The Boston Red Sox Saturday, April 1, 2017

* The Boston Globe

Ben Taylor makes Red Sox’ Opening Day roster

Nick Cafardo

WASHINGTON — Rainy days aren’t so bad after all.

While the Red Sox-Nationals exhibition game at Nationals Park was postponed Friday, the sound of the rain was like a symphony to Ben Taylor.

The hard-throwing youngster who impressed with his poise and stuff throughout spring training will be the 12th pitcher on the staff when the Red Sox open against the Pirates Monday in Boston.

Taylor, 24, made it because Tyler Thornburg, Drew Pomeranz, and David Price are starting the season on the disabled list. The Red Sox could have gone with a more seasoned pitcher such as Noe Ramirez, but the brass huddled during the rain delay and made the call.

Taylor made the team as a nonroster invitee, which is rare.

“I was very surprised,” said Taylor. “I came into camp not really expecting to make the team, but all the pieces fell into place. Perfect timing.

“I’ve been feeling really good this spring. All my pitches have been working really well. I’m throwing the ball well and it paid off.”

Manager John Farrell was impressed by the righthander’s 19 strikeouts over 13 innings, but more important, he said, “It was the poise and mound presence he showed as a young pitcher.”

Taylor’s time with the major league team could be short-lived, depending on when Thornburg is ready, but who knows?

“The hope is always to make the big league club,” Taylor said. “It’s a real honor to be here. I’ve always had that hope. I didn’t necessarily think I could make it, but this is a great surprise.

“You never know what they’re going to say when they call you in, but that was an awesome experience. Carl [Willis, pitching coach] called me in and talked to me along with John and Dave Dombrowski.”

Choking up a bit, Taylor said his first call was to his wife. The second call was to his parents.

“She was ecstatic,” he said about his wife. “My parents were over the moon, too. It’s a dream I’ve had my whole life.”

In most games this spring, Taylor pitched against minor leaguers, but there were a few times he faced major leaguers, and he didn’t disappoint. Being able to strike out a major leaguer gave him a lot of confidence, he said. And that confidence seemed to grow with every outing.

At 6 feet 3 inches, 245 pounds, Taylor generates power. He throws his fastball at 94-96 miles per hour, and his secondary pitches (changeup and slider) have been pretty effective.

Taylor was a seventh-round pick out of South Alabama after transferring out of Chattahoochee Valley Community College.

He attended high school at Brewbaker Technology Magnet High in Montgomery, Ala. He didn’t get much attention.

He credits Rick Porcello with showing him how things are done.

“Rick is very businesslike,” said Taylor. “He goes about his day like a true professional, and I tried to implement that. I talked to him a lot. Great guy.”

Growing up a Braves fan, Taylor was a big fan of Hall of Famer John Smoltz.

And he will never look at rainy days the same way again.

. . .

Chris Sale was able to get in a four-inning simulated game instead of making his start, while Matt Barnes also got in two innings of simulation. Sale said he didn’t mind missing the game and felt it wouldn’t hurt him at all . . . Farrell reported that first baseman Mitch Moreland was improved from the flu that’s running through the team. Farrell said Moreland did some light work in Friday in Fort Myers, Fla., and will take batting practice Saturday before leaving to rejoin the team in time for Monday’s opener . . . Farrell also said that Hanley Ramirez threw from 100 feet and should be ready to play the field by the time the team plays in Detroit next Friday . . . Farrell on the end of camp, which was a little trying. “Any time you have injuries, there’s concern for the individuals. I’m excited about David [Price] making strides at his own rate with the throwing program. Because of some flu, some major injuries and minor injuries, our roster will remain fluid for the first two or three weeks of the season.” Farrell said all that remained was naming that final positional player. It would appear to be Marco Hernandez, but the manager wasn’t willing to make that official.

. . .

The Red Sox reassigned righthanded pitchers Austin Maddox and Jamie Callahan to Portland and Chandler Shepherd to Pawtucket . . . Ruben Amaro Sr., the father of first base coach Ruben Amaro Jr., died at age 81 Friday. Amaro Sr. played 11 seasons in the majors, mostly with the Phillies and Yankees, and mostly as a shortstop . . . The Pawtucket Hall of Fame will induct Carlton Fisk, Mo Vaughn, and former manager Joe Morgan this season, at a date to be announced . . . The weather should clear up for the Sox-Nationals game at the Naval Academy on Saturday at 2 p.m. Eduardo Rodriguez will oppose Max Scherzer.

Meet the 2017 Red Sox

Peter Abraham

This will be the first Red Sox team since 2002 without the loud bat and occasionally louder voice of David Ortiz. For that reason alone, this will be a fascinating team to watch develop over the next six months.

For many Red Sox fans, it’s hard to imagine a team without Big Papi. But the Sox will not lack for leadership or thump. Dustin Pedroia, who played 11 years with Ortiz, has helped cultivate a “win today” ethos with players such as Andrew Benintendi, Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts, and Jackie Bradley Jr. They’re the leaders now.

Hanley Ramirez understands his legacy rests on how he finishes his career and that filling in ably for Ortiz on and off the field will help change how he is regarded.

It also seems reasonable to believe Pablo Sandoval can be at least an average third baseman and not an expensive embarrassment.

New first baseman Mitch Moreland has a Green Monster-friendly swing and the Sox have strong defensive catchers.

The offense will produce 800 runs, perhaps even more. Betts is the kind of MVP-caliber player who will have his number retired someday and Bogaerts could be, too. The Sox may lack Ortiz’s menacing presence in the middle of the lineup, but they have a versatile collection of hitters.

As always with every baseball team at every level of the game, pitching will decide the fate of the season.

The Sox opened up last season with a rotation of David Price, Clay Buchholz, Joe Kelly, Rick Porcello, and Steven Wright. This season it will be Porcello, Chris Sale, Eduardo Rodriguez, Wright and Drew Pomeranz.

This group is better, even with Price on the disabled list. The Sox can afford to look long-term with Price and make sure he is fully healed and ready before activating him. A well-rested Price could be a season- changer come the summer.

Sale seems relieved to be free of the numbing mediocrity of the White Sox. His intense personality, occasionally a problem in Chicago, will find a welcome home in Boston. Fans will take to his approach.

But if Price’s injury worsens and he pitches poorly or doesn’t pitch at all, the Sox will suffer for not paying better attention to their starter depth in the offseason. Trading for Buchholz in July after trading him away in December would somehow be fitting.

The Sox have a bullpen loaded with power arms led by Craig Kimbrel, who had an erratic-but-effective 2016. He appears to have conquered his delivery issues.

But the eighth inning is a question mark.

Tyler Thornburg, a hidden gem in Milwaukee, appeared unprepared for the start of spring training and won’t be ready for late-inning duties at the start of the season. Manager John Farrell has faith in Joe Kelly to set up Kimbrel. But Kelly has never been able to take a role and make it his.

Hard-throwing righthanders Matt Barnes and Heath Hembree could be major factors. The Sox don’t have overwhelming lefthanders in the bullpen, but they’re adequate.

The bullpen depth is intriguing. Carson Smith, a force with Seattle in 2015, should be ready to return from elbow surgery in June. Brandon Workman also appeared healthy in spring training after a long slog with his right elbow.

The Sox clearly have the best talent in the American League East and outside of the Cleveland Indians, the best talent in the American League. This group took an important step in making the playoffs last season. They should be ready to compete for a World Series.

MANAGER

John Farrell Scouting report: Farrell will miss former bench coach Torey Lovullo, now Arizona’s manager. If the players miss Lovullo more, that’ll be an issue. This is a 93-95 win team if drama is kept to a minimum.

Fast fact: Farrell has 339 wins with the Sox, ninth in team history. With 76 wins this season, he will pass Eddie Kasko (354), Don Zimmer (411) and Jimy Williams (414).

Trade value: He was traded to the Red Sox in 2012, actually. The Sox sent infielder Mike Aviles to Toronto as compensation for hiring Farrell. The Sox also obtained righthander David Carpenter in the deal.

LINEUP

2B Dustin Pedroia Scouting report: He’s 33 now and the Sox wisely built him up gradually in spring training. Pedroia has settled in as the leadoff hitter but don’t expect many stolen bases. He has only 15 the last three seasons. His game now is plenty of doubles and high-level defense.

Fast fact: Pedroia is 12th in team history with 1,398 games. He’ll tie Dom DiMaggio for 11th with one more game.

Trade value: No player is untouchable. But it’s fair to say Sox ownership would squash any deal involving Pedroia. He’s a Sox lifer.

LF Andrew Benintendi Scouting report: It’s unfair to call him the next Fred Lynn, but the Hype Train is out of control right now. Benintendi is a heavy favorite for AL Rookie of the Year after an exciting 34-game preview in 2016. He likely will open the season hitting second, that’s how much confidence he inspires. His defense still needs work.

Fast fact: Of Benintendi’s 31 hits last season, 14 were for extra bases.

Trade value: He won’t be eligible for free agency until 2023. Dave Dombrowski should make his voicemail message, “Hi, I won’t trade Andrew Benintendi.”

RF Mookie Betts Scouting report: Betts finished second behind Mike Trout for the American League MVP Award last season. The Angels superstar said afterward that he expected Betts would be a contender for years to come. Betts’s teammates feel the same way. Whether at the plate or in the field, he’s one of the best in the game.

Fast fact: In 21 career games at Camden Yards, Betts has hit .346 with nine home runs and 16 RBIs.

Trade value: Let’s say the Sox called the Giants and offered up Betts for Madison Bumgarner, San Francisco doesn’t hang up, right?

DH Hanley Ramirez Scouting report: Ramirez has a career 1.014 OPS in 36 games as a DH. What will he do with 100-plus games there this season? Ramirez had a remarkable comeback season in 2016, rebounding at the plate and in the clubhouse. He’s being counted on for another big year.

Fast fact: Ramirez had 63 RBIs after the All-Star break last season, tied with Nolan Arenado of the Rockies for the most in the majors.

Trade value: If the season fell to pieces and somebody had interest, the Sox would get what they could for Ramirez.

SS Xander Bogaerts Scouting report: Bogaerts struggled in the second half last season, posting a .674 OPS after Aug. 1. That got him dropped down in the lineup, something that will carry over into this season. Bogaerts is not very happy about that. We’ll see where what professional pride says about it.

Fast fact: Bogaerts and teammate Mookie Betts have 388 hits since the start of the 2015 season. Only Houston’s Jose Altuve, with 416, has more.

Trade value: A 24-year-old shortstop who hits like Bogaerts has great value on the trade market. But that’s why he’s a keeper, too.

1B Mitch Moreland Scouting report: The Red Sox shopped on the discount aisle for a hitter and took on Moreland for one year and $5.5 million. The plan is to use him as the first baseman against righthanded pitchers. Moreland’s opposite-field power should play at Fenway Park and his Gold Glove defense will allow more shifting on the right side.

Fast fact: Moreland has a career .313 batting average as a pinch hitter. He is 15 of 31 the last three seasons.

Trade value: He’s only on a one-year deal, so the Sox have no ties to Moreland. But they need his glove.

3B Pablo Sandoval Scouting report: Sandoval is trying to copy Hanley Ramirez’s Boston Redemption Plan and has so far pulled it off. He arrived at spring training in much better shape and produced on the field. How well he maintains his conditioning during the grind of the season is key.

