The Thursday, October 29, 2020

* The Boston Globe

Your guide to the Red Sox' offseason

Julian McWilliams

The Red Sox offseason is officially underway with the conclusion of the , and it will certainly be different from years past because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

That reality isn’t exclusive to the Red Sox. The sport as a whole has taken a financial throughout 2020 and each team will have to navigate an offseason with even more uncertainty ahead.

Nevertheless, here’s a guide to what to expect this offseason.

Who will be the manager? It’s clear that Ron Roenicke was just a bridge manager in 2020, helping to get chief officer Chaim Bloom and the Red Sox to this point, but he wasn’t Bloom’s choice for the job going forward.

Many have speculated that former Sox manager Alex Cora would be a good choice to return as manager after serving a year-long suspension for his involvement in the ' sign-stealing scandal. Cora’s suspension ended when the World Series did, and teams are now free to contact him.

The Sox have interviewed third base , bench coach Luis Urueta, Pirates bench coach , Twins bench coach Mike Bell, Padres associate manager Skip Schumaker, and Marlins bench coach James Rowson.

MLB Network’s Jon Heyman suggested that they could have interest in Dodgers first base coach , a former Red Sox minor league instructor.

Cora has a good rapport with the players in addition to Red Sox owners John Henry and Tom Werner as well as team president and CEO Sam Kennedy, who said last month that the managerial search will ultimately be Bloom’s decision.

Who is arbitration-eligible? The Sox have six players eligible for salary arbitration: Rafael Devers, catcher Kevin Plawecki, and Matt Barnes, Eduardo Rodriguez, Ryan Brasier, and Austin Brice. Arbitration- eligible players have until Jan. 15 to sign before their case would go to an arbitrator. Teams have until Dec. 2 to submit contract offers.

Infielder Jose Peraza and Dylan Covey were originally part of the Sox' arbitration-eligible group, but the team outrighted the pair Wednesday afternoon, along with Cesar Puello. Peraza struggled to find his footing in a Sox uniform, batting just .225 in 120 plate appearances last season. Covey registered a 7.07 ERA in just 14 innings of work. Both Covey and Peraza have elected free agency.

Outfielder Andrew Benintendi would have been in his second year of arbitration but avoided it by signing a two-year, $10 million deal before the 2020 season. He’ll have another year of team control after the 2021 season.

Both Barnes and Rodriguez will be heading into their final year of arbitration while Devers is heading into his first. After Peraza’s struggles in 2020, it’s likely that he’ll be non-tendered, leaving a hole for the Sox to fill at second base.

Rodriguez lost his arbitration case before last season and had to settle for $8.3 million instead of $9 million. Spotrac estimates that Rodriguez will stay at that same figure next season. Rodriguez missed the season after contracting myocarditis as a result of his bout with COVID-19.

Barnes earned $3.1 million in 2020 and is projected to see a $1.6 million increase, bumping his 2021 salary to $4.7 million. Meanwhile, Devers is projected to earn around $4.85 million after $692,500 in 2020. Plawecki could possibly earn $1.65 million, and Brasier is estimated to reel in $1.3 million.

Who will become free agents? The Red Sox' key free agent is outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr., who has said that he wants to test the free agent market.

Bradley has had his ups and downs in a Red Sox uniform but his defense was unmatched, earning him the title of one of the best Sox center fielders — if not the best — ever. There’s a chance he could re-sign with the Sox on a short-term deal because of uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, but Bradley’s talents might be better suited for a bigger ballpark.

Fenway’s Green Monster doesn’t work in Bradley’s favor, leaving him little room to track down balls. Each ball in the gap, it seems, is a homer or off the wall, and the balls off the wall hurt Bradley’s defensive metrics. But imagine if he was in a bigger ballpark such as Coors Field in Denver? What would Bradley’s value look like then?

Pitcher Collin McHugh and outfielder Rusney , whose seven-year, $72.5 million contract never matched his performance and kept him in the minor leagues, are also free agents. Because Castillo wasn’t added to the team’s 40-man roster, he wasn’t under club control, so as a result, he’s now a minor league free agent.

Wait until next year is scheduled for April 1 vs. the at Fenway Park, but schedule alterations remain possible because of the pandemic. Secondarily, and probably most importantly, looms the question of how much of a financial hit owners are willing to take. If there are no fans in the stands, 162 games feels unlikely.

