The Last Remaining Red Sox Free Agent has Signed

Aaron Hill has signed a minor league free agent contract with the Giants.

I was initially intrigued by the trade that brought Hill over from the Brewers.  It did not cost Boston much, just a couple of minor leaguers who were not high on the team's top prospects list.  And Boston needed production from third base with injuries and ineffectiveness to Pablo Sandoval and Brock Holt and a prolonged slump from Travis Shaw.  Hill was also capable of filling it at second if need be.  At the time of the trade, he was hitting .283/.359/.421 with eight home runs and 29 RBIs.  He was having a decent year.

Unfortunately some times things just do not work out.  Hill's numbers took a nose dive and he never looked comfortable in Boston.  Over the next few months, he hit just .218/.287/.290 with just two home runs, three doubles, and nine RBIs.  Pathetic numbers really.  He ended up buried on the bench in the postseason and only had one plate appearance, he struck out.  So it was no surprise at all that Boston never seemed interested in bringing him back.

Nice Knowing You, Ryan Hanigan

Ryan Hanigan has signed with the Phillies.

Before the 2015 season, the Red Sox acquired catcher Ryan Hanigan from the Padres in exchange for Will Middlebrooks.  It had been a roller coaster offseason for Hanigan coming off a .218/.318/.324 season with the Rays.  He was a part of a three team deal involving the Rays, Padres, and Nationals in which Wil Myers went to the Padres and Trea Turner to the Nationals.  That same day, Hanigan was sent to the Red Sox.  Middlebrooks's stock had dropped considerably.  Hanigan was never much with a bat, but he had a good defensive reputation.

Hanigan started Opening Day with the Red Sox in 2015 and was expected to be the primary catcher for the Red Sox as Christian Vazquez underwent Tommy John surgery.  Unfortunately, injuries limited Hanigan to 54 games and led to Blake Swihart getting pushed to the Majors.  Hanigan ended up hitting .247/.337/.328 with two home runs and 16 RBIs.  He threw out 33% of attempted base stealers, slightly more than the league average.  He made four errors for a .993 fielding percentage.

After a reasonably successful rookie season, Swihart was expected to be the starter in 2016 and Hanigan was to be the backup.  Injuries struck again though and Hanigan made it into just 34 games.  Catching was a big problem for the Red Sox due to injuries and poor play by Swihart, Vazquez, and Hanigan.  Sandy Leon ended up the primary catcher.  Hanigan hit just .171/.230/.238 with one home run and 14 RBIs.  He was slightly worse than league-average in caught-stealing percentage in 2016, but he did not make a single error.  He did have 18 passed balls though, likely as a result of catching knuckleballer Steven Wright.

With Vazquez, Swihart, and Leon all still under contract for the Red Sox, there was no room left for Hanigan.  He was allowed to leave as a free agent and joins Red Sox teammate Clay Buchholz in Philadelphia.  In two years, Hanigan hit .219/.298/.294 with three home runs and 30 RBIs.

Boston Dumps Clay Buchholz

Well, that was disappointing.  I knew it was likely that Buchholz would be traded.  But I kind of hoped Boston would try to add a decent prospect or two in the deal.  That did not really happen as Buchholz was traded to the Phillies for a player named Josh Tobias, who I will discuss later.

Buchholz was the longest tenured player on the pitching staff, and the second-longest on the team behind Dustin Pedroia.  He was a first round pick in the same 2005 draft that also produced Jacoby Ellsbury, Michael Bowden, Jed Lowrie, and Craig Hansen, an incredible amount of talent for one draft.  It could have been even better too, as Boston failed to sign draftees Pedro Alvarez, Charlie Blackmon, and Jason Castro.  Buchholz made his Major League debut in 2007 and took the game by storm by throwing a no-hitter in his second Major League start.   He ended up the season 3-1 with a 1.59 ERA in four games and was ticketed to a spot in the starting rotation the next season.

Unfortunately, 2008 was the first disappointment in Buchholz's career, and there would be many.  He did not adapt well to the Majors and spent considerable time in the minors.  He ended up just 2-9 with a 6.75 ERA.  He struck out 72 but walked 41 in 76 innings.  He bounced back in 16 games in 2009 and was 7-4 with a 4.21 ERA and his strikeout-to-walk ratio improved slightly.  He looked like he might have finally made it.

