The Boston Red Sox are gaining trade interest for one of their spare parts.
It’s not secret the Boston Red Sox have a logjam of infielders on their roster. They’ve already received trade interest in Blake Swihart, but now the Red Sox are receiving calls on third baseman Deven Marrero.
According to Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo, the Red Sox are receiving trade interest for Marrero, 27, from teams. The third baseman is out of Minor League options, so the Red Sox must add him to the Opening Day 25-man roster or trade him without losing him for nothing.
The Red Sox have a difficult decision to make on Marrero. Eduardo Nunez will already be a platoon/utility player from the bench. Hanley Ramirez and Mitch Moreland will platoon first base. This leaves Boston with Swihart, Marco Hernandez, Tzu Wei Lin, Brock Holt and Marrero all fighting for two roster spots.
As I’ve previously pointed out, losing Marrero’s exceptional glove and inexpensive contract would be costly to a team who is starting a rookie at third base. However, manager Alex Cora doesn’t see it that way.
"Cora said the other day that he would not need to carry an extra infielder who can also play third base, even with concerns about Rafael Devers’s defense."
Additionally, Cafardo pointed out the gap between Marrero, Holt and Nunez defensively at third base.
"Neither Brock Holt nor Eduardo Nunez are considered good fielding third basemen. Marrero was terrific there last season."
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Marrero has always shown a sleek glove as an infielder — especially at the hot corner — something valuable as Devers enters his first full year in the majors.
But the 27-year-old infielder has struggled to find consistency at the plate in his career. He’s hit .208 in the majors and .227 in Triple A. That’s not even close enough to warrant a spot on the major league roster.
Furthermore, Marrero hasn’t done much to convince us his offense has improved this year, as he’s 7-for-38 (.184 batting average) in 16 Grapefruit League games during spring training.
At some point, the Red Sox may need to figure out a solution for third base depth behind a rookie. But Boston has plenty of time to find help elsewhere, should it become a real problem as the season progresses. Given Marrero’s situation, it’s unlikely the Red Sox have the will to give him a spot on the roster just because he is a smooth defender.
Taking Devers’ bat out of the lineup and replacing it with Marrero’s to benefit the team defensively seems counterproductive. They’d hypothetically revisit last season’s issue: Good defense, black-hole offense. Not to mention, they’d further stunt the growth of Devers in the field.
Showing a lack of confidence in a young player can be detrimental to their performance moving forward. Just ask Xander Bogaerts how he felt when Boston tried to move him to third base.
The Red Sox have hoped Marrero’s bat would catch up to his glove, but it never came to fruition. This certainly isn’t the first time the Red Sox have seen a young defensive stud fail to hit in the big leagues, and it definitely won’t be the last.
Similar to the Bryce Brentz situation, it may be time for Boston to find a suitable destination for Marrero. The Red Sox could send Marrero to a team who could provide the third baseman with an opportunity to play without the pressure of a big market city.
Next: Red Sox Predictions: Yes/No possibilities for the 2018 season
In a perfect world, the Red Sox could receive a left-handed bullpen piece back, but even a cash considerations trade would benefit both Boston and Marrero.