According to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, the Blue Jays were open to trading Jansen to bring in a starting pitcher, but after landing Chris Bassitt on a three-year, $63MM deal Feinsand reports that a trade is no certainty now.

In any event, Toronto is in a strong negotiating position as there’s a few paths they could go down. The clear top two free agent options – Willson Contreras and Christian Vazquez – are off the board, while the Braves have acquired Sean Murphy, making the Blue Jays the clear and obvious fit for any catcher-hungry teams. They could also opt to carry three catchers on the active roster, cycling players through the DH spot, or option Moreno back to Triple-A and go with a Kirk-Jansen tandem to begin the year at least.

The additions of Bassitt to the rotation and Kevin Kiermaier to the outfield decrease the clear needs for the Blue Jays to address this winter, but in a competitive AL East, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them ultimately opt to pursue further upgrades, whether via trade or free agency. As Jon Heyman of the New York Post notes, the Jays were finalists for Masataka Yoshida (the Dodgers were the other finalist) before he signed for the Red Sox. It’s not clear whether the Kiermaier signing arose because they missed out on Yoshida, or whether they tried to sign both, but given the former’s injury history and declining production it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them seek another outfielder.

Boston’s signing of Yoshida addressed the need to upgrade their offense following the departure of Xander Bogaerts to San Diego. It also likely spelled the end of any chance of Eric Hosmer, who was DFA’d yesterday, receiving regular at bats. The Red Sox look to have locked in youngster Triston Casas as their everyday first-baseman moving forward, while Yoshida (and others) could well take a few DH at bats as the Red Sox cycle through their outfielders. Boston’s chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom addressed the DFA of Hosmer to Chris Cotillo of MassLive.

“Our roster isn’t complete yet, but as we build our club, we feel it’s important to give Triston a clear lane, and that carrying two left-handed hitting first basemen would leave us short in other areas. Given that, it’s important to do right by Eric and give him time to find his next opportunity. We knew when we first got him that this day would come at some point, and wanted to make sure we treated him right.”

Cotillo also reports that the Red Sox tried hard to trade Hosmer prior to DFA’ing him, but found minimal interest in the league. Hosmer did receive a full no-trade clause as part of the trade that sent him from San Diego to Boston at the deadline, but Cotillo’s report said that the lack of trade interest meant the no-trade clause didn’t even come into play. The Red Sox can still trade him while he’s on waivers, but it seems likely he’d be released onto the open market.

While an outgoing trade of Hosmer seems unlikely, the team is working on incomings, and recently asked the Marlins about Miguel Rojas, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Rojas was one of the top defensive shortstops in the sport last season, and as Rosenthal notes, the Marlins value that defense and rebuffed Boston’s inquiry. Rojas is under contract for one more year at an affordable $5MM salary.

Analyzing Boston’s First Base Decision

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Following an unexpected 2021 run that nearly culminated in a World Series berth, the Red Sox found themselves watching this year’s playoffs at home after finishing at the bottom of the AL East. One key area of criticism for the team was their production at first base. With four different players having at least 50 at-bats at the position, Boston struggled to a collective .210/.294/.369 slash line that ranked third-lowest in batting average, sixth-lowest in on-base percentage, seventh-lowest in slugging percentage, and resulted in wRC+ of 85, the fourth-lowest league-wide. This came only a year after Boston’s first basemen slashed a respectable .235/.310/.463, with a boosted .266/.366/.560 line during the second half of the season following the mid-season acquisition of slugger Kyle Schwarber (.291/.435/.522) and the seeming breakout of Bobby Dalbec (.269/.344/.611).

As discussed in MLBTR’s Offseason Outlook, Boston faces an interesting decision as the team looks to return to playoff contention in 2023. Currently, the Red Sox have four first basemen on their 40-Man roster: rookie Triston Casas, former top-prospect Bobby Dalbec, 1B/OF Franchy Cordero, and veteran Eric Hosmer. As free agency progresses, it’s plausible that at least one of these players loses their spot on the roster before Spring Training.

