Boston Red Sox: Biggest disappointments of 2016 season

Pablo Sandoval

It was hard to fathom how Pablo Sandoval could get any worse than his dismal debut season in Boston last year, yet he somehow managed to sink even further.

First, the rotund third baseman affectionately referred to as “Panda” showed up to spring training in such poor condition that it washed away any endearing qualities the nickname had. Sandoval’s work ethic was called into question and there was even a debate over whether or not the team asked him to lose weight. Based on what we saw last spring, it seemed Sandoval spent his winter hibernating rather than dieting, exercising or swinging a bat.

Sandoval quickly fell out of favor, losing his starting job to Travis Shaw. Manager John Farrell made a bold statement that the size of a player’s contract wouldn’t dictate playing time, it had to be earned.

More from Red Sox News

• Red Sox Nation deserves far more from Fenway Sports Group
• Bizarre trade deadline comes back to haunt Red Sox after Nathan Eovaldi departure
• Red Sox’ Moneyball-style offseason continues with Corey Kluber contract
• Rich Hill’s Red Sox departure puts him within striking distance of unique MLB record
• Red Sox offseason takes another nasty hit with Nathan Eovaldi departure

When the regular season rolled around we barely caught a glimpse of Sandoval. He appeared in only three games, going 0-for-6 at the plate with four strikeouts and a walk. Despite spending very little time on the field, Sandoval still managed to find a way to injure his shoulder, which inevitably resulted in season-ending surgery.

At the time it seemed that the injury was a blessing in disguise for the Red Sox. Not that we would ever wish for any player to get hurt, but banishing Sandoval to the disabled list allowed Shaw to take over third base without having the specter of the high-priced veteran lurking behind him. It was great when Shaw was hitting in the first half, but when he fell apart in the second half we found ourselves wondering if Sandoval could have provided some value if he were healthy. Boston struggled to fill the starting role at the hot corner heading into the postseason, ultimately settling on Brock Holt.

Looking ahead to 2017, expect Sandoval to be back in the mix. His shoulder will be healed and he appears to have lost a significant amount of weight. If he shows up to Ft. Myers in decent shape then he’ll get another shot at a position that none of the other options were able to run away with this season.