Key offseason dates Oct. 28: Eligible players become free agents

Nov. 1: Free agents can sign with teams

Nov. 2: Finalists for manager of the year, rookie of the year, Cy Young Award, and MVP announced

Nov. 3: Gold Glove winners announced

Nov. 9: Rookies of the year announced

Nov. 10: Managers of the year announced

Nov. 11: Cy Young Awards announced

Nov. 12: MVP Awards announced

Nov. 16: 2021 Hall of Fame ballot announced

Nov. 20: Players who are Rule 5 eligible must be added to the team’s 40-man roster or else they will be a part of the .

Dec. 2: Non-tender deadline for teams to inform arbitration-eligible players if they will be offered a contract

Dec. 6-10: Winter meetings in Dallas

Jan. 15: Deadline for teams and arbitration-eligible players to submit salary figures.

Mid-February: Red Sox report to in Fort Myers, Fla.

Feb. 26: Red Sox spring training exhibition season begins with game vs. Northeastern University

Red Sox add opportunities for minor leaguers to make up ground on a lost season

Alex Speier

For the most part, Red Sox minor league activity has taken on a sort of Groundhog Day feel this year. During the big league season, activity at the team’s alternate site in Pawtucket was limited to workouts and intrasquad games, with Red Sox prospects limited to facing their teammates repeatedly.

But with a group of 62 players taking part in the team’s instructional league in Fort Myers, some variation finally has arrived. Red Sox prospects have played a limited number of seven-inning doubleheaders against minor leaguers from the Rays, whose prospects are training in Port Charlotte. The instructional league program will continue through Nov. 12.

The Red Sox are also planning on conducting an additional instructional league for prospects at their academy from Nov. 1 through the third week of December. Approximately 40-45 players will take part in the program, pending intake screenings for COVID-19.

The program will include both a number of the Latin players who are currently in Fort Myers as well as others who have not had any minor league instruction this year as a result of the cancellation of the Minor League Baseball season.

Roster moves The Red Sox outrighted three players from the major league roster — utility player Jose Peraza, outfielder Cesar Puello, and righthander Dylan Covey. Peraza and Puello have decided to become free agents.

Peraza appeared in 34 games in 2020 and played second base in 27 games. He also played third base, , outfield, and pitched for one-third of an inning. Puello played in five games and had 11 plate appearances. Covey pitched 14 innings over eight games.

Sea Dogs manager out Joe Oliver, who managed in the Red Sox minor league system for the last seven years with short-season Lowell, High A Salem, and most recently A Portland, was among the nine Red Sox baseball operations employees who were informed last month that their contracts would not be renewed. Oliver worked with several top Red Sox prospects in recent years, including Rafael Devers, Andrew Benintendi, and Bobby Dalbec. The Red Sox are expected to tab someone from within the organization to manage the Sea Dogs next year.

* MassLive.com

Boston Red Sox roster moves: Jose Peraza, Dylan Covey among latest cuts as 40-man purge continues

Chris Cotillo

The Red Sox' roster purge continued Tuesday afternoon, with Boston cutting infielder Jose Peraza, pitcher Dylan Covey and outfielder Cesar Puello in its latest round of 40-man moves.

All three players cleared waivers and were outrighted to -A Pawtucket. Peraza and Puello elected free agency while Covey will remain in the organization as a non-40-man roster player.

The Red Sox, who faced a roster crunch entering the offseason, have now freed up 10 roster spots since Friday afternoon. Six players (Peraza, Puello and pitchers Zack Godley, Mike Kickham and Andrew Triggs) have elected minor-league free agency, three (COvey, Tzu-Wei Lin and Robinson Leyer) have been outrighted to the minors, one (Jackie Bradley Jr.) hit major-league free agency and another (Domingo Tapia) was claimed off waivers by Seattle.

Boston now has 31 players on its 40-man roster and six more on the injured list who need to be added to the roster in the coming days. The club will likely add six prospects (Jay Groome, Bryan Mata, Hudson Potts, Jeisson Rosario, Connor Seabold and Connor Wong) to the roster to protect them from the Rule 5 draft, so more roster cuts are coming in the next few weeks.

Peraza, 26, was Boston’s Opening Day roster but struggled to a .225/.275/.342 line in 34 games and was optioned to Pawtucket on Sept. 10. This is the second straight offseason in which Peraza has been effectively released, as the Reds non-tendered him last winter before the Sox picked him up on a one-year deal.