Starting with the obvious candidate to earn the bulk of playing time in Boston next season, September call-up Triston Casas. Selected by the Red Sox in the first round of the 2018 draft (26th overall), Casas profiles as an above-average hitter who peppers the ball across the entire field. After hitting .273/.382/.481 with 11 homers in Triple-A Worcester during the 2022 season, Casas made his major league debut. The 22-year-old showed promise in his limited at-bats, hitting .197/.358/.408 with five homers in 76 at-bats. Despite his weak batting average, he demonstrated tremendous plate disciple, walking at a 20% clip (compared to the 8.2% league average) while striking out at a slightly elevated rate (24.2% compared to 22.4%).

Casas is controllable through the 2028 season and will not be arbitration eligible until after the 2025 season, making him a favorite to potentially hold down first base in Boston for the better part of the decade.

Another front-runner to remain on the 2023 roster is righty Bobby Dalbec. Like Casas, Dalbec was a top prospect who made a promising debut late in the 2020 season, slashing .264/.359/.600 with eight home runs in 80 at-bats. Given these strong numbers, Dalbec was handed first base to start the 2021 season but struggled, hitting a weaker .219/.264/.409 during the first half of the season. His floundering led Boston to trade for reinforcement in the form of Kyle Schwarber.

However, the trade for Schwarber led to a boost in production from the youngster, with Dalbec hitting a resounding .269/.344/.611 during the second half of the season. Dalbec pointed to Schwarber as a source of his production, saying that the veteran helped him “get through the ball more” and allowed him to “pull the ball more instead of trying to force it out there” before more directly saying that Schwarber was “big for me,” per Khari Thompson of Boston.com.

On the heels of a strong end to his 2021 season, Dalbec was once again penciled in as the Red Sox first baseman and, once again, struggled. Over the first half of the season, Dalbec hit a paltry .205/.286/.344 with a high 31.3% strikeout rate. Following the All-Star break, he showed minor improvements, hitting .237/.277/.430, albeit with a mammoth 38.6% strikeout rate.

With just over two years of service time and a fraction of his 2020 trade value, the Red Sox will likely opt to keep the 27-year-old with the organization. Dalbec has two option years remaining, meaning that the Sox can send him to Triple-A Worcester without having to pass him through waivers and risk losing him to another organization.

Franchy Cordero began the 2022 season in Worcester but was called up in late April after veteran Travis Shaw began the season 0 for 19 with seven strikeouts. He spent most of the season in Boston, accruing 275 plate appearances and slashing a respectable .219/.300/.397 before suffering a right ankle sprain in early September and landing on the 60-day IL.

It was Cordero’s second season with the Sox, joining the team in the Andrew Benintendi trade with Kansas. During the second half of the season, the 28-year-old hit an interesting .191/305/.490 with two homers. MLBTR’s Offseason Outlook has flagged Cordero as a potential non-tender candidate with the six-season veteran projected to earn $1.5M through arbitration.

The last first base option currently on the Red Sox 40-Man is veteran Eric Hosmer. Acquired from the Padres along with prospects at the trade deadline, Hosmer is earning $39MM through the 2025 season, but San Diego is covering all but the league minimum MLB salary.

Since signing his now-infamous deal with the Padres, Hosmer has hit .265/.325/.410, a notable regression from his .292/.351/.449 line over his last five seasons with the Royals. He has had a poor start to his Boston career thus far, hitting .244/.320/.311 in 45 at-bats, but brings playoff experience and veteran leadership to a relatively inexperienced first base corp. Hosmer is also a four-time Gold Glove winner and could be used as a late-game defensive substitute and mentor to Casas before potentially being DFA’d later in the season if the Red Sox need a roster spot, speculatively speaking.

