Boston needs to make a splash
The Boston Red Sox have had nothing short of an embarrassing offseason so far and are running out of time to recover.
At this point, it’s becoming clear that new Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow does not have as much access to the ownership group’s deep resources as expected coming into the role.
Still, Breslow is well aware of how badly he needs to add an impact right-handed bat to the lineup and reportedly is attempting to pivot after whiffing on outfielder Teoscar Hernández.
“SOURCE: In the last few hours the Red Sox have been very aggressive in talks about OF/DH Jorge Soler,” MLB Insider Héctor Gómez reported late Sunday night. “They emerge now as the frontrunner to sign him. (Toronto) Blue Jays, (Seattle) Mariners (and Arizona) Diamondbacks continue showing interest in the Cuban star player.”
Soler hit .250 with 60 extra-base hits including 36 home runs, 75 RBIs and a .853 OPS (128 OPS+) in 137 games for the Miami Marlins last season.
The 6-foot-4, 235-pound power-hitter has everything you’d want out of a slugger — elite exit velocity, barrel rate, hard-hit percentage — but is not the stereotypical free swinger. Soler posted a 24.3% strikeout rate, league average is 22%. He also posted a highly impressive 10.5% walk rate, which is in the 83rd percentile of qualified hitters.
Defensively, Soler leaves much to be desired and would be best served as a designated hitter or rotating with Masataka Yoshida for reps at Fenway Park’s short left field.
I had Soler as the top overall position player fit when I released my “19 Best Free Agent Fits For Red Sox” at the beginning of the offseason. With Alex Verdugo swapped out for Tyler O’Neill, that point still stands. The low strikeout rate combined with serious pop would bode well for Boston’s offensive output.
If the Red Sox feel the need to trade Kenley Jansen or possibly even Yoshida to make room on the payroll sheet, that would be both depressing and illogical.
At that point, just re-sign Adam Duvall and keep the rest of the outfield more or less in place.
If the Fenway Sports Group is willing to make a mid-level short-term investment, Soler would significantly upgrade the everyday lineup.
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