2010 was Buchholz's first full season in the Majors, and it was a breakout season.  Buchholz was terrific all season and was named to his first All Star team.  He finished sixth in the Cy Young vote with a record of 17-7 record and a sparkling 2.33 ERA.  He struck out 120 and walked just 67 in 173.2 innings.  He led the league in ERA+ and was second in ERA and WAR for pitchers.  Only his comparatively few innings really kept him from finishing higher.  At just 25 years old, Buchholz looked like he had finally arrived.  Unfortunately things would not really work out in the years ahead.

Throughout his career, Buchholz has shown a distressing tendency to be extremely hit-or-miss.  He tends to go through long stretches where he is terrible, and he tends to go down with injuries when he is having a great season.  2011 was the first season where injuries took a major toll.  He ended up pitching in just 14 games, but was impressive when he was on the mound.  He was 6-3 with a 3.48 ERA and an almost 2-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio.  Unfortunately he went down with an injury in June and could not make it back the rest of the season.  Boston could have used him down the stretch as fatigue to the starting rotation mostly doomed the team after holding a huge lead and they missed the postseason.

After starting off really ugly, Buchholz was able to turn around his 2012 season and was the best pitcher on a really bad team.  He finished 11-8 with a disappointing 4.56 ERA but was much better in the second half.  2013 saw Buchholz become the best pitcher in the league, until going down with an injury that curtailed his effectiveness when he returned and made him tough to rely upon in the postseason.  But when he was healthy, he was virtually unbeatable and his final numbers for the season were a 12-1 record and a remarkable 1.74 ERA.  He was named to his second All Star team that season and would have been a Cy Young candidate had he managed to stay healthy.  2014 saw a mostly bad Buchholz and he finished with an 8-11 record and an ugly 5.34 ERA.

Bouncing back in 2015, Buchholz had the best strikeout-to-walk and strikeouts per nine innings of his career by a sizable margin.  But as has been his pattern, it also included a lengthy amount of time on the disabled list.  He was able to make it into just 18 games.  Finally, in 2016 Buchholz was as inconsistent as he has ever been.  He went from being a major question mark, to being relegated to the bullpen, to not pitching at all, to being on fire down the stretch.

Buchholz has finished his Red Sox career after ten seasons.  He was 81-61 with a 3.96 ERA.  He struck out 899 batters and walked 417.  He was a two-time All Star and received Cy Young votes in 2010.  He was maddeningly inconsistent but could put together stretches where he looked like the best pitcher in the league.  Buchholz will be missed, particularly since he is one of the few good pitchers the Red Sox have developed over the last decade.

The player the Red Sox received was Josh Tobias, a soon-to-be 24-year-old second-baseman who is likely to be in either High A or AA.  He was not one of the Phillies' top ten prospects, nor was he particularly close.  Tobias had a decent year with the bat in Low A, but was old for the league, so those numbers may be misleading.  I would be surprised if he turned out to be a decent prospect, but I will give him the benefit of the doubt.

I don't like this trade.  Buchholz was frustrating because his numbers rarely matched his considerable talent.  But him going to the National League may result in him putting up fantastic numbers.  This was a salary dump plain and simple.  They do not have to pay any of his $13.5 million salary, but they did not really get anything of value in return, other than the salary relief.  It is a disappointing end to a good career in Boston.

Ziegler Also Now a Marlin

Just a day after Junichi Tazawa signed a free agent contract with the Marlins, his Red Sox teammate Brad Ziegler is set to do the same thing.

Ziegler did not have nearly as long a career with the Red Sox as Tazawa.  He was just acquired in early July of 2016 from the Arizona Diamondbacks for a couple of low-level prospects.  Ziegler, a right-handed sidearm pitcher, had previously also pitched for the Athletics and had a 30 save season for Arizona in 2015.

Ziegler was impressive in short work with the Red Sox in 2016.  He was 2-4 with a 1.52 ERA and picked up four saves.  He struck out 31 and walked 11 in 29.2 innings.  He appeared in one game in the postseason against the Indians, walking one and striking out one in two-thirds of an inning.  He did not pitch very much for the Red Sox, but I liked him.  Sidearm pitchers are not real common and are often fun to watch.  Boston's bullpen has been pretty well overhauled, losing Koji Uehara, Junichi Tazawa, and Brad Ziegler in the last couple of weeks.