Fast fact: Sandoval’s last four home runs (in 2015) were off Felix Hernandez, Masahiro Tanaka, Jeff Samardzija, and Chris Archer.

Trade value: He has $58 million left on his deal. The Sox would take most anything to be free of even a quarter of that.

CF Jackie Bradley Jr. Scouting report: Bradley was one of four center fielders with 26 or more home runs last season and played the best defense of the bunch. His streakiness at the plate is an obstacle but his glove is always there.

Fast fact: Bradley has 37 home runs and 160 RBIs over the last three seasons at a cost of $1.57 million. Jacoby Ellsbury has 32 home runs and 159 RBIs for the Yankees at a cost of $63.3 million.

Trade value: It won’t happen this season. But trading a Scott Boras client before he hits free agency often makes sense.

C Sandy Leon Scouting report: Leon hit .310 with an .845 OPS last season and that earned him a lineup spot this year. But Leon collapsed offensively in September and had a poor spring training at the plate. The door is open for Christian Vazquez or Blake Swihart to take his job.

Fast fact: Leon caught seven of the last 15 shutouts thrown by the Sox pitching staff. His game calling is a strongpoint.

Trade value: Teams always need catchers and his value has never been higher. But it’s not high enough to deal him any time soon.

STARTING PITCHERS

RH Rick Porcello Scouting report: Porcello benefited from bountiful run support last season. But he also allowed three or fewer earned runs 27 times in 33 starts. Porcello has found the right mix with his sinker and four-seam fastball. That helps him control at-bats and work at a quick pace.

Fast fact: Roger Clemens (1986-87) and Pedro Martinez (1999-2000) won back-to-back Cy Young Awards for the Sox. Porcello is a 35/1 shot to repeat, according to one Las Vegas sports book

Trade value: Porcello has three years and $62 million left on his contract. That’s a team-friendly deal these days, which is why he’s not going anywhere.

LH Chris Sale Scouting report: Sale has never pitched in the playoffs, something he is determined to change and speaks often to his new teammates about. His unorthodox delivery produces high velocity and a deft touch with the changeup.

Fast fact: Sale and Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers are the only pitchers to be named All-Stars the last five seasons.

Trade value: Sale has immense trade value, as the Red Sox learned when they gave up their two best minor league players to get him. He is due an average of only $12.6 million the next three seasons.

LH Eduardo Rodriguez Scouting report: For the first time since he came to the Red Sox from the Orioles, Rodriguez enjoyed a productive and healthy spring training. If he can learn to manage minor injuries and pitch well when not at 100 percent, Rodriguez has the talent to be an All-Star.

Fast fact: Rodriguez has a 3.71 ERA in 20 starts on the road and a 4.77 ERA in 21 starts at Fenway Park.

Trade value: If the Sox made Rodriguez available, 29 teams would call. He turns 24 on Friday and won’t be a free agent until 2022.

RH Steven Wright Scouting report: In a rotation loaded with hard throwers, Wright and his knuckleball represent an effective change of style. He mixes in an occasional fastball and this season is working on a curveball at the suggestion of Tim Wakefield. Wright had a strong spring training, putting his shoulder woes in the past.

Fast fact: Wright is 16-11 with a 3.53 ERA in 35 career starts.

Trade value: Wright would be an interesting trade chip. He turns 33 in August and relies on a pitch some organizations have no idea what to do with. But he’s successful and cheap.

BULLPEN

LH Fernando Abad Scouting report: Abad was left off the playoff roster last season and it was a bit of a surprise he was tendered a contract in December. Abad can be effective if used only against lefthanders. But, somewhat strangely, the Sox see him as a long relief candidate.

Fast fact: Abad has appeared in 188 games over the last three years. Among lefthanders, only Zach Britton (204) and Andrew Miller (203) have more.

Trade value: The Sox traded minor leaguer Pat Light to the Twins to get Abad. Then the Twins traded Light to the Pirates five months later. So, no, he’s not worth much.

RH Matt Barnes Scouting report: Barnes gets a lot of tough assignments. He inherited 48 runners last season, the most on the team, and only 11 scored as opponents hit .181 against him with runners in scoring position. Barnes has the mentality and fastball to handle the eighth inning and perhaps even close. But for now he’ll get thrown into more fires.

Fast fact: Barnes was one of four former University of Connecticut players to appear in the majors last season.

Trade value: A hard-throwing and inexpensive reliever would dress up any trade package.

RH Heath Hembree Scouting report: Lefthanded batters have been his downfall, but he worked diligently in spring training on improving that. Righthanders had a pitiful .591 OPS against Hembree last season and that is where most of his opportunities will come. He’s out of minor league options now, so it’s either stick in the majors or be designated for assignment.

Fast fact: Hembree has 123 saves in the minors, none in the majors.

Trade value: The Sox picked up Hembree from the Giants when they dumped Jake Peavy in 2014. He’s developed into a player they want to keep.

RH Joe Kelly Scouting report: Kelly was banished to Triple A for a long stretch last season and the tough love seemed to work as he pitched effectively in September and made the playoff roster. Will that success continue this season? Kelly averaged nearly 97 miles per hour with his fastball in 2016, so it’s not a matter of ability.

Fast fact: In 14 career postseason games, opposing hitters are 26 of 123 (.211) against Kelly.

Trade value: Kelly is one season away from free agency, so now would be the time to deal him. But inconsistency limits his value.

RH Craig Kimbrel Scouting report: Kimbrel was astonishingly good for the Braves from 2010-14. But his earned run average has climbed for four consecutive seasons and his saves have dropped for three straight years. When compared to other closers, Kimbrel remains among the elite. But he’s not what quite what he once was.

Fast fact: Kimbrel’s 255 saves are the most in the majors since the start of the 2011 season.

Trade value: Kimbrel is due $25 million over the next two seasons. That’s not a lot for a closer these days.

LH Robbie Ross Jr. Scouting report: He’s a do-it-all reliever. Ross went more than one inning 16 times last season and on six occasions faced one batter. He is especially effective against lefthanders, holding them to three extra-base hits in 80 at-bats last season. Ross, a former starter, handles righthanders well. But in a playoff setting, he would be a specialist.

Fast fact: Ross has made 108 appearances the last two seasons, the most of any Red Sox reliever.

Trade value: Almost every team needs a lefthanded reliever, or a better one than what they have. They always have value.

LH Robby Scott Scouting report: When Tyler Thornburg landed on the disabled list, a door opened for Scott. He was a September call-up last season and threw six scoreless innings with two walks and five strikeouts.

Fast fact: In 2011, Scott broke into professional ball playing for independent Yuma Scorpions of the now- defunct North American League. His manager was Jose Canseco.

Trade value: A 27-year-old reliever with seven games of major league experience isn’t going to bring much in return. But Scott isn’t afraid to throw strikes and could become a valuable bullpen piece over time.

BENCH

Util Brock Holt Scouting report: The ever-versatile Holt could start at any one of seven positions and would bat close to the top of the lineup when he does. Most of his action could come in the infield with the Sox have three young outfield starters and a capable backup in Chris Young.

Fast fact: Holt has started more games in left field (70) than any other position the last three years.

Trade value: If the Sox believe in Marco Hernandez, trading Holt this season would make sense. Many teams value what he does and the return could be considerable.

INF Marco Hernandez Scouting report: Hernandez was one of the team’s best hitters in spring training but was ticketed for Triple A Pawtucket until infielder Josh Rutledge strained his left hamstring on March 28. He could get some starts against righthanders.

Fast fact: Hernandez hit .333 with an 829 OPS in 10 starts last season. He hit .200 with a .494 OPS in 30 games coming off the bench.

Trade value: Hernandez is 24, can play shortstop, and showed in spring training he has a dangerous bat. He would be an everyday player for plenty of teams.

C Christian Vazquez Scouting report: There is a healthy faction of coaches and front-office types in the organization who believe Vazquez will become the primary catcher at some point this season. His arm strength is back to pre-surgery levels and he’s the best pitch framer they have. Vazquez just has to show he can contribute enough at the plate.

Fast fact: In his career, Vazquez has thrown out 23 of 52 base stealers (44 percent).

Trade value: Sandy Leon’s rise had many teams inquiring about Vazquez but the Sox retained him. Depth at that position is fleeting.

OF Chris Young Scouting report: John Farrell will be actively looking for ways to get Young in the lineup. He’ll DH or play center field against lefthanders but will have to start occasional games against righthanders to stay sharp. Young missed nearly two months with a strained right hamstring last season and the Sox missed his effectiveness off the bench.

Fast fact: Young has a .980 OPS against lefthanded pitchers over the last two seasons.

Trade value: Young would be a commodity at the trade deadline if the Sox fall out of contention.

DISABLED LIST

LH David Price Scouting report: Price arrived at spring training determined to atone for what he considered a poor season in 2016, even if he did win 17 games and strike out 228. But he injured his elbow in late February and never got in a spring game. Price is expected to return this season but his timetable is now running into May.

Fast fact: Price’s 230 innings last season were the most for a Red Sox pitcher since Pedro Martinez went 233⅔ innings in 1998.

Trade value: He has $187 million left on his deal and hasn’t pitched this spring because of an elbow issue. Nothing to discuss here.

RH Carson Smith Scouting report: He was dominant for Seattle in 2015 but appeared in only three games for the Sox last season before undergoing Tommy John surgery. Indications are he will return in June. But gauging how effective he will be is impossible at this point.

Fast fact: Smith has allowed only two home runs over 81 career innings and 985 batters.

Trade value: The Red Sox gave up starter Wade Miley to get Smith before the 2016 season. As he recovers from surgery, Smith has no trade value right now.

RH Tyler Thornburg Scouting report: Thornburg had a career year for the Brewers in 2016. He appeared in 67 games with eight wins, 13 saves and a 2.15 ERA to go along with 12.0 strikeouts per nine innings. But appeared in only two spring training games before going down with a shoulder impingement.

Fast fact: Thornburg has held lefthanders to a .531 OPS. Righthanders (.732) have been significantly better.

Trade value: The Sox dealt three players to Milwaukee to get Thornburg in December. A worrisome spring may have them regretting that.

LH Drew Pomeranz Scouting report: Pomeranz will open the season on the disabled list but is eligible to return on April 9 and could start that game in Detroit. He was shaky in spring training and it remains uncertain if he has the durability to remain a starter. His future may lead back to the bullpen more sooner than later.

Fast fact: Pomeranz has a 2.10 ERA in 59 career relief appearances and a 4.07 ERA in 49 career starts.

Trade value: Pomeranz has already been traded four times, so apparently he has plenty of admirers.

For veteran Dustin Pedroia, change is a constant in baseball

Nick Cafardo

FORT MYERS, Fla. — By the time his current contract expires in 2021, Dustin Pedroia will be 38 years old and will have played 16 seasons with one franchise. His no-trade protection pretty much guarantees he will remain with the Red Sox through the end of his contract. That is a rare thing in this day and age.

Pedroia has seen so much change since he came up late in 2006 and then won American League Rookie of the Year in 2007 and AL MVP in 2008. He has won two championships and four Gold Gloves, and made four All-Star teams. He’s a devoted family man, but he’s seen so many changes with his baseball family.

“The [Jon] Lester one was tough,” Pedroia said. “He was supposed to come to [Arizona State, Pedroia’s alma mater] and we were going to play together there [but Lester signed with the Red Sox out of high school]. We played together in the minors. We were pretty close.