Returning to a general discussion, it is relevant to note that out of the four listed players, only Dalbec possesses a right-handed bat. Additionally, Dalbec has been a stronger hitter against southpaws, batting an above-average .268/.333/.522 against them (compared to .212/.278/.418 against righties) and may carve out a platoon role with the left-handed hitting Casas. Moreover, Cordero is the only player in the group that will be earning a “significant salary” (MLBTR projects him to earn $1.5MM), with Hosmer’s contract paid down to the league minimum by the Padres and Dalbec and Casas not yet reaching arbitration.

Lastly, with the Red Sox opting not to tender designated hitter J.D. Martinez a qualifying offer, Boston now has an open spot in their starting lineup. The team is expected to be active in the free agent market, but it is also plausible that they do not make any big exclusive DH addition and instead use the position to situationally rest players. If this is the case, there is a greater chance that all members of the quartet remain on the roster.

Eric Hosmer Won’t Exercise Opt-Out Clause

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In one of the most obvious opt-out decisions in recent memory, Red Sox first baseman Eric Hosmer will forgo his opportunity to return to the open market, tweets Jon Heyman of the New York Post. He’s now locked into the final three years and $39MM of the contract, although the Sox are only on the hook for the league minimum in each of the next three seasons. The Padres are paying the remainder of Hosmer’s salary each season under the terms of the deadline trade that sent him to Boston.

The eight-year, $144MM contract Hosmer signed with San Diego prior to the 2018 season went south almost immediately. A then-27-year-old Hosmer posted a massive .318/.385/.498 slash and swatted 25 homers for the second consecutive season in 2017 — his final year with the Royals, who originally drafted him No. 3 overall in 2008. That led to the aforementioned eight-year deal for Hosmer, but his offensive production cratered in year one with the Friars, as he hit just .253/.322/.398 in his first year with the team.

Over the first five seasons of that nine-figure contract, Hosmer has been exactly average at the plate, by measure of wRC+. He’s hit .265/.325/.409 and averaged 18 home runs and 30 doubles per 162 games played. Hosmer hasn’t necessarily been a bad hitter, but his $18MM annual salary was promised to him under the assumption that he’d continue on as a well above-average, middle-of-the-order hitter.

That simply hasn’t been the case, due in large part to the fact that Hosmer’s bloated ground-ball rate with the Royals actually got even higher with the Friars. Since signing in San Diego, 56.5% of Hosmer’s batted balls have been hit on the ground — the fourth-highest mark among 315 qualified MLB hitters in that stretch. Perhaps the limitations on infield shifts that are coming in 2023 will help Hosmer in that regard, but his repeated inability to elevate the ball will continue to suppress his power output.

The Padres traded Hosmer and a pair of minor leaguers (Corey Rosier and Max Ferguson) to the Red Sox in exchange for former first-round pick Jay Groome, agreeing to pay Hosmer’s salary down to the league minimum as part of the contract. Hosmer also was granted a full no-trade clause as part of that deal, so he’ll have the final say on whether he’ll remain in Boston through 2025 unless the Sox ultimately release him. For now, he’ll give the Red Sox a cost-effective veteran first baseman or perhaps designated hitter, dependent on when the team is ready to give top prospect Triston Casas a full-time look in the big leagues.

Eric Hosmer Gained Full No-Trade Rights With Deal To Red Sox

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Eric Hosmer’s contract with the Padres contained a limited no-trade clause, one which became a central topic for a few hours on the day of the deadline. Initially reported to be included in the Juan Soto/Josh Bell swap as a means of offsetting salary, Hosmer used his no-trade rights to block a move to a last-place Washington club.

The Friars and Nats went through with the Soto swap, subbing in Luke Voit instead. San Diego then pivoted and dealt Hosmer to the Red Sox — a team that was not on his no-trade list — along with minor leaguers Corey Rosier and Max Ferguson for pitching prospect Jay Groome. As part of that swap, San Diego agreed to pay down all the remaining money on Hosmer’s contract minus the league minimum.