Sayonara Taz

Junichi Tazawa had been the constant in the Red Sox bullpen for the last five seasons, give or take.  He was a career Red Sox reliever.  Until now, as he is set to sign a free agent contract with the Marlins.  Tazawa has had great strikeout-to-walk ratios throughout his career, but has struggled somewhat in the last couple of seasons.

After pitching in six games in his debut season in 2009, including the only four starts of his career, Tazawa underwent Tommy John surgery.  He came back strong, after a brief stint back with the Red Sox in 2011.  In 2012 he made it to Boston's bullpen to stay and had a terrific season.  He was 1-1 with a 1.43 ERA and struck out 45 while walking just five in 44 innings.  He also picked up his first save.  His WHIP was an extremely impressive 0.955.

The 2013 season saw Tazawa emerge as the team's primary setup man.  His ERA rose to 3.16 and his WHIP to 1.200, but he struck out 72 and only walked 12 in 68.1 innings.  Tazawa also saw his only postseason experience to date and appeared in 13 games.  He picked up a win in the ALCS against the Tigers and only gave up one earned run across his appearances while striking out six and walking one.

In 2014, Tazawa had his best full season.  He was 4-3 with a 2.86 ERA in 71 games.  He struck out 64 and walked 17 in 63 innings.  He struggled in 2015, going 2-7 with a 4.14 ERA but his strikeout-to-walk ratio improved from the prior season.  He spent a brief amount of time as the closer and notched three saves.  Finally, in 2016 he finished 3-2 with a 4.17 ERA.  He was not as reliable and ended up getting shut down for rest.

Junichi Tazawa has been one of the more underrated heroes of the Red Sox for the last several seasons.  He has been a major part of the team's bullpen for the last half decade but never really seemed to get the attention he deserved.  For his career with the Red Sox, Tazawa was 17-20 with a 3.58 ERA and four saves.  He has struck out 308 and walked just 71 in 312 innings.  Tazawa will be missed, though this was not unexpected.

Koji Leaves and Rutledge Returns (I Had No Idea He was Gone)

The highest profile free agent Boston had this offseason recently signed a contract to join the Cubs.  Koji was one of the most fun players to watch in recent Red Sox history, due to his excitement after doing something good.  His energy and enthusiasm are infectious.

In a lot of ways, Koji was the player that most represented the Red Sox in 2013.  He was a low-risk, high-reward free agent signing who exceeded expectations.  He started the season as a middle reliever, but due to injuries to closers Joel Hanrahan and Andrew Bailey and ineffectiveness of Junichi Tazawa, Uehara became the closer and had one of the greatest seasons of any Red Sox closer ever.  He ended up 4-1 with a 1.09 ERA and 21 saves.  He struck out 101 and walked just nine batters in 74.1 innings.  He ended up winning the ALCS MVP and was a big part of the World Series Championship, striking out Matt Carpenter to end the Series.

The next season, Uehara declined a little, but still made his first All Star team.  The Red Sox were not nearly as good, but Uehara was 6-5 with a 2.52 ERA and 26 saves.  He struck out 80 while walking eight in 64.1 innings.  2015 saw Koji decline more, but he was still 2-4 with a 2.23 ERA and 25 saves.  He suffered some injuries and was ineffective late in the season.

2016 saw Uehara became a setup man, but he did pick up seven saves.  For his Red Sox career, Koji was 14-13 with a 2.19 ERA and 79 saves.  He struck out 291 batters, while walking a mind-boggling 37 in 226 innings.  Uehara will go down as one of my absolute favorite relief pitchers of all time and one of the most fun pitchers to watch, period.  Good luck, Koji.  Cubs fans, enjoy.

In other news, the Rule 5 Draft occurred today.  While Boston did not pick up Luis Torrens from the Yankees (sorry Zippy Zappy), they did re-acquire utility infielder Josh Rutledge.  Which was weird, because I had no idea he was gone.  Apparently Colorado signed him after the season.  Rutledge is a right-handed hitter (versus the left-handed Brock Holt) who can actually swing a bat (unlike Deven Marrero).  Rutledge has been with Boston for parts of two seasons and has hit .276/.338/.358 with seven doubles and a home run in 123 at-bats.  He stands a decent chance of being a backup infielder for the Red Sox in 2017 along with Holt.  Though he would have to beat out Marco Hernandez for the job.