“I was close with Jacoby [Ellsbury]. I was close with Pap [Jonathan Papelbon]. I was close with Buck [Clay Buchholz] and David [Ortiz]. Those guys are at places where they’re happy now. But you learn quickly that’s the business side of the game.

“It’s kind of part of the job. At first it was [tough] because friends leave. As much as you love them and our families are close, you want them to feel like they’re wanted, and those teams wanted them more than we did.”

Pedroia has always had to overcome things, such as being just 5 feet 9 inches. He had to convince the baseball world he was worthy. The Red Sox drafted him in the second round in 2004. He carried that chip on his shoulder to prove people wrong, but that chip is gone now. He enters his 12th major league season with a .301 career average.

His life is a “10 out of 10,” he said. He has a wife he loves and three boys under the age of 6. He’s rich, he’s famous, he’s living the dream.

“I’m just a normal guy like everybody else,” he insisted. “My main priority is my three boys and my wife. I need to take care of them. Baseball is my job. I try not to bring it home or anything like that.”

He never thought about being in this position while growing up.

“I was like any other kid,” he said. “If there was a game on the schedule, I’d just go and play it. Every level I went to — high school to college and the minors — it never mattered what people said, but what the facts are. You go play a game and you try to be the best player on the field.

“Obviously some days you are and some days you aren’t. For me, it’s about being consistent and dependable for your team and doing the right things.”

Pedroia insists he didn’t feel slighted about not being drafted in the first round.

“I didn’t even get drafted out of high school,” he said. “I had a great three years at Arizona State, but I don’t know many guys who go from undrafted to first round. Where you go in the draft isn’t the end-all. You don’t make your money in the draft. You make it in the major leagues. That’s the way I always looked at it.

“I wasn’t disappointed I went in the second round because I was just happy I got drafted by a team that has a long tradition and plays to win. I was lucky the Red Sox drafted me. When they drafted me, I knew nothing about them

“When I got drafted, they said I had to do a conference call. And I remember on the call reporters would ask questions and I think [then-general manager] Theo [Epstein] was on the line. The reporters asked about Nomar [Garciaparra] the entire call. He had like a calf injury or something, so there were, like, nine questions asked about the calf and then one for me. This is crazy, but I realized how much impact and care they have of their team.”

Pedroia said he had a lot of college choices out of high school. He had trips scheduled for ASU, Long Beach State, Florida, Texas, and Miami.

“I went to ASU first and I didn’t go to the other ones,” Pedroia said. “I wanted to be closer to home. ASU is an hour-and-a-half plane ride. Long Beach is an hour flight.”

He loved his years at ASU. He then spent parts of three seasons in the Red Sox minor league system.

“That’s all I know,” Pedroia said. “I’ve been here a long time and I’ve built relationships with a lot of people in this organization, not just at the big league level but in the minors where there are still coaches who helped me a ton.

“You want to make sure the team that drafted you gets all they can out of you. They’re the ones who took a chance on you.”

So what’s left?

“Just trying to win again,” he said. “That’s the fun part about baseball at this level. You want to do it consistently, for a long period of time. That’s what in my mind separates you as a player and a person, because anybody can go through a small stretch and be good, but it’s the mental toughness to do it again and do it over and over and over. I think that’s pretty special.

“I see Adrian Beltre and he’s done it over and over again since he was 19 or 20 or when he came into the league, and every year he’s getting old but he continues to be great.

“That’s what you respect the most about an opposing player that you compete against, that they’re never going to give in or back down from competition.”

Pedroia said that as he gets older, he has to work smarter.

“I can’t go out there and take 400 ground balls before BP like I used to — you just can’t,” he said. “With our schedule, we play so many games and the travel, you have to change things.

“When I was 23, I didn’t need to sleep. I could take those 400 ground balls. I wasn’t even sore. That’s the stuff you have to be smart about it.

“If you get into a little funk at the plate, you realize it’s probably not mechanics, but you’re tired or something is beat up. You don’t need to go in the cage to take 400 swings to find it. You try to get your rest, stick with the process, and it’ll be there.”

He also has curtailed his weightlifting and now emphasizes more functional movement training to keep his muscles pliable and be able to withstand the punishment.

He also has the responsibility — especially now with Ortiz gone — of being the leader.

“I’ve had that responsibility for a while,” he said. “You want to create an environment where you’re a professional and you create a positive environment on and off the field. That’s important.

“I try to be like the guys I followed, and there were a ton of them when I came up. I didn’t look up to just one guy, there were 10 of them. And those guys were well-respected around baseball. They do the right things. They respect their opponents. They treat people with respect and tried to learn from [them]. You also have to be yourself.”

Pedroia said he’s had a few instances where he’s had to get into a teammate’s face and set them straight. When asked whether he was ever afraid to do that, he said, “I’m not afraid of anything.”

He thinks his 6-year-old son understands what he does for a living, but that’s not as important to Pedroia as the life lessons he hopes to teach his kids.

“I think what’s most important to me is not that they remember what kind of a double play I turned or a big hit I might have gotten, but it’s how I treated people and for them to treat people with respect,” he said..

“I’ve tried to do that throughout my career. I know some guys don’t like the media, but I always understood that’s part of the job and I want to treat the media with the respect they deserve for trying to do their job. I think if I can teach my kids one thing, that would be it.

“Whoever you come across in life, they deserve to be treated with respect. To me that’s more important than anything I accomplish on the baseball field. If my kids think what I do is cool, then great, as long as they go through their life respecting other people and acting like good human beings.”

So when the end of the 2021 season comes, will he be done?

“We’ll see,” he said with smile. “My oldest will be 12 years old at that time, so we’ll see what’s happening in my life and career at that time.”

Buy-low trades can shape a championship

Alex Speier

Blockbusters capture headlines, but it is the ability to supplement such acquisitions with shrewd, more obscure maneuvers that determines whether championship aspirations reach fulfillment.

“Buy-low” trades don’t capture headlines, but they energize scouts like few others. They require imagination and creativity, focusing on a player’s potential strengths rather than his limitations, and making a bet that a player who is overlooked by his organization or the industry at large has a chance to flourish into an important piece of a team chasing a title.

“No deal is too small,” said Red Sox pro scouting director Gus Quattlebaum. “Everyone in our department knows that. It’s what drives them. When they’re sitting in an A-ball game on a Saturday night in the middle of nowhere, there’s a reason for it. That’s what drives them.”

The Red Sox don’t have to look far to find motivation in their quest for overlooked talent. In the last two years, the team has been represented at the All-Star Game by players who were almost entirely overlooked when they were acquired.

Brock Holt had a strong season in 2012, having hit .344/.406/.453 in the upper levels of the minors before a solid big league debut (.292/.329/.354) for the Pirates in September. He harbored hopes of opening 2013 in the big leagues with the Pirates.

And so, when the middle infielder found out the day after Christmas that he’d been traded to the Red Sox (the secondary piece going to Boston in a six-player swap that netted the Sox closer Joel Hanrahan), he was initially jarred by the sense that he’d get lost in the shuffle of a large-market team that tended to build its rosters with established veterans.

“All I’d ever known was Pittsburgh. Coming up through the system, I knew who everyone was. Everyone knew who I was,” said Holt. “Coming over to a new place was a weird feeling — not knowing what to expect, not knowing anybody, not knowing what their plans were. . . . I kind of felt like Pittsburgh didn’t want me and I felt like I was just kind of a throw-in. No one told me that but that’s just kind of the way I felt.”

What Holt didn’t realize was that, in Nate Field, he had an advocate. The Red Sox’ pro scout believed strongly in the possibility that a player considered by many to have the ceiling of a utility infielder could be something more than that — perhaps a super-utility player in the mold of Field’s former Royals teammate, Joe McEwing, or even an everyday player. The Sox were willing to build a deal around Hanrahan for reliever Mark Melancon, but not without adding Holt to the mix.

Former Red Sox pro scouting director Jared Porter encouraged scouts to look at players with creativity and imagination. He encourages them to look for buy-low opportunities, to focus on what players can do well — rather than what they can’t — and then to ask themselves whether the shortcomings can be addressed.

“I’d rather that you miss high than miss low on a guy — especially on a buy-low,” said Porter, now an assistant GM with Arizona.

In the case of Holt, the Sox believed that while he could handle second base, he had the aptitude to improve at shortstop and eventually add third base — and perhaps other positions — to his profile. As a lefthanded hitter with a compact swing and good strike-zone knowledge, he would represent a good complement to an infield that projected to feature righthanded hitters at third (Will Middlebrooks), short (Xander Bogaerts), and second (Dustin Pedroia) for years to come.

“Brock was always intelligent, high IQ, high instincts, left-hand hitter with a good approach all the way back to his days at Rice,” recalled Porter. “It was just our scouts saying, ‘This guy is better than how the industry values him. This is definitely the guy I want to get.’ ”

Starting pitcher Steven Wright emerged as an All-Star last year, five years removed from a deal that brought the knuckleballer over from Cleveland in exchange for failed Red Sox prospect Lars Anderson. At the time of the trade, Wright thought his knuckleball had shown promise, but he didn’t yet understand the nuances of what it meant to be committed fully to the pitch.

And so, on July 31, 2012, when Wright crossed the field at Hadlock Field while heading from Double A Akron to join Portland, he immediately sensed a realm of new possibilities in moving to the organization where Tim Wakefield spent 17 seasons.

“I didn’t know much about the pitch. I just knew at that time that I could throw it. It was nice when I got over here, started working with Wake, it opened up my eyes to the fact that there was so much more I needed to learn, but I wasn’t that far off,” said Wright. “I just knew that I was probably going to have a better opportunity to crack the big leagues with the Red Sox than with the Indians.

“I thought I had a good opportunity with the Indians, but I thought if I was really going to excel throwing the knuckleball, it was better to do it with a team that had the experience, that knew what it took patience- wise to allow somebody like me to kind of experiment and continue to fail until he showed some success.”

Wright’s place in Cleveland was far from secure at a time when they had a wave of power arms progressing through their system and when he was coming up on an offseason in which he’d need to be added to the 40- man roster or become a minor league free agent. The Sox were able to capitalize on his unsettled status, and to scout Wright with an understanding that he was already checking a lot of boxes that an organization would want to see for a knuckleballer.

In 2014, the Red Sox dealt out-of-favor lefthander Felix Doubront to the Cubs for a player to be named. Boston had its choice of three players at the conclusion of the season. The three or four scouts who evaluated those players were unanimous in concluding that the Sox should acquire Marco Hernandez, whose modest 2014 performance (.270/.315/.351) in high Single A failed to account for his elite running speed, solid shortstop defense that suggested an ability to play elsewhere in the infield, and ability to make firm contact as a lefthanded hitter.

“Can Marco continue to develop?” Porter asked Sox scouts. “If the power came for him, he could be a really good player.”

Hernandez now looms as an important depth option for the Sox, with his emerging ability to turn around fastballs and drive the ball into the gaps, making clear some of the upside that the Sox saw in him preceding his trade. Like Holt and Wright before him, Hernandez has a chance to play a significant role for a contending club in 2017.

The last World Series — from which Porter claimed a ring as the Cubs’ director of pro scouting — hammered home the point. Chicago’s Jake Arrieta and Cleveland’s Corey Kluber both represented buy- lows. So did the pitcher who recorded the last out of the series for the Cubs, Mike Montgomery. The contributions of such players are not merely an organizational accident.

