Besides, you know, money.
The big offseason acquisition you’ve been waiting for is here! That’s right, the Red Sox have… hired a bullpen coach (womp womp). Maine native Chris Holt, who spent the last five years with the Baltimore Orioles, will return to New England next summer and assume the on-field post. Is this a good move? Bad move? Neutral? Look: among the duties of a bullpen coach is “don’t let the guys order pizzas to the bullpen in the sixth inning,” so anyone who claims to have an opinion on this hiring is nuts. (Julian McWilliams, Boston Globe)
However… it’s worth noting that, while Holt had previously served as the Orioles pitching coach, he was shuffled to pitching director last offseason. According to reports, the Orioles made that move in part because they weren’t happy with the way Holt communicated with pitchers. (Ken Rosenthal, The Athletic)
But you’re not here to read about bullpen coaches, you’re here to read updates on the Juan Soto and Roki Sasaki pursuits. Sadly, there’s no news on either player, and Saski may not even be officially posted for a number of weeks. We do have some reporting, however, about what Sasaki may be looking for in an MLB team: stability, lifestyle, comfort, and a track record of successful player development. (Will Sammon, The Athletic)
As for the player development, the Sox have had a few recent successes they can sell to Sasaki. Tanner Houck and Brayan Bello have both exceeded the expectations they had when they first entered the organization and neither one is a finished product yet. On the hitting side, it’s hard to find a better success story than that of Jarren Duran, even though he was just robbed of a Silver Slugger. (Christopher Smith, MassLive)
Here’s hoping that Kristian Campbell is the next player development success story. There are plenty of people inside the organization who think he’s a special talent who “was born to play baseball.” (Luke Scotchie, Boston.com)