Covey, who was acquired from the Rays on July 21, posted a 7.07 ERA in 14 innings in 2020. Puello, a former Mets top prospect, was 3-for-8 in 11 plate appearances at the end of the season.

Rusney Castillo’s $72.5M Boston Red Sox contract has finally expired; he officially became a free agent Wednesday

Christopher Smith

Rusney Castillo’s Red Sox career is finally finished. The seven-year, $72.5-million contract he signed with Boston on Aug. 23, 2014, expired at the end of the 2020 season. He officially became a free agent Wednesday (today).

He last appeared in a game for Boston on June 16, 2016, at Fenway Park against the Baltimore Orioles. He went 0-for-3 with two .

He cleared waivers and was outrighted off the 40-man roster to Triple-A Pawtucket four days later. He never retuned to Boston again. The Red Sox had to pay him more than $50 million to play in the minors.

He batted .262 with a .301 on-base percentage, .379 , .679 OPS, seven home runs, 12 doubles, two triples, 35 RBIs, 83 hits, 45 runs and seven stolen bases in 99 major league games (337 plate appearances) for the Red Sox.

He batted .293 with a .335 on-base percentage, .425 slugging percentage, .761 OPS, 42 home runs, 105 doubles, six triples, 217 RBIs, 536 hits, 243 runs and 51 steals in 467 games (1,973 plate appearances) in the minor leagues.

Below is a video from former president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski’s press conference the day Castillo was outrighted to Pawtucket in 2016:

Former GM Ben Cherington signed Castillo. Dombrowski inherited the contract.

But his contract didn’t count toward the Red Sox’s Competitive Balance Tax threshold after Boston outrighted him in 2016. So basically the Red Sox paid him a ton of money, but it was all dead money. It didn’t restrict the front office from adding other high-priced free agents.

Different language in a new MLB Collective Bargaining Agreement signed after the 2016 season prevented Castillo from ever reaching the majors with Boston again.

The new CBA requires the average annual values of outrighted players' contracts to count toward the Competitive Balance Tax threshold.

Castillo wasn’t on the 40-man roster when the new Collective Bargaining Agreement came into effect though. He was grandfathered in under the previous rule as long as he continued to remain off the 40-man roster.

Castillo’s average annual value of $10.36 million would have counted against the Red Sox’s CBT for the remainder of his contract if Boston had placed him back onto the 40-man roster.

Mookie Betts, Tom Brady thriving in their new homes, while Boston’s next championship is nowhere in sight

Matt Vautour

The grey sky and rain were appropriate for the mood in New England Wednesday morning.

In sunny Los Angeles, if they went to sleep at all, they woke up ready to continue celebrating the World Series championship that former Red Sox star Mookie Betts helped clinch Tuesday night. In the Sunshine State, they’re celebrating former Patriots legend Tom Brady and the Buccaneers, who are looking more and more like a Super Bowl team.

Around here fans are glum. For the first time in almost 20 years, not one of the Boston teams looks close to winning a championship while the GOATs are grazing happily in other pastures with New England in their rearview mirror.

Only Betts knows if his “I thought I’d be a Red Sox for life” line to David Ortiz was true or just a self- serving quip. But whether Boston was smart to get something for him before he left on his own or dumb to unload one of the best players in the sport as well as the history of the franchise, the simple fact remains baseball is less fun and the Red Sox are worse without him.

They were historically bad this year finishing last in the East.. When the Red Sox finished last in 2015, you could look at the roster and believe Xander Bogaerts and of course Betts were going to eventually be great and that Yoan Moncada, before being traded for , might be special down the road.

The Celtics, who reached the Eastern Conference finals, are easily the closest right now, but the NBA isn’t providing the region any less misery. Any year LeBron James wins a title for any team is a bad one for Boston fans and any year the Lakers is equally unpleasant. The double-whammy of James winning a title for a L.A., that bring the Lakers into a tie with the Celtics for the most championships in league history only further twists the knife.

Los Angeles has won two legs of the championship grand slam right now, giving it claim to seize the Title Town moniker Boston has adopted in recent years.

The current Celtics had flaws revealed against Miami and the Eastern Conference isn’t getting any easier with Kevin Durant joining the Nets. Plus Gordon Hayward, whose body shape is permanently imprinted on Celtics rehab equipment after three injury-plagued seasons is apparently thinking of opting out and heading elsewhere.