“One of the most important things is to constantly reinforce and remind and instruct your staff that those guys are really, really important. That type of an acquisition is arguably more, but certainly equally, as important as the expensive guys or the ones you get in a big trade,” said Porter. “If you really want to win, to me, you need to be able to acquire those players.”

There’s more to trades than just announcements. A lot more.

Peter Abraham

Major league teams completed 135 trades in 2016, an average of one every 60 hours or so. There’s a constant drumbeat of negotiations that result in players going from one team to another.

Fans hear about trades once they’re done. But what happens leading up to that?

For the Red Sox and other teams, a front-office infrastructure gets activated when a trade is agreed to. From checking medical records to arranging plane tickets, there’s a whirlwind of action behind the scenes.

Using the Red Sox’ acquisition of Chris Sale from the Chicago White Sox as an entry into an aspect of the game that’s largely hidden, details emerged at just how much goes into a trade.

“Sometimes you’re exhausted when it’s finally finished,” Red Sox assistant general manager Brian O’Halloran said. “Then it’s on to the next thing.”

The Red Sox first called the White Sox to inquire about Sale before the 2015 trade deadline, when Ben Cherington was general manager. When Dave Dombrowski took over baseball operations two weeks later, he also had interest in Sale and continued the discussions into the offseason.

But those talks never gained traction. White Sox GM Rick Hahn wanted major league players in return for his ace and the Red Sox didn’t want to carve into their roster.

“I know Rick well enough, having dealt with him throughout the years, that he was sincere about the cost,” Dombrowski said. “That wasn’t going to work for us at that particular time.”

Dombrowski stayed in contact with the White Sox. But no progress was made until last Dec. 2, when Hahn called Dombrowski in the evening and said he was ready to make a deal.

“Rick said this was going to happen fast. I also knew there were a couple of clubs that were being aggressive. I knew one was Washington, they were being very aggressive at the time,” Dombrowski said. “We didn’t want to give up necessarily the talent we did. But I do think if we had [offered]anything less, we wouldn’t have acquired him.”

By the morning of Dec. 6, Sale had been traded. The Red Sox agreed to send four prospects — including highly ranked Michael Kopech and Yoan Moncada — to Chicago to get Sale.

That completed Dombrowski’s work. Now others did theirs.

When teams make a deal, medical records are exchanged. That is accomplished via a centralized database coordinated by Major League Baseball. The head athletic trainers for the teams involved swap the information, granting each other access to the records.

Unless there is a complication, the medical check can be done in a few hours. There are occasions when it takes several days.

The records contain notes made by trainers, test results, MRIs, and other documentation going back to the player’s first professional season.

With the Red Sox, head athletic trainer Brad Pearson reviews the records and calls in team orthopedist Peter Asnis or another specialist if needed.

Last July, the San Diego Padres were found to have left the usual information out of the system after their trade of lefthander Drew Pomeranz to the Red Sox. MLB investigated and suspended Padres GM A.J. Preller for 30 days for his role in the deception.

With Sale, who has been on the disabled list twice in seven years, it was a quick process. The only significant time he missed was in 2014, when had a flexor muscle strain in his left arm.

After medical clearance, MLB was informed of the Sale trade via the office of senior vice president of baseball operations Peter Woodfork. One of his assistants, Jeff Pfeifer, often handles those transactions.

Sending an e-mail to MLB, with the other team copied as a recipient, is one way to report a trade. Or the deal can be submitted to MLB’s “eBIS” database (electronic Baseball Information System). One team agrees to submit the deal that the other club then confirms.

The commissioner’s office only has to approve the trade if money is being exchanged.

O’Halloran, who has been with the Red Sox for 16 years, said there have been several years when he had multiple e-mails ready to send as the non-waiver trade deadline ticked closer.

“It gets a little hectic at times,” O’Halloran said. “Sometimes you’re up very late and everybody is running on fumes. We’ve had trades that came down to seconds before the deadline. You have to make sure you don’t send the wrong e-mail.”

Once a deal is approved by MLB, a player’s contact information is given to his new team. A player acquired by the Red Sox first receives a call from Dombrowski and then usually manager John Farrell. Agents also are informed.

It was agent B.B. Abbott who first told Sale a trade was close.

“I honestly hadn’t thought much about it,” Sale said. “Then my phone started ringing.”

Farrell and Red Sox team chairman Tom Werner also called Sale.

If a trade is made during the season, Red Sox traveling secretary Jack McCormick calls quickly to arrange a flight and help the new player find a place to stay in Boston. McCormick has contacts with hotels near Fenway Park or can set up the player with a real estate agent.

“You have a little conversation to find out what his needs are,” said McCormick, who has spent 22 years in his job. “You don’t want to be cruel and just say, ‘Get here.’ ”

Head equipment manager Tom McLaughlin also calls to check on whether the player needs a shipment of bats, or new cleats to match the Red Sox’ color scheme. They also discuss what numbers are available.

Sale wore No. 49 in Chicago but didn’t request it from McLaughlin out of respect for Tim Wakefield, who last wore it with Boston and still does on occasion when he works as an instructor. Sale elected to take No. 41.

There’s also a human resources component to a trade. Health insurance is administered via the MLB Players Association, which has to be informed. Teams contact agents to obtain banking information to direct deposit paychecks.

The Sox also have staff members who aid a player’s wife and children if requested. To welcome Sale, they sent his 6-year-old son Rylan a box of team gear.

“Everything was first class from the first day,” Sale said. “I’m happy to be here. I love it here; it’s been great so far. It’s been a good transition.”

Mechanics of a trade Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and White Sox general manager Rick Hahn hashed out the biggest trade of the Winter Meetings, with Chris Sale coming to Boston. Typically, once teams’ principal negotiators agree to a deal, an extensive process must be followed before the traded player is able to settle in with his new franchise.

1. MEDICAL CHECK

Via the respective head athletic trainers, medical records are exchanged and reviewed via a database maintained by Major League Baseball. This can take a few hours or up to a few days if there are complications.

2. SEAL THE DEAL

The teams inform the office of MLB senior vice president of baseball operations Peter Woodfork via e-mail or though MLB’s eBIS system. MLB has to approve the trade only if money is involved. Assistant general manager Brian O’Halloran typically handles this for the Red Sox.

3. THE CALL

The players are notified of the trade directly or via their agents.

4. WELCOME

New Red Sox players going on the major league roster receive calls from Dombrowski and manager John Farrell. The trainer and perhaps a position coach could get in touch, too.

5. TRAVEL PLANS

If the trade is made during the season, traveling secretary Jack McCormick contacts the player to arrange for transportation to meet the team in Boston or on the road.

6. WHAT DO YOU NEED?

Head equipment manager Tom McLaughlin contacts the player to discuss what number he will wear and whether he will need new equipment.

7. BANK ON IT

The Red Sox payroll department contacts the player’s agent to get banking information to direct deposit paychecks.

8. FAMILY MATTERS

If the player has a wife and/or children, the team’s player relations staff works with the family to help their transition.

Trade groundwork takes extensive planning

Alex Speier

In the end, it seems like something simple, almost obvious: A few phone calls, a couple of conversations in the office, perhaps a scouting report, another phone call, and then . . . done deal.

It’s not quite that easy. Instead, the buildup to a trade is typically measured in months if not years, with a wealth of information gathered from different corners of a baseball operations department. Next winter’s blockbusters? The legwork for those is being laid right now.

“Let’s start with the scouting perspective,” said Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. “They’re already doing their work for this wintertime.”

The information drawn upon in trades is vast, and in fact runs even deeper than the spring-to-winter timetable that Dombrowski mentioned. Teams seek out scouting reports about potential trade targets dating to the players’ amateur days for clues about a player’s makeup and/or skills.

Even so, each season, the Red Sox’ pro scouting department (directed by vice president of professional scouting Gus Quattlebaum) coordinates a schedule of all of its evaluators with an eye on getting detailed scouting information about every potential trade target on all 29 other teams as well as their full-season minor league affiliates.

The Sox have nine full-time pro scouts and two part-time scouts who, along with Quattlebaum, senior VPs of player personnel Allard Baird and Frank Wren, and special assignment scouts Steve Peck and Eddie Bane, are responsible for blanketing professional baseball. If everything goes according to plan, the Red Sox will have scouted every potential trade target by the All-Star break — preferably with multiple looks from different scouts at the players whom the team might try to acquire.

But trades don’t always occur on a schedule. Needs can spring up from unexpected areas during a season.

Injuries and performance struggles can force a team to seek a trade in areas that seemed like strengths. It’s the job of the front office departments to stay in front of needs that aren’t present, and to have “pref lists” of desired targets at any position where a need may emerge.

“We try to stay ahead for Dave to be prepared because it does move quickly,” said Quattlebaum.

Individual pro scouts come up with pref lists regarding specific organizations. The Red Sox’ analytics department, headed by VP of baseball research and development Zack Scott, has its own pref lists about players who would fulfill specific needs. Quattlebaum and the pro scouting department organize those rankings into a master list to identify both players who might be available and whom the team believes can help.

“We’re tracking in some way or another every player in baseball,” said Red Sox assistant GM Brian O’Halloran. “We’re always gathering information around baseball about players at the major league and minor league level so that we should be well prepared, quickly. [If someone gets injured], we’re able to quickly generate a list [of likely available players].’”

If an injury arises, the Red Sox will send out an APB to their scouts, a sort of last call for names of players whom the scouts like who might represent a good fit — and who might be available — to fill the need. Scott will assemble a final pref list from an analytics perspective. For a pitcher, VP of pitching development Brian Bannister will be asked to conduct his own analysis of the player’s potential contributions, comparable players, and projections.

O’Halloran will review the contractual status of the players identified to review the present and future payroll and luxury tax implications of a deal, how many remaining seasons of team control he has, whether he has options, and if he’s arbitration-eligible.

The team will review the player’s publicly available medical history and his current availability and health, an effort led by head athletic trainer Brad Pearson. (It is only after an agreement to terms in a deal that a team will be authorized to review fuller medical records through MLB’s eBIS (electronic Baseball Information System) database as well as images such as MRIs.

“You put together a sort of master list with a sense of tiers: This is probably too rich, this is where we think it may fall — but you never know,” said Quattlebaum.

“You never know how the other club views the players.”

Once the team identifies a target, scouts will be asked to reach out across the industry for feedback on player makeup, how he’d respond to position changes, and how he’d respond to a new organization — and more particularly, Boston.

Around that stage of the process, while reviewing the written reports, Dombrowski often reaches out directly to members of the pro scouting department to follow up their written reports with phone calls. Dombrowski’s frequent, direct calls to his scouts represent a departure from many other heads of baseball operations.

“I’m looking for a few things,” Dombrowski said. “Before I would call somebody, I read their report. But then at that point, some guys are better at verbalizing than they are at writing. You just want to hear what they have to say about a player. Hopefully what they say matches their written report, but some people are better [talking]. Sometimes it just makes a difference when you hear a guy talk about a player. I ask tough questions at those particular times, but I think it’s important because you’re making major decisions.”

Dombrowski will also engage manager John Farrell at that stage to get his feedback — not just on a player, but also on the implications of an acquisition.

While Farrell might sometimes look at video of a player the Sox might target or offer his own evaluation based on admittedly limited looks, he also approaches the matter from a different perspective.

