With the start of spring training just about two weeks away and most of the free agent pitching class already picked over, the Red Sox are still searching for depth to round out their staff
Boston continues to be in touch with free agents and has been in recent touch with right-handers Jakob Junis and Ryne Stanek, among others, according to industry sources. It’s unclear if the Red Sox are at the front of the race on either pitcher or if either is close to signing anywhere.
The Red Sox have already signed two free agent pitchers this winter in starter Lucas Giolito and swingman Cooper Criswell while bidding for Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shōta Imanaga, James Paxton, Seth Lugo and others who have signed elsewhere. As The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier wrote Saturday, the industry sense remains that the Sox are unlikely to seriously be involved in the bidding on the two top remaining free agents, Jordan Montgomery and Blake Snell. That doesn’t preclude other pitching additions, however.
Junis, 31, is a veteran swingman who posted a 3.87 ERA (3.74 FIP) in 86 innings for the Giants last year. He made four starts and came out of the bullpen 36 times. The former Royal would seemingly fit Boston’s staff because of his versatility (the ability to both start and pitch in long relief) and because he has multiple connections in the organization. Junis spent the last two years working with Red Sox pitching coach Andrew Bailey in San Francisco and his brother, Noah, was recently hired as the bullpen coach at Triple-A Worcester. The Phillies are also in on Junis, according to Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Stanek, 32, is a traditional reliever who logged a 4.09 ERA (and 1.243 WHIP) in 50 ⅔ innings for the Astros last year and is one year removed from a fantastic season during which he posted a 1.15 ERA in 59 appearances for Houston. He seems like less of a clean fit for the Red Sox considering Boston has Kenley Jansen, Chris Martin, John Schreiber and potentially Garrett Whitlock, Tanner Houck and/or Josh Winckowski — in addition to a bunch of younger, intriguing arms — in its bullpen mix already. A trade involving Jansen, which remains a possibility, might be necessary for the Sox to clear a spot for Stanek. Bob Nightengale of USA Today first noted Boston’s interest in Stanek and both the Mets and Cubs have also been reported to be involved. Both of those teams added right-handed relief help Saturday with Chicago bringing in Hector Neris and the Mets re-signing Adam Ottavino.
Boston has also stayed in touch on former Cubs reliever Codi Heuer, who is familiar to chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and is rehabbing from a June surgery to repair a fractured elbow. Other remaining theoretical fits for the Red Sox on the free agent market include mid-rotation starters Mike Clevinger, Michael Lorenzen and Hyun Jin Ryu and veterans like Jake Odorizzi and Zack Greinke.
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