Elsewhere has been good to ex-Bostonians. Brady and Rob Gronkowski have apparently discovered the Florida fountain of youth that eluded Ponce de Leon and have the Buccaneers looking at least like a Super Bowl contender. Politifact has had more luck getting to Brady in recent weeks than opposing defenses. That’s all happening while Cam Newton’s once-promising Patriots career start has, at least temporarily, gone off the rails.

At 2-4, it’s possible even likely that the perennial contenders could trade Stephon Gilmore, their best player, essentially giving up on 2020 to reset for the future. The idea of that would have seemed crazy a year ago and even a month ago, but that’s where things are.

Even the Bruins, who were the region’s best hope for another banner when the pandemic hit, have sputtered. Tuukka Rask’s absence from the Toronto-bubble at least contributed to their fizzle out against Tampa Bay and things have gotten worse since. Torey Krug and Don Sweeney offered conflicting information about the defenseman’s departure via free agency, but no matter whose version is accurate, Krug is gone. Not only gone, but headed to the St. Louis Blues. A year after snatching Boston’s heart in the Stanley Cup Final, the Blues grabbed the Bruins power-play quarterback for good measure. There’s no assurance Zdeno Chara comes back now either.

It could be a while before there’s another Duck Boat parade. Considering it could be a while before parades are safe and California is pointing at Laker celebrations as a source of COVID spreading, maybe there’s a public health benefit to this downturn.

The same way the 2004 World Series and the first Super Bowl win were more special because of the anguish that proceeded them, this of potential mediocrity is gonna be that much harder to handle for Boston fans who have come to expect success.

* RedSox.com

What to know: Red Sox 2020 offseason FAQ

Ian Browne

Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom is in full planning mode with the goal of putting together a much-improved roster compared to the one that finished in last place in the in 2020. There are many key dates and decisions over the coming weeks. Here is a primer.

Which players are free agents? Center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. and right-handed pitcher Collin McHugh.

Are either of them likely to receive a qualifying offer, and what is the deadline for that? The Red Sox could well make a qualifying offer to Bradley to make sure they get Draft compensation should he sign elsewhere. The club is on record as saying it would like to keep Bradley, so this would be the first step toward that.

Which players have an option, what’s the dollar figure and impact on payroll and when does it need to be decided upon? The Red Sox hold a $6.25 million option on lefty Martín Pérez and a decision is due shortly after the conclusion of the World Series. Pérez is someone who can take the ball every fifth day, and there’s something to be said for that at just $6.25 million.

Does anyone have an opt-out clause? For the second consecutive year, slugger J.D. Martinez has an opt-out clause. He didn’t exercise it last year after an All-Star season and is even less likely to opt out this season -- which was one of the worst of his career. Look for Martinez to stay in Boston and restore his value. And if he has a big year, he could potentially opt out again after the 2021 season.

Who needs to be added to the 40-man roster this offseason to avoid the Rule 5 Draft, and do they have a crunch for roster spots? The Red Sox have several of their Top 30 Prospects, as ranked by MLB Pipeline, who need to be moved to the 40-man roster this offseason. The list is led by righty Bryan Mata (No. 4), lefty Jay Groome (No. 7), outfielder Jeisson Rosario (No. 16), catcher Connor Wong (No. 19), infielder Hudson Potts (No. 20) and righty Connor Seabold (No. 23). The last four players were all acquired in trades by Bloom within the last year.

Given the subpar performances in 2020 by many of the pitchers on the 40-man roster, it shouldn’t be too tough for Bloom to carve out space. One interesting thing to watch is if Dustin Pedroia again takes up a 40- man roster spot for the entire offseason, even though it seems highly unlikely he will play again. Pedroia has one year left on his contract. Teams must reset their 40-man roster by Nov. 20.

What kind of help do they need? Will they be active in free agency? Who might they target? In case you hadn’t heard, the Red Sox need pitching of all kinds. The entire feel of the team would change if it had more stability with the starting rotation. The outspoken Trevor Bauer, who also happens to be an excellent pitcher, is an enticing free-agent candidate if Boston is willing to spend. How about a reunion with Jon Lester? The Cubs and Lester hold a mutual option of $25 million for 2021 that includes a $10 million buyout. Charlie Morton, the righty Bloom is plenty familiar with from the one season they overlapped with the Rays, could also help.

