Red Sox have secured a new stadium site valued at up to $20,000,000, million. as they….
Though it’s reasonable to wonder at this point if anyone’s price will drop far enough for them to make a real bid, the Red Sox are still in the hunt for a right-handed hitter.
For the purpose of argument, let’s say they still wish to counterbalance their excessively left-handed lineup. Three free agents who were once members of the Red Sox could be a good fit.
The first is J.D. Martinez, whose lack of interest and the Red Sox’s intense desire to get out of his deal for the final three years he spent in Boston are both puzzling.
Martinez has only made five All-Star teams and reached 28 home runs four times since 2018. With the Dodgers, he had a breakout season in which he batted.271-33-103, demonstrating that he is still capable of playing at age 36. Martinez might have stayed if L.A. hadn’t dropped $700 million at the feet of Shohei Ohtani.
Martinez is a victim of the confusing baseball paradigm that favors variety above output at first base, the one position in the lineup dedicated to attack. Even though Masataka Yoshida only hit 15 home runs in the previous season and is hardly anyone’s concept of a game changer, the Red Sox are probably going to give him the majority of at-bats there this year.
Yoshida is a liability in left field, so he needs to DH. I would rather have Martinez for two years and $25 million over Yoshida for five years and $90 million if the Red Sox are going to be stuck with a DH who can’t field, but they aren’t ready to call Yoshida a sunk cost just yet.
It’s unfortunate because Martinez would have a bigger influence on the starting lineup and might serve as a valuable sounding board and clubhouse presence for the upcoming group of prospects, who may begin to arrive this summer.
If Martinez’s defensive shortcomings make him unfit to be a member of the Red Sox, they might try to get Adam Duvall back together. Before fracturing his wrist last year while attempting to make a sliding catch in center, he was off to a scorching start. Duvall is a Gold Glover who would be playing corner outfield for the Red Sox and might not have ever been hurt if they had assembled a more durable roster.
As it is, he still mashed 21 homers in only 92 games, and his ability to play all three outfield spots, plus a little first base, should conceivably make him attractive.