“What effect does it have on the clubhouse and team chemistry? If I don’t weigh in on that, then I’m not doing my job in terms of providing that intangible, that element,” said Farrell.

And when Dombrowski reaches out to another team to inquire about the type of return they’d be seeking, the president of baseball operations will solicit opinions about Red Sox minor leaguers from VP of player development Ben Crockett.

The Sox continuously categorize their own prospects based on their projected ceilings, the likelihood that they’ll reach them, and their proximity to the big leagues, views that are formed both from scouting and analytical perspectives. But when trade talks occur, Crockett will serve as a hub of opinions from Red Sox minor league coordinators, managers, coaches, trainers, and strength and conditioning staffers to further define who the Red Sox are and are not willing to deal.

All of those behind-the-scenes conversations and reports inside the organization represent the groundwork involved in even the smallest of trades being negotiated by the Red Sox with another team, with Dombrowski typically handling the calls with peers from other organizations. Between the background work that a team does and the conversations that have to occur inside of a front office, the organization of the information underlying a deal helps to explain why so few trades happen with a snap of the fingers.

“Not a lot of them get done fast,” said O’Halloran. “There are times when trades are made with a couple of phone calls, and there are ones that take weeks, months, or even years.”

The ones that got away from the Red Sox

Nick Cafardo

Three-time World Series champion Theo Epstein, who built championship teams with storied franchises in Boston and Chicago, can recall what could be classified as “the best deals never made” — ones that to this day he wishes he could have consummated.

Among the players he nearly acquired for the Red Sox were Alex Rodriguez, Magglio Ordonez, Felix Hernandez, and Adrian Gonzalez (two years before the Sox actually obtained him).

The deal with Texas for Rodriguez, which was in place after the 2003 season, was nixed by the Players Association, but the next season, the Red Sox still went on to win the World Series, ending an 86-year drought.

“Manny [Ramirez] wasn’t happy in Boston and wanted out,” recalled Epstein. “With Nomar [Garciaparra], it was clear we weren’t going to be able to sign him past ’04.

“Turning those two into Alex Rodriguez — who was the best player in baseball and would continue to be the best player in baseball for the four years we would have had him through the ’07 season at a discounted rate — and Ordonez was attractive for us at the time.

“Go back and look at the years Alex would have been a Red Sox — ’04, ’05, ’06, ’07. They were pretty prolific.

“It was a baseball deal to help fix the issues we had with Nomar, who had an expiring contract and had turned down a big contract in May. Basically he told us he couldn’t count on us to show up in any given year, so we were looking for a way to convert that into two different deals.

“We had a deal with Texas for A-Rod and we made a deal with the White Sox, Nomar for Magglio and Brandon McCarthy, who at the time was a minor leaguer. It was contingent on us completing the A-Rod deal. It probably was Manny and a minor league pitcher. If it was [Jon] Lester, it would have been a disaster.

“We couldn’t afford to take in [Rodriguez’s] full salary. So we needed some relief. The Rangers wouldn’t do it, so it was up to Alex. I met with him in New York and he agreed to walk away from a big chunk of his remaining salary to become a Red Sox.

“A lot of different parties got involved, and the MLBPA vetoed it, and it fell apart and he became a Yankee.”

At the time, it was a big blow to the Red Sox. Not only did they lose out on the best player in baseball, but they lost him to the Yankees.

“If Lester had been involved, it wouldn’t have been a great deal,” Epstein reasoned. “And it remained to be seen how Alex would have responded to being a Red Sox.

“By definition, it wouldn’t have been a great deal because we wound up winning the World Series. I’m glad it turned out the way it did.

“When he went to Yankees, and reconciling it being [Derek] Jeter’s team already and switching positions, and had he come to the Red Sox, he would have stayed at shortstop, it would have been his team. Who knows? Maybe his life and his career would have been different. You can’t know for sure.

“Just for the on-field aspect of it, go look at his numbers and the two MVPs he won during those years. I’m sure it would have made us more talented.”

At the trade deadline in 2009, Epstein thought he was going to make two blockbusters.

“We were obsessed with King Felix, even at an early age,” Epstein said. “We would have traded four or five prospects for him. And we had one going with the Padres where we would have gotten Adrian Gonzalez for another four players.

“I woke up that morning [of the deadline] and first Seattle backed out and decided not to do anything when it got kind of confusing for them. And then San Diego called and decided they weren’t going to move Adrian.”

This one looked like a Dave Dombrowski scenario of giving up a lot of prospects for young veterans.

“The guys we were giving up were fairly redundant,” Epstein said. “We had the best farm system in baseball. It looked like we still had a good system and we’d get two players who were still in their prime. Adrian was such a good fit for Fenway back then.”

Of course, Epstein would eventually get Gonzalez in 2011, trading prospect Anthony Rizzo for him. Epstein later acquired Rizzo back from the Padres once Epstein joined the Cubs. Epstein also made other attempts to get Hernandez, but the Mariners never budged.

After those deals fell through in 2009, Epstein settled for Victor Martinez, trading young pitching prospects Nick Hagadone, Bryan Price, and Justin Masterson to the Indians.

Following the players’ strike of 1994, former Red Sox general manager Dan Duquette thought he had made some significant acquisitions, not through trades but free agency.

First, Royals starter Kevin Appier agreed to a three-year, $17 million contract. Then closer John Wetteland and slugger Sammy Sosa came to Fenway and agreed to terms. This was possible because the owners implemented a system that made 38 players with four or five years’ experience restricted free agents, with the caveat that the previous team would have 10 days to match an offer and retain the player.

But the National Labor Relations Board soon vetoed the owners’ new free agency system, and it reverted back to eligibility after six years of service time.

“It was amazing that we got a prolific slugger, a great closer, and a No. 2 pitcher with three-year deals worth about $15 million apiece,” Duquette recalled. “It’s a shame that it didn’t go through. It would have been pretty exciting.”

Duquette remembered another significant deal he nearly made.

“We had a deal ready to go with Philadelphia where we’d get Doug Glanville for John Valentin,” Duquette said. “We backed out of it because we decided to sign Valentin to a multiyear deal.”

Duquette went another route to solve his center-field riddle by signing free agent Darren Lewis prior to the 1998 season.

The late Lou Gorman frequently tried to pry a pitcher away from the Braves, and he once offered Mike Greenwell for Tom Glavine. The Braves considered it but decided not to do it. (Good move.)

Gorman also explored a deal with the Indians for Wade Boggs in which he would have acquired Brook Jacoby and Greg Swindell. That came fairly close to happening but fell by the wayside.

And of course, the late Dick O’Connell bought left fielder/first baseman Joe Rudi and closer Rollie Fingers from Oakland for $1 million apiece in June 1976 until commissioner Bowie Kuhn ruled three days later that A’s owner Charles O. Finley could not simply sell off his biggest assets. Finley had also sold Vida Blue to the Yankees for $1.5 million, but Kuhn rescinded the deals, citing Article I Section 4 of the Major League Agreement, basically the “best interests of the game” authority.

The trade that never happened in the Ben Cherington era was the drawn-out Cole Hamels dance. Ruben Amaro, who was then was the Phillies GM and is now Boston’s first base coach, eventually dealt Hamels to Texas, but not before he tried to extract Mookie Betts from the Sox.

“It was clear that while there was interest by Boston, Ben was uncomfortable with the cost at the time,” Amaro said.

Cherington also recalls trying to deal catcher Kelly Shoppach at the 2012 trade deadline. He said the Mets and Rangers were interested.

“Our first ask from Texas was Kyle Hendricks,” said Cherington. “Our first ask from the Mets was Jacob deGrom. Both were in A ball and neither were a big name yet. Both teams wisely said no, but good job by our pro scouts to identify a couple of under-the-radar guys.”

Red Sox searching for someone to emerge at catcher

Peter Abraham

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Only once under John Farrell have the Red Sox had a catcher start more than half the games in a season. That was in 2013 when Jarrod Saltalamacchia was in the lineup 111 times.

Saltalamacchia started an average of 101 games from 2011-13. The Sox have not been able to establish a regular catcher since.

Saltalamacchia was benched during the World Series in ’13 and left the Sox as a free agent after the season. Farrell and the Sox have since tried A.J. Pierzynski, Christian Vazquez, Blake Swihart, and Sandy Leon but none has started even half the games in a season.

If Leon is behind the plate on Opening Day, he’ll be the fifth different starter in the last five years.

Can somebody take this important job and run with it?

Farrell often says he considers catcher a two-man position, and that’s fair. It’s a tough job and ideally you’d have a backup capable of starting as many as 45 or 50 games.

But for the Red Sox to get the most out of their pitching staff, one of the catchers needs to emerge as the main guy.

The best candidate to do that would be Swihart. He had a .786 OPS in 14 spring training games and showed improved defense. He may never be the defensive presence Vazquez is, but Swihart may be cumulatively more valuable because of what he can add offensively.

Swihart was optioned to Triple A Pawtucket to start the season, largely because Leon and Vazquez are out of minor league options and the Sox want to retain all three of their catchers.

But Swihart can force the issue by hitting for Pawtucket and getting the most out of starters like Henry Owens and Brian Johnson.

“Swihart for me has the most upside,” said a National League scout. “I’d like to see what he could do over a full season. They gave him a week last season.”

Swihart got six games, to be exact. Then he was demoted and turned into a left fielder, a decision that led to him suffering a season-ending ankle injury. It was development malpractice.

If Swihart can’t grab the job, make Leon or Vazquez the guy for at least 100 games. The Sox lineup is deep enough to carry Vazquez. Let’s see how his arm and pitch-framing skills can impact an entire season.

Whoever it is, make a decision. The Sox have a set player at every other position. Picking a catcher shouldn’t be as hard as they make it.

A few other thoughts and observations as spring training ends:

■ It seems imperative that the Sox find a reasonably competent starter to add to the roster at Pawtucket. Drew Pomeranz, Eduardo Rodriguez, and Steven Wright have never started for an entire season in the majors and all three are injury-prone. Kyle Kendrick is the only depth starter with any amount of trustworthiness.

■ Travis Shaw has a 1.091 OPS through 21 spring training games for Milwaukee and is lined up to be the Brewers’ Opening Day third baseman. How’s that trade looking?

■ Yoan Moncada has the physical skills needed to become perhaps a star player in the majors. But a recent ESPN story cracked open a window about why the Sox were willing to trade him.

The story described Moncada wanting to purchase 10 — yes, 10 — sports cars last spring and being talked out of it by the car dealer. He ended up with three cars.

Last spring, I received several emails from the custom specialist in Miami who was working on Moncada’s vehicles. He wanted publicity for the cars and said Yoan was willing to pose with them.

Red Sox players rolled their eyes at the idea of a 20-year-old player willing to pose with his three cars in the players’ parking lot at spring training. It was silly but harmless.

In the end, the Red Sox talked him out of that and he did what amounted to a car show at the hotel he was staying at. Again, it was kind of silly, but no big deal.

But when he was called up to the majors, Moncada showed no inclination to take extra batting practice or ground balls. He also spent little time working with the veteran players. By the third week, he was stretching by himself for batting practice. That was a big deal.

He was very good at posting selfies to social media, however.

Tellingly, the Red Sox sent him home during the last week of the season, and he was not with the team for the playoffs.