* WEEI.com

Why Corey Kluber to the Red Sox makes some sense

Rob Bradford

There will be others suggested for the Red Sox in this space. (Don’t worry, there are more Jon Lester posts to come.)

But with Wednesday’s news it makes sense to surface one name in particular: Corey Kluber.

Word came down that the two-time Cy Young Award winner would not be having his $18 million option picked up by the Rangers for 2021. It was far from shocking news considering the uncertainty that has come with Kluber over the past two seasons, which have included eight total starts.

In 2019 it was a freak fractured forearm, which led to an oblique issue during his rehab process. Last season the 34-year-old suffered a Grade 2 tear of the teres muscle in his right shoulder, limiting him to just one start for a Texas club that acquired him for outfielder Delino Deshields Jr. and pitcher Emmanuel Clase.

But through it all, this might be a right-guy-at-the-right-time situation for the Red Sox.

For starters, Kluber is local, which never hurts. The Texas native spends his offseasons in Massachusetts, where his wife is originally from.

Most importantly, however, it’s a good bet that Kluber has plenty left in the tank.

According to a source familiar with the pitcher’s situation, the former Indians ace is slated to have a normal offseason and be ready to go for spring training.

This is a guy who just two seasons ago won 20 games while posting a 2.89 ERA in 33 starters. The year before it was 18 wins with an American League-best 2.25 ERA, good enough for his second Cy Young. And on top of the performance, there is the persona.

The market is a mystery, with contracts for players like Kluber tough to gauge. Perhaps his semi-recent excellence will lead to a multi-year deal. But there certainly is a plausible case to be made that it wouldn’t be the worse idea in the world to re-establish his reputation at a still manageable age while waiting for baseball’s economics to bounce back.

As for the Red Sox, it remains to be seen how much they will prioritize having a veteran anchor on a somewhat uncertain starting staff. Chris Sale isn’t likely to re-emerge until May or June, and to expect him to hit the ground running after Tommy John surgery isn’t realistic. Most are optimistic about Eduardo Rodriguez’s return, but myocarditis is still somewhat of a mystery for active athletes. ended 2020 with optimism but still didn’t shake his uncertainty. And while the prospects of integrating Tanner Houck and/or Nick Pivetta are intriguing, this isn’t exactly rounding out the rotation with certainty.

For the right price, a guy like Kluber makes a ton of sense for all parties involved. Just something to think about as we brace ourself for the most unpredictable season of all-time.

Red Sox moving on from Opening Day star Jose Peraza

Rob Bradford

For a brief while it appeared as though the Red Sox might have a find in Jose Peraza. But it didn't take long for the perception of the to change dramatically.

Peraza, who notched four hits on Opening Day, was one of three players outrighted off the major league roster by the Red Sox, joining outfielder Cesar Puello and pitcher Dylan Covey. Peraza and Puello have elected free agency.

The 26-year-old Peraza entered the 2020 season as the Red Sox' starting second baseman but ended up being used as a left fielder with the Sox prioritizing Christian Arroyo at second for the final month of the season.

Peraza, who had signed a one-year, $2.85 million deal with the Red Sox, finished the season hitting .225 with a .617 OPS, walking just five times in 118 plate appearances.

As for Puello, he was a late-season call-up to the major league roster, appearing in just five games. Covey pitched in eight games (all in relief), giving up 11 runs in 14 innings.

The moves leaves the Red Sox with 31 players on their 40-man roster, although a decision is going to have to be made on the six currently on the 60-day injured list.

* BostonSportsJournal.com

The case for — and against — rehiring Alex Cora

Sean McAdam

The end of the 2020 World Series late Tuesday night also signaled the end of Alex Cora’s exile from Major League Baseball. Cora’s suspension, handed down last April, officially expired soon after the championship dreams did.

Cora is now free again to pursue jobs in baseball, and it’s likely there will be several teams with an interest. One may even by the Red Sox, for whom Cora served as manager for two seasons.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom artfully dodged questions about a return engagement with Cora after the club announced that Ron Roenicke would not be returning, saying he wouldn’t be saying anything about Cora that he hadn’t already said to Cora.

At the time, Roenicke was forbidden from discussing the Red Sox opening or anything else regarding his potential future employment. Now, that restriction has been limited.

