The Boston Red Sox have officially blown through their grace period after the big Garrett Crochet trade. It’s time to start wheeling and dealing again.
While Crochet is a great add to the Red Sox rotation, Boston still needs improvements at every level of the roster. They’ve pledged to keep chasing starting pitching and we know they need a right-handed bat, but what about their biggest Achilles Heel in the second half last season?
The Red Sox bullpen was positively atrocious after the All-Star break, and it likely cost them their season. Boston missed the playoffs by five games in the standings and blew 18 of 32 save opportunities from Jul. 19 onward, the worst conversion rate in Major League Baseball.
Bringing in more reliable relief arms is a worthy goal, and no one on the market right now is more reliable than Tanner Scott. The 2024 All-Star, who was traded from the Miami Marlins to the San Diego Padres at the deadline, is one of the most coveted free agents remaining at any position.
On Wednesday, Drew VonScio of Newsweek predicted that the Red Sox would land Scott in a “perfect” projection for Boston’s 2025 free-agency window.
“Pitching needs for the Red Sox extend to the bullpen even after signing Chapman. Tanner Scott is one of the best (if not the best) relievers available in free agency,” VonScio said. “He posted a 1.75 ERA last season with the Padres (and Marlins) and recorded 22 saves.”
“Scott is expected to sign a contract worth more than $50 million, but left-handed relievers of his caliber are certainly worth the price tag.”
Since the start of the 2023 season, Scott has posted a stingy 2.04 ERA in 150 innings pitched, striking out 188 batters. He’s always had electric stuff, but fine-tuning his control over the last two seasons has made him one of the best relievers in the game–and he’s about to get paid like it.
No big-market team is in a better position to land Scott than the Red Sox, who have at least $50 million more to spend before they approach the luxury tax threshold. Paying relievers is always a risk, but Scott could easily pay off that risk with a couple more seasons like the one he just had.