Officially, the story was that Moncada was getting ready for the Arizona Fall League. But wouldn’t you want a top prospect around the team for the playoffs for the learning experience even if he were just a nonroster spectator?

Moncada has undeniable talent. But there are legitimate questions about how hard he’ll work to hone that talent. He could be one of those players who accomplished his goal when he got his big contract.

■ The Red Sox media guide lists Pablo Sandoval as 255 pounds, which is clearly 10 or 15 pounds too high. It’s the same weight they listed him at in 2016 and 2015.

Every other player has different — and presumably accurate — weights listed for each season. But Sandoval’s actual weight is a mystery for some reason.

His bio also doesn’t mention any of his three children. His daughters were listed in 2015 and ’16. Sandoval had a son last spring, but according to a recent USA Today story, he won’t reveal his name.

There’s an inordinate amount of mystery around the Panda. But he sure had a terrific training camp. He was hustling on everything and looked like the surprisingly athletic player he was with the Giants.

■ Speaking of Sandoval, it’s good to see Farrell being tough with his players. Sandoval was the only regular who had to travel to Port Charlotte for last Saturday’s split-squad game. Farrell also has refused to say Sandoval is his starter.

Sandoval has had some unprofessional moments for the Sox since signing, led by showing up out of shape last season. Making him earn his way is fine.

■ Carl Crawford, who was released by the Dodgers last June 13, is getting paid $21.8 million this season. That seven-year contract the Red Sox gave him produced a 3.4 WAR.

■ Hanley Ramirez had 39 assists last season, by far the fewest among the 15 first basemen who played at least 1,000 innings. So don’t be too concerned about his right shoulder. It’s not like he’s going to throw much anyway.

■ Since 2015, Sam Travis has played 43 Grapefruit League games. The first baseman is 31 of 80 (.388) with 6 doubles, 5 home runs, and 26 RBIs.

Spring training statistics are almost impossible to evaluate because of all the variables not present during the season. But Travis has given every indication he will be a productive major league hitter when the time comes. But he does need some more development time in Triple A. His defense needs work, as does his ability to hit breaking pitches.

■ Marco Hernandez will be an everyday player for the Sox. Maybe not this year, but it will happen soon. He’s one of their best hitters.

■ The Sox need somebody on their development staff to make sure Rafael Devers gets in better shape so he can stay at third base.

■ Remember former Red Sox outfield prospect Ryan Kalish? His brother, Jake, played for Israel in the World Baseball Classic. He is a lefthanded reliever in the Kansas City organization.

Ryan Kalish, now 28, appeared in seven games for the Cubs last May and will get a World Series ring. But he was unable to play the rest of the season because of a knee injury that required surgery. He hopes to return to baseball at some point.

■ The first automatic intentional walk will happen soon. When it does, I’ll flash back to April 22, 1991.

While working in Connecticut for the Norwich Bulletin, I covered a game between Eastern Connecticut State and Amherst. It was 4-4 in the ninth when Amherst coach Bill Thurston ordered ECSU’s Mickey Soler to be walked with Steve Trimper on third base. He was setting up a double play.

But the Amherst pitcher, Matt Lane, left a ball too close to the plate and Soler swung. His fly ball to center field scored Trimper. It was an intentional walk walk-off.

As I recall, Thurston was furious after the game, saying it was a bush-league play. But Eastern coach Bill Holowaty said he told Soler to look for a pitch he could handle. What a wild scene.

So while one part of me will appreciate speeding the game up a bit, I’ve always wanted to see a big leaguer try the Mickey Soler play.

Thanks to ECSU sports information director Bob Molta for filling in a few details on the play. Trimper, by the way, is now the coach at Stetson after 11 years at Maine.

* The Boston Herald

Rookie Ben Taylor makes Opening Day roster

Steve Buckley

WASHINGTON — The day-long showers that forced the cancellation of yesterday’s exhibition game between the Red Sox and Nationals did nothing to dampen Ben Taylor’s day.

Little more than an afterthought at the beginning of spring training, the 24-year-old right-hander was informed he’ll be standing on the first base line at Fenway Park when the rosters are introduced for Monday’s season opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Not bad for a kid who wasn’t even on the 40-man roster, has only two pro seasons on his resume and hasn’t even played a full season of Double-A ball.

“He’s had a fantastic spring training,” Red Sox manager John Farrell said. “He’s emerged year over year . . . he’s a quality strikeout performer in the minor leagues and he’s shown that here in camp, but what stood out to us was the mound presence and the poise that he showed.”

A seventh-round pick out of South Alabama in 2015, Taylor split last season between Single-A Salem and Double-A Portland, going a combined 1-2 with a 2.96 ERA in 36 appearances, all but three of them in relief.

With the Sox facing a number of pitching-related health crises to open the season — David Price, Drew Pomeranz and Tyler Thornburg are headed for stints on the disabled list — opportunities exist for longshots to make a case for the big leagues.

Taylor made his.

The first call he made upon hearing the news was to his wife, followed by a call to his parents. It’s likely he also paid a visit to the locker of Sox pitcher Rick Porcello, whom Taylor credits with helping to show him the way.

“Rick is very business-like and he goes about his day like a true professional,” Taylor said. “And seeing that work ethic . . . I talked to him, watched him.”

Taylor said he didn’t expect to make the team but that “all the pieces fell into place,” he said. “It’s always a hope, to make the big club. It’s a real honor to be here.

“I’ve been feeling really good this spring, all my pitches working, throwing the ball well. It’s paid off.”

No hard feelings

Though no baseball was played yesterday, Sandy Leon still viewed the trip to Nationals Park as a happy homecoming. The 28-year-old catcher was originally signed by the Nationals as a free agent in 2007 and made his major league debut for the team in 2012, appearing in 12 games.

Leon never did log much big league service time with the Nationals, appearing in 34 games spread out over three seasons before being acquired by the Red Sox at the end of spring training in 2015. But he has absolutely no bad feelings about the Nationals.

“No, they gave me my chance,” he said. “They gave me my MLB debut. So I’m very happy to be back here. I worked very hard to get to the big leagues but at the same time somebody has to pay attention. They paid attention.”

Arms on schedule

The rainout forced Sox pitchers Chris Sale and Matt Barnes into bullpen sessions in order to get in their work.

Sale was to throw a “four-inning simulated situation,” said Farrell, and Barnes was to go two innings. . . .

Mitch Moreland, one of several Sox players who is battling the flu, was able to take BP in Fort Myers and will return to the cage today before flying to Boston for Monday’s opener. . . .

Farrell didn’t seem too upset about the rainout.

“Given the length of the spring we’ve just come through and given some of the flu situations that have run through our clubhouse, (yesterday’s) rainout might be kind of welcome timing for us in particular with the physical stress we’ve been under for the better part of seven weeks,” said the manager. . . .

The Oakland A’s named Dennis Eckersley, the former Sox reliever who now serves as a NESN analyst, as a special assistant to team president Dave Kaval. The team said he will be an alumni ambassador who advises the club and appears at community events. . . .

Something you don’t see too often in a big league clubhouse: Players playing chase. The two opponents in the Sox clubhouse yesterday were catcher Dan Butler and right-hander Chandler Shepherd. . . .

Shepherd and fellow right-handers Jamie Callahan and Austin Maddox were re-assigned to minor league camp. They will remain with the team through today’s exhibition game against the Nationals at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.

Amaro Sr. dead at 81

Ruben Amaro Sr., the father of Red Sox coach Ruben Amaro Jr., died yesterday at 81. The elder Amaro was a longtime member of the Phillies as player, coach, executive and scout. As shortstop of the 1964 Phillies, he was a Gold Glove winner. He also played three seasons with the Yankees and closed out his career with the Angels in 1969. . . .

Today will be a busy one for the Red Sox. The team will be guided on a private tour of the Navy campus prior to their game at Max Bishop Stadium. The gathering will be limited to Naval Academy midshipmen and invited members of the Navy.

Max Bishop Stadium is named for the longtime Navy coach and former major league second baseman. He played for the Red Sox in 1934 and ’35.

Why are the Red Sox suddenly so sensitive?

Steve Buckley

WASHINGTON — Is it bad form to be worrying about the 2017 Red Sox before they’ve even played a game?

I write these words as someone who is all in on the ’17 Sox. I love that young outfield. Love the starting pitching. Love what Dustin Pedroia brings to the table. Love that Pablo Sandoval has dropped those unwanted pounds and seems serious about rejuvenating his career.

For these and other reasons, I’m already on record as predicting the Red Sox are going to take out the Cubs in the mother of all World Series showdowns.

So why am I so worried when there’s nothing to be worried about?

Because there have been some troubling hiccups this past week, that’s why.

Let’s begin with this Tyler Thornburg issue. The new Sox reliever has a shoulder impingement that’s going to land him on the disabled list to open the season, and it may have something to do with the program he was put on after being acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers.

I’m not here to discuss the nature of the shoulder program, or to throw stones at the Red Sox’ training staff. But what troubles me is that it was Thornburg who talked about the shoulder program, which is why Sox beat writers quizzed manager John Farrell and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski about it.

Farrell originally brought up the program. Then writers asked Thornburg about it and he openly discussed it. That was March 10.

Memo to Farrell and Dombrowski: Don’t whine at the beat writers for asking you questions about statements made by your own players. They are not attacking your training staff. They’re asking follow-up questions.

My own attempt to get Dombrowski to comment on the team’s ham-handed handling of the Thornburg case was met with a message from the team’s PR staff that Dombrowski is “done talking about the shoulder program.”

It was communications I wanted to talk about. But since Dombrowski didn’t want to talk, we’re left to wonder why the Sox are suddenly being so . . . sensitive. This is mindful of the dark days when the John Harrington crowd was running the Red Sox and Dan Duquette was in charge of baseball ops and everyone right down to the ushers was moody and defensive. If the Sox want to go back to pulling that crap, good luck with that.

And speaking of sensitive, let’s get to my second concern about the ’17 Red Sox: Is Hanley Ramirez ever going to play first base again?

Talking with reporters about the shoulder injury that has prevented Ramirez from playing a single inning at first base this spring, Farrell ladled out the good news that Hanley was throwing from 100 feet the other day down in sunny Fort Myers. The manager then repeated that he expects Ramirez to log some time at first base when the Sox travel to Detroit following the season-opening three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Fenway Park.

When I asked Farrell to expand on that answer, he said, “We would expect him to be ready and we anticipate and are hopeful that by the Detroit series he’s capable of doing that.”

Expect. Anticipate. Hopeful.

Am I the only one who thinks Hanley Ramirez is looking forward to being a full-time designated hitter and doesn’t really want to play first base anymore?

Let’s remember that it took a full-throttled organizational effort to get Ramirez with the program last year. Ramirez was OK at the position — OK, not great — and had a monster offensive season. The Sox now have Mitch Moreland to play first base, but the expectation is that Ramirez will play the position when the Sox are facing a left-hander.

If the Sox can’t get Ramirez to log occasional time at first base, that’s a problem. If he does play the position but with none of the commitment he showed last year, that’s an even bigger problem. It would mean that Hanley’s plan is not in sync with the organizational plan.

Lastly, there’s the David Price situation. No blame is being assessed here. If he’s hurt, he’s hurt. But if he’s out for an extended period of time — even if it’s only late May — that means the starting rotation isn’t as deep as we thought.