Hosmer still has three years and $39MM remaining on that deal, as he’ll certainly bypass the chance to opt out and retest free agency this winter. For the next trio of seasons, he’ll also have complete no-trade protection. Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reports that Hosmer’s contract contains a stipulation that he’d receive a full no-trade clause if San Diego traded him. The move to Boston triggered that provision, giving Hosmer control over any future movement.

While it was hard for the Padres to find a taker for the 12-year veteran on his $144MM deal, a trade from Boston isn’t difficult to envision. With the Red Sox not responsible for any notable chunk of money, they could market Hosmer to other teams for virtually no financial penalty. Boston still would not receive an immense return in that scenario, but he’d be a plausible buy-low candidate for a team seeking a left-handed bat.

Hosmer hit .268/.334/.382 across 419 plate appearances this season. While he was actually far better against left-handed pitching than righties in a small sample this year, he has more typical platoon splits over a multi-year span. Dating back to the start of 2020, he owns a .270/.346/.414 line while holding the platoon advantage. With San Diego on the hook for the salary, Hosmer’s solid bat against right-handed pitching and strong clubhouse reputation could have some appeal on the trade market.

The Red Sox figure to be open to parting with the 32-year-old, as Boston broke in top prospect Triston Casas late in the season. Baseball America’s #19 prospect entering the year, Casas hit .273/.382/.481 across 317 plate appearances at Triple-A Worcester to earn an MLB call in September. While he only hit .197 in his first 27 MLB games, the former first-rounder slugged five home runs and took 19 walks against 23 strikeouts. Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom praised Casas’ plate discipline last week (link via Christopher Smith of MassLive) and conceded he “(doesn’t) know yet” whether Boston would be prepared to devote active roster spots to both Hosmer and Casas. Each hits left-handed and is limited to first base or designated hitter. While the Sox will see DH J.D. Martinez hit free agency, they could certainly retain Martinez or bring in another bat in an effort to bolster a lineup that was a hair better than average this season.

Boston’s limited financial commitments to Hosmer mean they presumably wouldn’t have any qualms about releasing him if they felt they were squeezed for flexibility by carrying multiple first basemen. It stands to reason they’d prefer to trade him for even a modest return than release him altogether if it came to that, but the revelation that Hosmer can block any deal adds a wrinkle to that potential scenario, although it’s certainly one of which the Boston front office was aware at the time they acquired him.

Red Sox Notes: Devers, Hosmer, Casas, Coaching Staff, Catcher

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This afternoon, Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, GM Brian O’Halloran, president Sam Kennedy, and manager Alex Cora spoke with the media (including Alex Speier of the Boston Globe and Jen McCaffrey of the Athletic) to put a wrap on the 2022 season and provide clarity for the team’s offseason moves.

The quartet made it clear that Xander Bogaerts is a top priority, with Bloom stating that the Red Sox are “going to work really hard” at creating a deal with the long-term shortstop. Bloom continued, adding that he hopes that the Red Sox can get a deal done before the Bogaerts opts out and that the Bogaerts deal is “something that we can work on right away.”

Bogaerts had previously signed a six-year, $120MM extension in 2019 with an opt out after the 2022 season. The star shortstop has not officially stated whether he will exercise the opt out, but he’s a lock to do so and earn far more on the open market. Bogaerts said yesterday he and the team have not had any recent extension talks.

Bogaerts has been the Red Sox’s longest-tenured player, having made his debut as a 20-year-old in August 2013 and winning two World Series with the club. Since his debut, the recently turned 30-year-old has continued to develop and post strong results, slashing .307/.377/.456 with 15 home runs and 38 doubles in the 2022 season. Over the past five seasons, Bogaerts has posted a .301/.373/.508 slash line for a strong .880 OPS with 105 home runs, earning three All-Star berths and MVP consideration in the previous four seasons, finishing in fifth during the 2019 season.