Could Cora return to the Red Sox dugout? Sure.

Will he? That much is far from certain.

There are plenty of pros and cons about a Cora, Act II. Here are some:

PRO

1- Cora had some great success in his first stint.

It would be tough to top Cora’s rookie managerial season in 2018. He directed the Red Sox to a 108 regular season wins — a franchise record — and led them to a dominant postseason in which they went a combined 11-3 against three opponents, two of which won 100 or more games before culminating in the organization’s ninth title.

Cora masterfully handled the bullpen in the postseason, coaxed career seasons out of a number of players on the roster, deftly handled media responsibilities and never seemed to rattle in the fishbowl existence that comes with managing in Boston.

It may have been his first year managing at any level, but it sure never seemed it.

2-A return would be met with approval by ownership, the majority of players and a lot of fans.

Even when the Red Sox announced they had — say it with me, now — “mutually agreed to part ways” with Cora, owners John Henry and Tom Werner and president/CEO Sam Kennedy looked positively crestfallen. For Werner and Henry, it was like walking away from a son. And even as they acknowledged the magnitude of his misdeeds in Houston, they spoke with reverence and admiration for what he had meant to the Sox.

Similarly, a number of current players have vocally expressed their support for Cora’s return, including Xander Bogaerts and Christian Vazquez. Cora was always immensely popular within his own clubhouse, even among those — like Eduardo Rodriguez — whom he publicly challenged at times. The bond is particularly strong with the team’s Latino players, many of whom make up the nucleus of the present roster.

Finally, while Cora has his detractors in the fan base, there’s little doubt that bringing Cora back would be met with strong public approval. And for a franchise coming off its worst season in more than half a century, a shot of good PR can’t be dismissed outright.

3 – Cora utilizes a nice blend of old and new school.

Cora is adept at incorporating analytics and date. Even more impressive, he intuitively understands how to communicate that information to his coaching staff and players. That’s critical at a time when it’s more important than ever for a manager to be on the same page with his front office. And make little mistake: this Baseball Operations staff is steeped in analytics and relies heavily on data in every element of its work, from evaluating players to proposing lineups and analyzing matchups. If the manager’s not speaking the same baseball language — and comprehending it — you’ve got trouble.

But Cora is also unafraid to incorporate some more traditional methods and frequently trusts what he sees with his own eyes. It’s doubtful, for instance, that Cora would ever — just spitballin’ here — lift a pitcher who had allowed two hits in 5.1 innings with a pitch count of 72 pitches.

CON

1-Cora’s misdeeds were not minor transgressions.

Not to go too heavy on the moral indignation, but Cora’s sins were significant. This wasn’t a slight bending of the rules or a little bit of envelope-pushing in an attempting to circumvent the fine print. Nope. Cora was guilty of full-scale cheating with the Astros and, according to MLB’s investigation, was the principal architect of the plan to convert stolen signs via monitors, which were then telegraphed to the hitter by way of trash can banging.

Houston’s cheating was significant. It cost both the manager and general manager their jobs, draped the entire Astros franchise in shame and called into question not only individual statistics but also the legitimacy of their championship. It’s been suggested that a more thorough investigation might have resulted in the Astros’ vacating the title.

And Cora was right in the thick of it. That has some in the game uneasy about his imminent return to the game, his professional standing restored so quickly without so much as an apology tour. Further, the Red Sox as a franchise have had their own brushes with the (baseball) law, from the AppleWatch scandal to wrongdoing on the international free agent market.

Is bringing back Cora 10 months later the sign of a franchise intent on contrition?

2-Yes, 2018 was magical. But 2019 was a train wreck.

While Cora’s first season was sublime, the Red Sox stumbled badly in attempting to defend their championship, and if Cora is going to get credit for the former, it stands to reason that he should get some of the blame for the latter.

Recall that it was Cora’s idea to slowly bring the starting pitchers along in spring training, in recognition of their heavy workload the previous October. That sounded like it made sense, but something fizzled between the theory and the application. The starters, who weren’t sufficiently built up, faceplanted in April and May and the team never recovered. Worse, Cora stubbornly refused to acknowledge that his plan had faltered.

Those weren’t his only mistakes. The team’s fundamental play faltered, and though Cora kept predicting the team would soon catch fire, rip off a long winning streak and play to its potential. It never happened.