The 2017 Red Sox are still stacked.

Yet the hiccups are stacking up. Keep an eye on them. And hold the Red Sox accountable . . . even if it makes them uncomfortable.

* The Providence Journal

Fisk, Vaughn, Morgan selected to PawSox Hall of Fame

Sports Staff

Ex-Red Sox and PawSox players Carlton Fisk and Mo Vaughn, along with former PawSox and Red Sox manager Joe Morgan, have been selected as 2017 PawSox Hall of Fame inductees.

A 15-person panel, which includes club executives, print and broadcast media members, longtime fans, and historians selected the second-ever Hall of Fame class. Late long-time owner Ben Mondor, Wade Boggs and Jim Rice made up the inaugural class last year. Details on this season’s PawSox Hall of Fame ceremonies will be announced soon.

“The PawSox Hall of Fame recognizes the most impactful figures in club history,” said PawSox Executive Vice President/General Manager Dan Rea. “We are especially pleased that our fans have the opportunity to celebrate some of our franchise’s greatest names, and we look forward to another special event this season.”

Fisk played just one season with the Pawtucket Red Sox in 1970 when the club was the Double-A Eastern League affiliate of the Red Sox. However, once Fisk arrived in Boston for his first full season in 1972 he earned American League Rookie of the Year honors and went on to play 24 seasons in the majors with the Red Sox (1969, 1971-80) and the White Sox (1981-93). He retired with the most games caught (2,226) and most HR (351 of career 376) of any catcher in MLB history and he is one of only three catchers with more than 300 HR, 1,000 runs scored, and 1,000 RBI. He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000 and was selected for the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1997.

Vaughn was a popular player for the PawSox for parts of three seasons (1990-92) and went on to a stellar 12-year Major League career with Boston (1991-98), Anaheim (1999-2000), and the New York Mets (2002-03). He finished his big league career with a .293 average along with 328 HR & 1064 RBI in 1512 games. Mo was a three-time American League All-Star with the Red Sox (1995, ’96 and ’98) and the American League MVP in 1995 when he hit .300 with 39 HR & 126 RBI. The “Hit Dog” followed that up with a sensational 1996 campaign for Boston batting .326 with career-highs of 44 HR & 143 RBI.

Morgan is the dean of PawSox managers spending nine years as PawSox skipper from 1974-1982 while compiling a franchise-most 601 career managerial victories. He is the only man to win the International League’s Most Valuable Player and Manager of the Year Awards. His MVP came in 1964 with Jacksonville (the IL affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals) and his Manager of the Year came with Pawtucket in 1977.

Grinding it out: Long season requires physical preparation from coaches as well as players

Tim Britton

FORT MYERS, Fla. — It’s the standing, coaches tell you. You would not believe how much they have to stand.

“Just the amount of time on your feet,” Ruben Amaro Jr. said. “I was surprised by that. I had to put myself in pretty good physical condition to be able to do it. Shoot, I think I lost probably 15 pounds.”

Players talk all the time about “the grind,” baseball’s relentless march, day after day, from the first day of spring training through the final day of the season. “No days off” isn’t something championed at a baseball parade, because that’s a philosophy cooked into the game’s unyielding schedule.

Nobody understands that better than coaches.

For the most part, major-league players are in peak physical condition and in the prime of their athletic lives. Coaches, on the other hand, are usually past their playing age and tasked with work every bit as demanding — both physically and mentally.

“You’ve got to keep taking care of yourself because it’s a young man’s game and it’s a long season,” said third-base coach Brian Butterfield, who turned 59 this spring. “It’s a demanding thing with the travel and the mental work that you put in, and then you top that off with the fact it’s a physical job, too.”

Butterfield has felt that acutely this spring. Because of a knee replacement in the offseason, he hasn’t been able to coach third or hit his usual hundreds of ground balls to any player that requests some extra work.

While players arrive to spring training in better shape than they used to, they still require a lot of work to get into midseason form. And in order to assist them, coaches have to arrive at spring training in midseason form themselves.

“As a player, you come to the ballpark worried about yourself and how you feel. You’re so concerned with your swing or your delivery or how many ground balls you’ve taken. It’s all about getting yourself ready,” said the 49-year-old DiSarcina, a longtime major-league shortstop. “As a staff member, it’s all about your group of guys. You’re worrying about more than one person, and you want to make sure that they all get their needs met.

“That’s when it starts grinding.”

Amaro, 52, learned that last year, his first back in uniform after nearly two decades as an executive. Prepping for that initial season, he went back to weight training and hitting fungoes in an indoor batting cage. This past winter, he focused more on throwing and cardio.

“It’s a long season. You’ve got to keep yourself in decent cardiovascular shape,” he said. “I did a lot of core work because I know my back is something that becomes a problem for me personally.”

Assistant hitting coach Victor Rodriguez used to throw a lot more in the winter to prepare for eight months of daily batting practice pitching. Now he breaks it down into its individual elements — work on the shoulder, elbow and legs.

“You have to prepare your body. You have to run, you have to lift weights. I do a lot of spinning classes,” the 55-year-old Rodriguez said. “Mentally is the fun part, but physically, just to last that long throwing every day, you have to be fit.”

While players tend to hit a physical wall in August, many coaches will tell you the hardest time of year is the one they just got through.

“This is the hardest part of the year to get through for me,” hitting coach Chili Davis said of spring training. “Once [the regular season] gets going, the juices start flowing, you get into it.”

“In spring training, even though we’re in one state, it can at times be more challenging over the course of a six-week period than the regular season,” said manager John Farrell. “We’ve got 5 a.m. wakeup calls, then when you start to throw in night games, your clock gets flipped. You’ve got to make sure you’re getting your rest.”

Farrell said he sometimes finds himself going to bed by 8 p.m. Butterfield’s lucky if he makes it that late, given he’s usually at the park by 3 a.m.

In addition to the early mornings, there’s also the matter of a much larger roster. There’s always someone who could use a little help on one of the backfields. A coach can’t have a light day where he DHs and takes BP off. He can’t leave a blowout early.

“You can’t take a day off,” said Gary DiSarcina, who as a minor-league manager planned off-days for his players based on how tired he was feeling. “You have to be available every day and get after it every day to be there for the players.”

The start of the regular season can thus be rejuvenating, as the hard work starts to turn into something measurable and meaningful on the field.

“I enjoy it because of the results of all the work,” said Rodriguez. “It’s that pleasure of doing the work and then just sitting down and watching them play and do their thing and have success. I enjoy it a lot.”

“It may be a grind,” DiSarcina said, “but it’s a good grind.”

* The Hartford Courant

Red Sox Preview: Boston Appears To Be Loaded, Going For It All This Year

Courant Staff

Starting pitching appeared to be a strength when the Red Sox went about retooling their team for 2017. They had the Cy Young Award winner in Rick Porcello and a past winner in David Price.

But the old saying about pitching – you can never have enough – was certainly on Dave Dombrowski's mind when another of the best pitchers in the league, lefthander Chris Sale, was on the market. He had the prospects to pry Sale from the White Sox, and he went for it.

"Regardless of who's pitching on what night, the next night we have as good if not a better chance, all the way down the line," Sale told reporters after the trade. "That's nice. It takes some pressure off of everybody. Just go out there and pitch because you don't feel like you have this huge weight on your shoulders to win this game, for sure, 100 percent. It alleviates the pressure that might build on some guys."

Of course, it's pitching and you can never have enough, so with Price starting the season on the disabled list with an elbow injury, and no way to be sure he will pitch at all, the trade for Sale, who was 17-10 with a 3.34 ERA and 226 innings pitched, looms larger still. Even without Price, the Red Sox will start the season with two healthy ace-level starters, and better depth than most teams.

"We did trade some good prospects," Dombrowski told MLB.com. "And we've traded some here [for Sale], but I think that what you're trying to do is win a world championship. If you have the ability to win a world championship with your club — and you have to be able to analyze that yourself, it doesn't mean you're going to win it, but you have a club that can do it — I think you do within reason what you can to try to win."

So the Red Sox are going for it, and with good reason. Though David Ortiz has retired, they have a strong core of young, yet experienced and proven position players, and making sure manager John Farrell has the pitching to contend for the championship was Dombrowski's offseason mission. As training camp opened, owner John Henry told reporters anything less than a fourth championship since 2004 would be a "limited success."

The Red Sox won 93 games and the AL East in 2016, but the season ended bitterly, with Porcello (22-4, 3.15 ERA) and Price (17-10, 230 innings pitched) faltering and the Indians, managed by Terry Francona, ousting them in the Division Series.

Porcello outpointed Justin Verlander in the Cy Young voting, and Mookie Betts (31 homers, 113 RBI) was outpointed by Mike Trout for MVP, both controversial choices, but it underscores the Red Sox's talent. Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Andrew Benintendi, who skyrocketed through the minors in little over a year and impressed in a late-season call-up, form the outfield. Not many teams can match the production of shortstop Xander Bogaerts (.294 batting average) and Dustin Pedroia (.318) in the middle of the diamond, either.

For now, the Red Sox will fill the great void left by Ortiz with Hanley Ramirez, who hit 30 homers in a bounce-back season, DH-ing and Mitch Moreland at first base, or Ramirez playing some first base and others in the DH role. At third, they're hoping for a comeback from Pablo Sandoval, for two years a high- priced free agent bust. Sandy Leon emerged as the starting catcher last season, but there are other options.

That's a lineup with power, speed and patience at the plate, one to deliver Sale, for instance, more run support than he usually had in Chicago. In the bullpen, closer Craig Kimbrel had a difficult first year in Boston. If he bounces back to his dominant NL form, it will be a matter of sifting through a series of arms to find the ones that can get the big outs in the seventh and eighth innings.

Behind Sale, Porcello and, when he's ready, Price, the Red Sox have a number of options. If All-Star Steven Wright, the knuckleballer, and Drew Pomeranz can recover from injuries, the rotation looks just fine. And don't forget Eduardo Rodriguez, who has had a strong spring and is challenging for a prominent role.

"Look at all these banners," Sale told reporters the day he reported for spring training in Fort Myers, Fla. "We've got a lot of banners. I'd like to add to that. I think that's what this team is about. You can tell the intensity, not just with the players but the staff. They're held to a very high standard."

* The Springfield Republican

Ben Taylor, Boston Red Sox hard-throwing righty, makes Opening Day roster, per source

Christopher Smith

Right-handed reliever Ben Taylor has made the Boston Red Sox's Opening Day roster, according to a baseball source.

Evan Drellich of CSNNE.com was the first to report the news.

The 24-year-old, who Boston selected in the seventh round of the 2015 draft out of South Alabama, entered this spring as a long shot to make the team. He was a non-roster invitee participating in his first big league spring training camp and had not pitched above Double-A Portland.

But he opened eyes early in camp with his swing-and-miss fastball. Taylor posted a 3.46 ERA (13 IP, 5 ER) and 1.08 WHIP in Grapefruit League action down in Florida. He allowed 11 hits and three walks while striking out 19. Opponents batted .212 against him.

The 6-foot-3, 238-pounder averaged 11.2 strikeouts in 45 innings for High-A Salem during 2016 before being promoted to Portland. He combined for a 2.96 ERA and .217 opponent batting average at the two levels.

His fastball reached 96 mph at Double A last year but he still can get swings and misses when he takes speed off the pitch, Sea Dogs manager Carlos Febles said earlier in spring training.