Boston lost two players in the Draft: Justin Haley and Aneury Tavarez.  Haley stands the best chance of sticking in the Majors as he pitched in 15 games in Pawtucket and looked to be on the verge of making it to the Majors.  I would expect Tavarez to come back.

Boston also added Junior Lake as a minor league free agent.  Lake last played a full season with the Cubs in 2014.  He has bounced between the Majors and Minors ever since, playing for three teams in the last two years.  This is mostly just an outfield depth move.

The Red Sox Were Busy Tuesday

So, we have to say goodbye to a number of players whose cards I have been accumulating in my Red Sox collection.  So that is where we will start.

Only two players with Major League experience were traded:

Travis Shaw has been with the Red Sox for two years.  He came up part way through the season in 2015 and helped solidify first base.  He showed he had some big power as he hit 13 home runs with a .487 slugging percentage in 63 games down the stretch.  In 2016, he was anointed the starting third-baseman and started the year off hot.  But he was freezing cold from June forward and ended the season with 16 home runs and a slash line of .242/.306/.421.  Shaw's hold on third base was somewhat tenuous going into 2017.  Pablo Sandoval is returning from injury and he has gotten into the best shape of his career.  Brock Holt is still out there as well.  So there was some concern about his place.  Well that has been answered.

Yoan Moncada was Boston's top prospect (or #2 depending on which source you check).  He was a huge international signing from Cuba.  He has had some huge numbers in the minors (.287/.395/.480, 23 home runs, 100 RBIs, 94 stolen bases in two seasons in the minors) and has been climbing the ladder to the Majors.  He made a brief appearance in Boston toward the end of the 2016 season, playing in eight games.  He had a double out of four hits, but struck out 12 times in 20 plate appearances.  Moncada was expected to start the 2017 season in Pawtucket and possibly contend for the third base job.  That will not happen now.

There were five other minor leaguers traded Tuesday, three of whom appear in my Red Sox collection:

Dubon had a breakthrough season in 2016.  He hit .323/.379/.461 with six home runs, 69 RBIs, and 30 stolen bases as a middle infielder.  He had an outside shot at making the Majors at some point in 2017, though it was far more likely that he would start at Pawtucket.

Michael Kopech had emerged as one of the top pitching prospects in the game.  He has the ability to hit over 100 mph on the radar gun and has had the stamina to remain a starting pitcher to this point in his career.  Kopech had an abbreviated season and pitched in just 12 games in 2016, but he was 4-1 with a 2.08 ERA and struck out 86 in 56.1 innings.  He blew away the competition in the Arizona Fall League.  Kopech looked to start the season in Double A in 2017.

Josh Pennington was just emerging as a prospect in 2016.  He was a 29th round pick in the 2014 draft and pitched to a 5-3 record with a 2.86 ERA.  He looks like a future relief pitcher.  He pitched in short-season A ball in 2016 and was likely headed to full-season A ball in 2017.

Finally, Luis Basabe and Victor Diaz were also traded.  I have no cards of Basabe, but he looked like an interesting outfield prospect.  He hit .264/.328/.452 with 12 home runs and 53 RBIs.  Diaz was 2-5 with a 3.88 ERA in Greenville.

Boston traded Shaw, Dubon, and Pennington to the Milwaukee Brewers for Tyler Thornburg.

Tyler Thornburg emerged as a top-flight setup man in 2016 and had a little bit of closing experience.  He ended up 8-5 with a 2.15 ERA and struck out 90 batters while walking 25 in 67 innings.  He picked up 13 saves.  Thornburg joins a bullpen with closer Craig Kimbrel and steps in as the primary setup man.  The bullpen has become a strength with Joe Kelly, Robbie Ross Jr., Heath Hembree, and Matt Barnes all coming back.

Boston signed Mitch Moreland as a free agent.

Moreland had a bit of a down year with the bat in 2016, but he has hit at least 20 home runs in three of the last four seasons.  He also won a Gold Glove for his work at first base.  Moreland likely becomes the Red Sox first-baseman, and can be counted on to replace the productivity of the traded Travis Shaw.  Moreland is a similar hitter, with a little bit more of a track record.  His signing likely pushes Hanley Ramirez into being the primary designated hitter, which is just fine.