Again, if Cora is to be praised for overseeing a historic season in ’18, he’s got to be held accountable for why the team appeared listless and disinterested in their failed title defense the following year.

3-His hiring could emasculate Bloom.

If Bloom is enthusiastic about (re)hiring Cora, he’s done an expert job camouflaging it. Back in April, when Cora was suspended, he answered questions about Cora’s potential return by noting that there was a reason he was suspended in the first place, while also suggesting that he had rehabbing to do.

Maybe that had to be said at the time so as to not undercut Roenicke, recently elevated to the job. But maybe it was a window into Bloom’s thinking.

After all, he didn’t have the work history and close relationship with Cora that Kennedy, Henry and Werner had/have. He wasn’t here when Cora played for the Sox and he wasn’t here when he was hired to manage. The only interaction Bloom and Cora had was a little more than two months last winter, when Bloom was mostly busying himself with getting to know everyone in the organization and figuring out how to carry out his first task: slash payroll.

Which isn’t to suggest that Bloom doesn’t like or respect Cora. But the strange circumstances of the 2020 season has conspired to give Bloom an opportunity to name his own manager, someone with whom he’s comfortable and someone with whom he can have a productive working relationship over the next five or more seasons.

Why then should Cora’s return be forced upon him? Doing so will only paint Bloom as someone who has been left powerless by ownership to make his own decisions, including, arguably, the most important one a top baseball executive has to make. If Bloom was indeed hired to run the baseball operations department, he should be allowed to do so.

* The Athletic

The Rusney Castillo era, mercifully, is finally over for the Red Sox

Jen McCaffrey

The Rusney Castillo era in Boston is officially, officially over.

A strange Red Sox tenure for the 33-year-old outfielder came to a close on Wednesday when he became a free agent following the conclusion of the World Series.

That brought an end to one of the strangest deals the Red Sox ever signed. They paid Castillo $72.5 million over seven years, and he was stuck in Triple-A for the final four years of his deal.

At the time of his signing in 2014, the Red Sox were hoping to lock up the latest Cuban sensation following the White Sox adding Jose Abreu and the Dodgers signing Yasiel Puig. But after a lackluster performance over 80 games in 2015, Castillo was never given much more of a chance. It didn’t help Castillo that the general manager who signed him, Ben Cherington, was replaced by Dave Dombrowski in 2015. Once Cherington left, Castillo lacked a champion at the top of the Red Sox pecking order.

Castillo played in just 99 major league games between 2014 and 2016 posting a .262 average and .679 OPS while hitting seven homers before being stashed away in Triple-A purgatory for the next four seasons.,

In 2016, the Red Sox outrighted him off the 40-man roster, further solidifying his status in the minors. Adding him back to the 40-man at any point would have meant his salary needed to be counted toward luxury tax calculations. They just didn’t see enough value in Castillo to warrant absorbing his roughly $10 million salary into their tax threshold.

And so he toiled away as the highest-paid everyday player in the minors, though not many felt sympathy for a player with a hefty guaranteed salary.

He did, at least, deliver for the fans in Pawtucket. In 2017, Castillo hit .314 with an .857 OPS over 87 games in Pawtucket, a season shortened by leg and groin injuries. The following year, he hit .319 with a .776 OPS over 117 games, winning the International League batting title.

In 467 minor league games, he totaled a .293 average, .761 OPS and 42 homers.

Year in and year out, Castillo had a spot in big league spring training, mulling around the clubhouse in a weird limbo, knowing that seemingly no matter how well he performed he would not reach the majors again.

Castillo declined an opt-out in his contract following the 2019 season, choosing to take the final $13.5 million in his deal. Entering this past season, he knew he was at a crossroads.

“I understand that I have to go out and have the best year I can because it is a contract year for me,” Castillo told WEEI this spring. “Whatever happens afterwards, happens but I’m just preparing myself to hopefully get a chance to be up in the major leagues.”

Despite hitting .429 (12-for-28) with a .964 OPS in spring training, though, that chance never came. Even with rosters expanded to 60 players when baseball returned in July and the Red Sox with a bit of financial flexibility, Castillo was not afforded one of the spots at the alternate site in Pawtucket.

And so seven years after signing with the Red Sox, and more than four years since his last major league at- bat, Castillo is now back on the market. There are a slew of with more major league experience available, but maybe, just maybe, some team will give Castillo a shot at the big leagues again.