"He can be throwing 88-89 mph, he'll get swing-and-miss on it," Febles said in February, adding Taylor's fastball averaged approximately 93 mph during his time at Portland.

Taylor also features a slider and changeup.

The Red Sox have an open 40-man roster spot because Bryce Brentz cleared waivers earlier today. Brentz was outrighted to Triple-A Pawtucket. And so Taylor can be added to the 40-man roster without a corresponding move needed.

The Red Sox are expected go with an extra reliever the first five days of the regular because they don't need a fifth starter until April 9. Drew Pomeranz (left forearm flexor strain) can be activated from the DL on April 9.

Will Ben Taylor make roster? Jamie Callahan, Chandler Shepherd, Austin Maddox sent to minors

Christopher Smith

The Boston Red Sox have reassigned right-handed relievers Jamie Callahan, Austin Maddox, and Chandler Shepherd to minor league camp.

All three pitchers will remain with Boston through Saturday's exhibition game vs. the Washington Nationals at the United States Naval Academy.

Of note, reliever Ben Taylor remains on Boston's big league spring training roster and so he potentially could make the Opening Day roster.

Boston opens the regular season Monday at Fenway Park vs. the Pirates.

The Red Sox don't need a fifth starting pitcher until April 9 and likely will use an extra reliever for the first five games of the season with Drew Pomeranz on the 10-day disabled list.

Manager John Farrell told reporters Thursday the Boston Red Sox will not decide who takes Pomeranz's roster spot until Monday, but it likely will go to a reliever and the candidates still are in big league camp.

Taylor, who has never pitched above Double-A Portland, posted a 3.46 ERA (13 IP, 5 ER) and 1.08 WHIP in Grapefruit League action down in Florida. He allowed 11 hits and three walks while striking out 19. Opponents batted .212 against him.

Taylor -- a 2015 seventh-round draft pick -- is not on the 40-man roster. But the Red Sox's 40-man roster is at 39 players right now after Bryce Brentz cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Pawtucket earlier today. And so Taylor could be placed on the 40-man roster without the Red Sox needing to make a corresponding move.

He's the only non-roster invitee remaining in camp.

Callahan, who never has pitched above High-A Salem, had an impressive big league camp. The 2012 second-round pick posted a 0.87 ERA (10 1/3 IP, 1 ER) and 0.68 WHIP. He allowed six hits and one walk while striking out 12. The opposition batted .162 vs. him.

Maddox posted a 2.45 ERA (11 IP, 3 ER) and 1.27 WHIP in 10 relief outings. Opponents batted .243 against him.

Shepherd recorded a 7.20 ERA (10 IP, 8 ER) and 1.50 WHIP in six outings. Opponents batted .333 against him.

Red Sox vs. Nationals game Friday is canceled; two teams play Saturday at Naval Academy

Christopher Smith

The Boston Red Sox and Washington Nationals' 4:05 p.m. exhibition today (Friday) at Nationals Park has been canceled due to rain.

Chris Sale was scheduled to pitch today, his final tuneup before his first regular season start Wednesday.

The Red Sox and Nationals are scheduled to play another exhibition game tomorrow at the United States Naval Academy's Max Bishop Stadium at 2 p.m. That game will be telecast on NESN.

There's 20 percent chance of precipitation in Annapolis tomorrow, per weather.com.

The Red Sox will open the regular season at 2:05 p.m. Monday vs. the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Red Sox 40-man roster spot opens as Bryce Brentz clears waivers, outrighted to Pawtucket

Christopher Smith

Outfielder Bryce Brentz has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Pawtucket.

That opens a spot on the Boston Red Sox's 40-man roster, which now is at 39 players.

The Red Sox had to designate Brentz for assignment because he was out of minor league options and they had no room for him on the 25-man roster. Boston couldn't send him to Pawtucket without exposing him to waivers.

Brentz, the 36th-overall selection in the 2010 draft, went 10-for-55 (.182 batting average) with a .237 on- base percentage, .400 slugging percentage, .637 OPS, three homers, three doubles, seven RBIs, four walks and 15 strikeouts in 26 spring training games.

He has posted a .287/.311/.379/.690 line with one homer and nine RBIs in 34 major league games (87 at- bats).

* RedSox.com

Red Sox tab righty Taylor for final 'pen spot

Oliver Macklin

WASHINGTON -- Right-handed reliever Ben Taylor has won the final spot in Boston's bullpen, Red Sox manager John Farrell announced Friday.

Brought to Red Sox camp as a non-roster invitee, Taylor earned his way onto the club's Opening Day roster with an impressive Spring Training. The 24-year-old recorded a 3.46 ERA, struck out 19 batters and walked three in 13 innings.

"It's a pretty cool feeling," Taylor said. "I've been working for this especially hard the past month, but for my whole life."

The Red Sox drafted Taylor in the seventh round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of the University of South Alabama. The young righty quickly progressed through the Minor Leagues, needing just two seasons to jump from Class A Short Season Lowell to the Majors.

Taylor went 1-2 with a 2.96 ERA split between Class A Advanced Salem and Double-A Portland last season, racking up 98 strikeouts in 79 innings.

"He's had a fantastic Spring Training, when you think about a guy who's just in his second full season in pro baseball," Farrell said. "He's emerged year over year. He was a senior sign out of the University of South Alabama, but a quality strikeout performer throughout the Minor Leagues. He's shown that here in camp. ... But what stuck out to us was the mound presence and the poise that he showed to be a mature guy."

Taylor said his maturity comes in part from watching reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Rick Porcello go through the motions on a daily basis.

"Watching Rick go about his day, you know he's a Cy Young winner. It's incredible to see what he does," Taylor said. "I've tried to take a few things from him and apply them to my own routine to make myself better."

Farrell noticed the resemblances in the way the two pitchers approach their work.

"There are some similarities in personality," Farrell said. "I don't want to say he's completely reserved, but it's a very business-like approach, it's disciplined. [Ben's] got a quiet, strong, competitive nature about him. It's great [for Rick] to be able to deliver a message to a young guy who's now realizing a dream and making the club for the first time coming out of Spring Training."

Worth noting • Boston reassigned right-handed pitchers Jamie Callahan and Austin Maddox to Double-A Portland and Chandler Shepherd to Triple-A Pawtucket on Friday. The club also outrighted outfielder Bryce Brentz to Pawtucket. The Red Sox have 31 players remaining in Major League camp.

Red Sox, Nats honored to play at Naval Academy

Ian Browne and Jamal Collier

WASHINGTON -- Dusty Baker made sure to take his family to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., last summer, the same place he used to make trips to with his father and favorite uncle, Floyd, in the late 1950s and early '60s.

So Baker is looking forward to returning to the Naval Academy on Saturday when his Nationals play the Red Sox in an exhibition game at 2 p.m. ET at Max Bishop Stadium, home of the Naval Academy's baseball team. The nationally televised game will be open exclusively to Naval Academy midshipmen and members of the U.S. Navy.

"As a former Marine, it's a privilege and honor to play at the Naval Academy," said Baker, whose father served in World War II and uncle was in the Navy. "I have fished outside there for years and have pictures on my phone when I took my wife and son the last summer. Great afternoon."

It will be an exciting day for both organizations as they get the full experience throughout the day, beginning with a breakfast reception where the managers -- Baker and Red Sox manager John Farrell -- and both teams will be presented with engraved swords while the Nats and Red Sox present engraved bats to Vice Admiral Walter E. "Ted" Carter, the superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy, Colonel Stephen Liszewski, United States Marine Corps, 86th commandant of midshipmen of the United States Naval Academy, and Chet Gladchuk, director of athletics for the Naval Academy Athletic Association.

"We have a special opportunity to play a game in the shadow of our nation's capital and share in the experience of being at the Naval Academy and Annapolis," Farrell said. "Our players are excited to be a part of what should be a fun day."

After breakfast, the players and staff will be given a tour of the facility, where they will see air and ground military vehicles, indoor navigation training simulators and visit the site of the honor roll of all Academy graduates who have died in military operations. In addition, both teams will get to view the dormitory that houses the entire brigade of midshipmen, which is the largest dormitory in the world.

"I'm excited to see what [the academy's] all about," Nationals right-hander Stephen Strasburg said. "I know there's going to be a lot of midshipmen there, get a chance to meet some of them and talk baseball with them. Growing up in San Diego, I come from a military family, so you can really respect and appreciate the sacrifices they make. I wouldn't be playing this game if it weren't for them."

The Naval Academy's entire campus is considered a historic landmark, sprawled over 338 acres of land. The history of the MLB in the academy is growing after Cardinals reliever Mitch Harris became the first Naval Academy grad to pitch in the Majors in nearly a century last season and MLB hosted the first major sporting event on an active military base when the Braves and Marlins played at Fort Bragg in North Carolina on July 3, 2016.

The Nationals are scheduled to host one exhibition game at the U.S. Naval Academy through 2019 as part of a new three-year agreement, so the Red Sox were happy to be a part of this historic event.

"This is a unique opportunity for the Red Sox organization to participate in a game at the Naval Academy for the servicemen that do so much for our country," Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said. "It is an honor for everyone in our organization to participate in this game in Annapolis and in a small way to say thank you to everyone that helps protect our country."

Rain cancels Friday's Red Sox-Nats exhibition

Jamal Collier

WASHINGTON -- Friday's exhibition game between the Nationals and Red Sox has been canceled due to inclement weather. The game will not be rescheduled.

Nats right-hander Tanner Roark was scheduled to face Red Sox lefty Chris Sale. Washington did not announce how the rainout affects its rotation, but Sale got his work in with a simulated four-inning bullpen session. Right-handed reliever Matt Barnes also threw a simulated two-inning bullpen session Friday after the game was called.

Boston manager John Farrell said all of the relievers who were set to follow Sale will receive work when the Nationals and Red Sox play their final exhibition game on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET at Max Bishop Stadium in Annapolis, Md. Eduardo Rodriguez, as scheduled, will be the starting pitcher for Boston opposite Washington's Max Scherzer in the Spring Training finale.

* CSNNE.com

Righty Ben Taylor Makes Red Sox Opening Day Roster

Evan Drellich

The Red Sox have informed Ben Taylor he has made the team, a baseball source told CSNNE.com on Friday.

The Red Sox announced that all the other non-roster invitee pitchers in spring training, righties Austin Maddox, Chandler Shepherd and Jamie Callahan, had been reassigned to minor league camp. That left Taylor, and he's not being carried along just for one final exhibition game agianst the Orioles on Saturday.

Taylor, 24, was a seventh-round pick in 2015. Converted to the bullpen during his pro career, his velocity reaches the mid-90s. His best secondary pitch is a slider, followed by his changeup.

"Arm strength and aggressiveness," one scout who saw Taylor this spring said. "Some life at times up in the zone — it plays better than expected up there — but can be flat. Slurvy breaking ball. Inconistent changeup."

Taylor's stay with the Red Sox may well be short. Drew Pomeranz's trip to the disabled list to start the season gives the Sox room for an extra arm, but they'll need a starter come April 9.

The Red Sox on Friday also got outfielder Bryce Brentz through waivers. He was out of options.

The Sox exhibition game Friday afternoon against the Nats at Nationals Park in Washington was canceled because of poor weather. The teams are scheduled to play their exhibition finale Saturday at 2:05 p.m. at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.