This is the big one. Boston signed him to the biggest contract in team history. Price is just turning 30 this year and coming off an 18 win season in which he lead the league in ERA. He is the ace Boston missed so much last year. By the way, I just got this card in recently, my first card of Price with Boston. Yes it is photoshopped, but I don't care.
CRAIG KIMBREL:
I am not thrilled with this trade personally. I am happy Boston got a great closer, but they gave up four good prospects to get him. They gave up Manuel Margot, Javy Guerra, Carlos Asuaje, and Logan Allen. Kimbrel will be with the team for a couple of years, but that prospect haul hurts. And Boston has bad luck trading for closers. They have previously acquired Andrew Bailey, Mark Melancon, and Joel Hanrahan in trades, none of whom worked out. The players they gave up included Jed Lowrie, Josh Reddick, and Mark Melancon, who became an All Star after he was traded away. Kimbrel is better than all three of those closers, but the history gives me pause. Kimbrel's first card will appear in Topps Heritage.
CHRIS YOUNG:
A rare player who left the Yankees to join the Red Sox, Young is expected to be the fourth outfielder after Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr., and Rusney Castillo. Young does quite well against left-handers.
ROENIS ELIAS:
Acquired in a trade with the Mariners for Wade Miley, Elias is a young left-hander with some potential. He could easily step into Miley's shoes, or find a place in the bullpen. I think it is more likely that he starts out in the bullpen and then pitches his way into more playing time.
CARSON SMITH:
Smith was the key piece Boston picked up in the Wade Miley trade. Smith was dominant in the bullpen in 2015, striking out 92 in 70 innings. He joins an already impressive back end of the bullpen with Kimbrel, Koji Uehara, and Junichi Tazawa. It is not as strong as the Yankees' bullpen, but it should be a strength this year. Smith has been announced to be in the Topps Heritage set.
That Carson Smith trade made a ton of Yankees fans I know angry. The Red Sox got a pretty good bullpen arm (and Elias who's useful in his own right) for practically nothing. With all due respect to Wade Miley, one would assume it would've taken a lot more than him to get Smith.
ReplyDeleteAs for Kimbrel, if nothing else at least the prospects were prospects you sort of figured to be trade bait more than anything. Margot, Asuaje and the rest of them are quite talented but were blocked by others.
I don't mind trading the four prospects, I agree they were all blocked, but I would have liked a little more than a closer for the four of them. If they had gotten someone else in the trade or only traded a couple of them for Kimbrel, it would have been much better.
ReplyDeleteAs for Carson Smith, technically Boston also gave up Jonathan Aro as well, but that does not really make things a lot better for Seattle. Elias and Smith could be pretty decent for Boston. I loved that trade.