FanPost

Resetting the Red Sox 40 Man Roster

This offseason, the Sox will have plenty of questions regarding the roster. Where the team looks to buy will change the outcome of several slots of the roster, and the team certainly does not have room for everyone going forward. The current Sox roster has 47 guys when counting those on the 60 man IL. It’s important to note that those on the fringe are in a volatile situation, and who Chaim chooses to keep and who he chooses to drop is extremely tough to predict, and as such several of these spots are possibly going to be incorrect. Either way, here’s how I see it playing out before making any free agent or trade predictions:

Locks (22):

  1. Yoan Aybar

  2. Matt Barnes

  3. Ryan Brasier

  4. Nathan Eovaldi

  5. Darwinzon Hernandez

  6. Tanner Houck

  7. Martin Perez

  8. Nick Pivetta

  9. Eduardo Rodriguez

  10. Chris Sale

  11. Josh Taylor

  12. Kevin Plawecki

  13. Christian Vazquez

  14. Xander Bogaerts

  15. Michael Chavis

  16. Bobby Dalbec

  17. Rafael Devers

  18. Yairo Munoz

  19. Andrew Benintendi

  20. JD Martinez

  21. Alex Verdugo

  22. Marcus Wilson

Fringe, but with a chance to remain (10):

  1. Colten Brewer

  2. Austin Brice

  3. Chris Mazza

  4. Phillips Valdez

  5. Marcus Walden

  6. Ryan Weber

  7. Deivy Grullon

  8. Jonathan Arauz

  9. Christian Arroyo

  10. Tzu Wei Lin

Fringe and unlikely to remain (10):

  1. Matt Hall

  2. Kyle Hart

  3. Mike Kickham

  4. Robinson Leyer

  5. Jeffrey Springs

  6. Robert Stock

  7. Domingo Tapia

  8. Andrew Triggs

  9. CJ Chatham

  10. Cesar Puello

Non Tender Candidates (3):

  1. Dylan Covey

  2. Zach Godley

  3. Jose Peraza

Rule V Additions (6):

  1. Jay Groome

  2. Bryan Mata

  3. Hudson Potts

  4. Jeisson Rosario

  5. Connor Seabold

  6. Connor Wong

At this point, I’ve identified 22 locks and 6 Rule 5 additions to the 40 man roster, as well as 10 others I see as possible/likely to remain. That puts the roster at 38 players, and this is before accounting for free agent-to-be Jackie Bradley and Dustin Pedroia, who at this point is anyone’s guess towards what the team does with him. I chose not to include Pedroia particularly for this reason, as his status is really that much up in the air. Those under the fringe categories are really up in the air as well, and although I see those such as Phillips Valdez and Colten Brewer closer to being locks rather than being off the roster, Bloom has no obligation to keep either. Similarly is someone like CJ Chatham, who most expected to see play at some point this year, and really may be on his way out (fun Chatham fact: he is older than Christian Arroyo). Several of those I don’t see as likely for sticking around may in fact be brought back on minor league deals, or outrighted to Woonsocket (which still feels really weird to type, as I’ve gone to plenty of Pawsox games in my life).

Of those on the fringe, the 10 I outlined as possible or likely to stay, probably around 6-8 of them will actually remain, and those who go will probably be pitchers, perhaps Austin Brice, Chris Mazza, Marcus Walden or Ryan Weber. Maybe even Colten Brewer or Tzu Wei Lin are on their way out. What Bloom plans on doing with this roster nobody really knows, but best case scenario I see the Sox as having 4-6 open spots when free agency opens. Bloom needs to really hedge his bets and decide if someone he may claim is better than a player like Chris Mazza, as the possibility of a pitcher of Mazza’s quality being claimed by another team is likely. Overall, how many get DFA’d or released before the offseason kicks in will be telling for what the Red Sox plan on doing.