Finally, Moncada, Kopech, Basabe, and Diaz were traded to the Chicago White Sox for Chris Sale.

What is there to say about Chris Sale?  The southpaw is one of the top pitchers in the league.  He has been an All Star every season since 2012 and will be just 28 next season.  Last season, he was 17-10 with a 3.34 ERA and 233 strikeouts.  He has finished in the Top 5 in the Cy Young vote in each of the last two seasons.  He joins a rotation already featuring the 2016 Cy Young Award Winner Rick Porcello and 2012 Cy Young Winner David Price.  The rotation could also feature up-and-comer Eduardo Rodriguez, or former All Stars Steven Wright, Drew Pomeranz, and Clay Buchholz.  It is likely that someone will be traded.  But they will potentially have the best starting rotation in the game, no matter who gets traded.  I have already identified the starting rotation as my primary focus in my collection in 2017.

All told, it hurts to trade Moncada, Dubon, and Kopech, and to a lesser extent, Shaw.  I am not a huge prospect collector, but I like the idea of Boston developing their own players.  Seeing them trade homegrown players stings, but that pitching staff is going to be tough and the bullpen should be a strength.  Moreland is not going to replace David Ortiz's production, but he should be decent.  I am excited for the season.  Can we just start now?

Ryan LaMarre, We Hardly Knew Ye

Ryan LaMarre is headed to the Angels.  LaMarre played very briefly for the Red Sox in 2016.  And by very briefly, I mean six games.  He had six plate appearances with no hits, though he walked once and scored.  More interesting, LaMarre actually pitched an inning.  He gave up two hits, but no runs.  He did have a good year in Pawtucket though, hitting .303/.369/.445.  Somehow, his very brief stint was enough to get him a card in Allen & Ginter, which I am thrilled about, but definitely surprised.

Saying Goodbye to Number 34

It is official.  David Ortiz, the face of the franchise since 2003, has retired.

It is often forgotten now that David Ortiz was not guaranteed a starting spot when he was acquired as a free agent after being non-tendered by the Twins.  He was considered to be a left-handed bat off of the bench, backing up Kevin Millar at first base and Jeremy Giambi at designated hitter.  He was not happy with his role and at one point asked to be traded.  But Giambi didn't hit and when Shea Hillenbrand was traded clearing Bill Mueller to play third, Ortiz became the designated hitter.  He ended up hitting 31 home runs and finishing fifth in the MVP vote after displaying a propensity for getting big hits.

2004 was the first amazing season from Ortiz as he hit 41 home runs, was an All Star for the first time, won his first Silver Slugger, and finished fourth in the MVP race.  The legend took hold in the postseason.  He hit a walkoff home run to win the ALDS against the Angels.  Then he had back-to-back walkoff hits in Games 4 and 5 in the ALCS against the Yankees.  It was at that point that his star power outshined Manny Ramirez, Pedro Martinez, and Curt Schilling.

Over the next few years, he finished in the top five in the MVP race each year, was an All Star and won the Silver Slugger.  He led the league in RBIs twice, walks twice, on-base percentage, total bases and home runs once while setting a new team record for home runs in a season.  In 2008-2009 he looked past his prime, after slumping badly early in each season and looking terrible against left-handers.  Each time he came back to post respectable numbers.

Ortiz made adjustments and made a late career resurgence.  He was an All Star four seasons in a row and won a Silver Slugger twice in that period.  As the years went by, he started racking up career milestones, including his 500th home run.  Ortiz also had an amazing World Series in 2013 and won his third ring with the Red Sox.  Only Harry Hooper has more with Boston.

His final season was one for the ages as he hit .315/.401/.620 and led the league in RBIs, slugging, OPS, and doubles.  He ends his career with a slash line of .286/.380/.552 with 541 home runs (17th all-time), 1,768 RBIs and a .931 OPS.  The Red Sox announced that Ortiz's uniform number will be retired right away next season.  No one will ever wear number 34 again in Boston.

David Ortiz will be eligible for the Hall of Fame in a few years.  Two things stand in the way of his easy election.  First of all, he was almost exclusively a designated hitter.  Second, he was named on a list of players who tested positive for some sort of substance that was done in 2003, though there are some major issues with that test that may limit its impact.  But Ortiz has done a lot of great things outside the lines.  I believe that he will make it into Cooperstown.