A new year is upon us and there are still plenty of trades and free agent signings to come between now and spring training. Only 18 of our top 50 free agents have signed, including only four of the top 10. Here now are the latest hot stove rumors on the final day of 2023.
Red Sox exploring outfield trades
Even after the Lucas Giolito signing and Chris Sale trade, the Red Sox are exploring trades involving their young outfielders, reports the Boston Globe. That group presumably includes Wilyer Abreu, Jarren Duran, and Ceddanne Rafaela. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said the team is still focused on adding pitching after the Sale trade on Saturday.
“There’s plenty of time left in the offseason. I would still put starting pitching at the top (of our shopping list),” Breslow told the Boston Globe. “… I think we can continue to scour the starting pitching market both in free agency and in trade.”
According to MassLive.com, the Red Sox have told at least one free agent they need to shed payroll in order to pursue him as aggressively as they would like. Including arbitration projections, Boston’s 2024 payroll is currently $172 million, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts. That would be their lowest Opening Day payroll in a full 162-game season since 2014.
Giolito and Brayan Bello are the only locks for Boston’s 2024 rotation. Kutter Crawford, Tanner Houck, Nick Pivetta, and Garrett Whitlock are in the rotation mix as well, though they all have bullpen experience, and in most cases performed much better in relief than as starters. Their outfield at the moment…
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