If Bogaerts leaves the team, the Red Sox have options internally. Trevor Story, signed to a six-year, $140MM contract during the 2021 offseason, has considerable experience at short. However, Story has expressed a preference to remain at second and retain Bogaerts at short. Utility men Kiké Hernández and Christian Arroyo both have experience at shortstop, but neither produces an offensive output comparable to Bogaerts.

Additionally, Red Sox’s top prospect Marcelo Mayer, ranked as the seventh-best prospect by MLB.com, just finished his first full minor league season, posting a strong .280/.399/.489 line across Low-A and High-A. MLB.com currently projects the 19-year-old to make his debut during the 2024 season. However, Bloom said that prospects who are years away from the Majors will not impact the Red Sox’s approach to their 2023 team.

Transitioning to Rafael Devers, the slugger said on Wednesday that he’d be open to discussing a long-term deal this offseason (via Rob Bradford of WEEI). The Red Sox and Devers reportedly weren’t close during their Spring Training negotiations, but Bloom reiterated today “we would like to” explore a long-term deal with Devers, per Speier.

Devers is headed into his final season of arbitration eligibility, as Mookie Betts was before his blockbuster trade to the Dodgers. Bloom dismissed the possibility of trading Devers, saying that “isn’t on our radar” and that everything the team has done (farm system and payroll-wise) was conducted so that the team “is never in that position [of trading a player like Betts] again.” Bloom added that while it was always possible he’d receive a trade offer that was “stupid to walk away from,” Devers “is a guy that we want to build around.”

Unlike Bogaerts, the Red Sox have fewer internal options to replace Devers at the hot corner. Arroyo and Hernandez are capable of playing there, but, like is the case with shortstop, neither of them provides the offensive output that Devers brings to the team. Bobby Dalbec could be a contender for third base. However, the righty has yet to consistently produce at the major league level, slashing .232/.298/.456, buoyed by a strong .263/.359/.600 in his late 2020 debut season. Jeter Downs and Ryan Fitzgerald are both Triple-A candidates that could see some time if needed, but both will likely continue their development in Triple-A.

Similar to Meyer, ninth-best prospect Blaze Jordan just finished his first full minor league season. Across Low-A and High-A, the 19-year-old posted a combined .289/.363/.445 line. Jordan is also projected to make his debut during the 2024 season, which may be sped up to align with a Devers departure.

Moving to the other side of the infield, Bloom touched on the arrivals of Eric Hosmer and Triston Casas. “I don’t know yet,” he admitted when asked if there was room on the roster for two left-handed first basemen, per Christopher Smith of Mass Live. “Obviously, when we got Hoz, we were focused on what he could bring to us right now and not wanting to rush Triston. I think after that, Triston showed us in Triple-A, coming back off that injury once he got settled in, really the best we’ve seen from him or at least I’ve seen since I’ve been here. …  It’s something we’re going to have to look at.”

Hosmer was acquired at the trade deadline and posted a weak .244/.320/.331 line with the Red Sox in 45 at-bats. He arrived with three years remaining on his eight-year, $144MM contract that he signed in 2018 with the Padres, but San Diego is paying down all but the league minimum salary. Hosmer certainly won’t opt of the remaining $39MM on his deal, but Boston could move from the veteran at virtually no financial cost if they wanted to turn to Casas full time.

Casas is Boston’s second-best prospect, after Mayer, and is ranked as the No. 25 prospect by MLB.com. The slugger made his debut in early September and finished the season going 15-for-76 (.197) with 23 strikeouts. However, he had a strong 20% walk rate, a .358 on-base percentage, and sent five balls over the fence. Bloom stated that the Red Sox were happy with how Casas “progressed the last couple months of the season,” noting that “he was a tough at-bat every single time,” and that the team is “excited” to see how he learns from his brief experience in the Show.

