The Red Sox still haven’t made a move to fill their empty closer spot in the bullpen. But do they necessarily have to? They could rely on the power duo of Matt Barnes and Ryan Brasier as a one-two punch as the answer.
Red Sox fans the world over have been checking the web each day to see whether or not Dave Dombrowski has signed a closer. This free agency period has been oddly quiet across the board with no major splashes truly happening yet. The Red Sox made some moves early by re-signing Nathan Eovaldi and Steve Pearce. But other than that, silence.
As we all wait to see what the future holds for Craig Kimbrel, I began to look at the roster to see if he is even needed. For one, his contract sure as hell isn’t. As good as he was and has been in his career, that contract demand is just ridiculous. Especially for a team that is flirting heavily with luxury tax penalties, it would be an anchor. Holding down the team for one guy and at the expense of others.
So, for the sake of this exercise here let’s just say Kimbrel goes elsewhere. Someone decides they need a closer bad enough to write that contract up. So now Spring Training is right around the corner and the Red Sox don’t have an honest and true closer, where do they go? For me, I look at two guys that are already on the roster, Matt Barnes and Ryan Brasier.
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Barnes has spent his entire career in Boston with the last three years carrying the most of his workload. He has done everything from early relief to being the setup man the last couple years to Kimbrel. This last season he saw a decrease in innings due to some time on the shelf but he also saw his ERA go down. Even with missing playing time he saw his strikeout tally increasy by double digits.
I think Barnes is the guy to take the mantle if Kimbrel does decide to take his talents elsewhere. This then leaves the setup man position open for Braiser. Ryanhas spent a majority of his career in the minors except for a short stint with LAA and then this year in Boston. But his time with the Red Sox this year though brief, did show signs of promise.
Brasier ended the year with 33.2 IP, 1.60 ERA and a 29/7 K/BB ratio. Not bad for such a short resume. Not to forget his run-in with Gary Sanchez in the playoffs where he used some colorful language to get Sanchez back in the batter’s box. That’s the kind of fire I’d love to see from the setup man and possibly even closer.
Again, this is all hypothetical as we have no idea where Kimbrel will wind up this offseason. But if Dombrowski isn’t able to secure his contract and he walks, Alex Cora will have several strong options as a replacement. With a good core in Tyler Thornburg, Heath Hembree, Bobby Poyner, and Hector Velazquez, the relief squad is strong to get to Brasier and Barnes.
Braiser and Barnes may not have the greatest resumes but with the added responsibility, they could shine. Sometimes al it takes is an investment into someone to get them to that next level. With Kimbrel most likely being out of the picture in the future, this could be the chance for both to take that next step and grab the brass ring.
Now I know losing a closer the calibur of Craig Kimbrel will be felt, I can’t even begin to pretend that it won’t. But taking a step back and looking at the roster that the Red Sox have put together so far, it’s nto all doom and gloom. The final weeks of the offseason and Spring Training will be the true glimpse into what the bullpen will be like in 2019. If it does wind up that Kimbrel leaves Boston, the bullpen will be in good hands.