Bloom also noted that the Red Sox “fully expect” they’ll look at the possibility of adding to their catching group externally, per Speier. He suggested the Red Sox see Reese McGuire and Connor Wong as having “raised the floor,” but left open the possibility of an impact addition. Willson Contreras is the clear top free agent available at the position, while deadline trade target Sean Murphy could again be made available by the A’s. McGuire has had a strong start to his Red Sox tenure, slashing a strong .337/.377/.500 for a .877 OPS with three homers in 98 at-bats. However, these high numbers are inflated by an astounding .411 BABIP. Wong has been less productive, posting a .188/.273/.315  line, with a high 28.6% strikeout rate.

Meanwhile, Cora announced that the Red Sox hope to bring back their entire coaching staff for the next season, per Chris Cotillo of Mass Live. However, it’s possible some members of the staff could get a chance to interview for managerial positions this winter. Bench coach Will Venable, in particular, has been a frequent candidate for managerial jobs in past offseasons.

AL East Notes: Hosmer, Pham, Castro, Peralta, Espinal

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Eric Hosmer will be activated from the injured list tomorrow, according to Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe. Hosmer has been out since late August with lower back inflammation.

It’s been a curious season for Hosmer. Dogged by trade rumors for years, the first baseman was initially reported to be part of the deadline blockbuster between the Padres and the Nationals where San Diego acquired Juan Soto and Josh Bell. Hosmer refused to waive his no-trade rights, however, and so the Padres pivoted, sending Luke Voit to Washington as part of the Soto package and instead moving Hosmer, Corey Rosier, and Max Ferguson to Boston in exchange for Jay Groome.

Hosmer played just 12 games for the Red Sox before heading to the injured list. In those games, he slashed a meager .225/.311/.300, though his season line of .267/.333/.381 is good for a 104 wRC+, his best mark in a full season since his 2017 walk year with the Royals. Though Hosmer’s contract, which will pay him $13 million a year for the 2023-2025 seasons, has an opt-out after this season, it’s extremely unlikely to be exercised. As such, Hosmer is expected to compete with Bobby Dalbec and top prospect Triston Casas for playing time at first base going forward, though with J.D. Martinez slated to hit free agency after this season, it’s possible Hosmer could see some time at DH as well.

Additional notes from around the AL East…

  • Red Sox outfielder Tommy Pham’s mutual option for the 2023, previously reported as $6 million, is a $12 million option, per MassLive’s Christopher Smith. Like any mutual option, it remains exceedingly unlikely to be exercised. The Red Sox acquired Pham from the Reds at the trade deadline earlier this season in exchange for a player to be named later or cash. It’s been a disappointing season at the plate for Pham, as he’s slashed just .241/.316/.381 in 611 plate appearances between Cincinnati and Boston.
  • The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner reports that Yankees reliever Miguel Castro is expected to be activated from the injured list tomorrow. The right-hander has posted a 4.00 ERA with a 3.75 FIP in 27 innings this season. Castro has been out with a right shoulder strain since July. As he’s coming off the 60-day injured list, a 40-man roster spot will be necessary to activate Castro. That spot could come from Matt Carpenter, who was transferred to the 60-day IL himself earlier today. Additionally, Kirschner relays that lefty Wandy Peralta will not pitch again during the regular season this year, instead heading to Somerset to prepare for the postseason while the Yankees travel to Texas for their final regular season series against the Rangers. Peralta was placed on the 15-day injured list in September with left thoracic spine tightness.
  • Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi reports that Blue Jays infielder Santiago Espinal will take live batting practice on Tuesday, and could be activated from the injured list shortly thereafter as Toronto gears up for the postseason. Espinal has slashed .267/.322/.370 in 491 plate appearances this season, but was placed on the injured list with a left oblique strain in September. While Espinal is expected to be ready for the postseason, how much playing time he’ll have available to him is an open question. Espinal has primarily played second base this season, but fellow second basemen Whit Merrifield has posted an .865 OPS since the start of September. That being said, both players have the positional versatility to share a lineup if interim manager John Schneider so desires.
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