Red Sox claiming Josh Osich off waivers helps the bullpen and payroll
The Boston Red Sox have begun their offseason tinkering by claiming former White Sox reliever Josh Osich off waivers in order to beef up the bullpen.
It hasn’t taken Chaim Bloom and the Red Sox any time at all to get the ball rolling on their offseason plans. It was reported this afternoon that Boston had claimed lefty reliever Josh Osich off waivers. This looks to be the first step by the front office to add some muscle to the battle-worn bullpen.
Boston is heavy on right-handers in their relief efforts so adding another southpaw into the mix will only be a benefit. Osich is coming off of his fifth season in the majors having spent most of his career with the Giants. He was picked up by the White Sox off waivers in early March. In 67.2 IP he would earn a 4-0 record with a 4.66 ERA.
He had some nice successes in 2019 such as 61 strikeouts which would equate to an 8.1 K/9 ratio. However, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows as he did serve up 15 dingers while carrying a 1.138 WHIP. Osich has his pros and cons and being that he’s one of just a few lefties in the pen behind Josh Taylor, Brian Johnson and Darwinzon Hernandez, he’s likely to earn a spot on the Opening Day roster.
Going into free agency the biggest need the Red Sox must address is the bullpen. Though they were synonymous with the always fun blown save stat, they did finish fifth overall in the majors for their relievers. Brandon Workman would finish sixth overall for all relievers in 2019 as well, which definitely wasn’t something anyone saw coming after 2018.
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Boston has some great building pieces and adding in Osich is just another card that Alex Cora can play when necessary. There’s a good mix of young and veteran talent in the bullpen right now and Osich adds another tally to the vet column that could become key if and when Boston makes it back to October baseball.
Having a familiarity with the American League will also give Osich an easy transition to the Red Sox. He’s already had a run-in with the rest of the league at some point while with the White Sox so it won’t be a shock as if he was coming straight from the National League. It’ll still be a matter of time if this is a good pick-up but on the surface, it sure feels like it.
Picking Osich off waivers also helps Boston with another mountain they have to climb this winter, the CBT. He’s expected to earn $1M this season via arbitration which will fall nicely into the budget-conscious Bloom’s strategy to shave payroll.
With FSG wanting to get the very bloated payroll as close to or under the CBT, picking up cheap veterans like Osich is a great way to do so. Again, there’s no guarantee that he makes the Opening Day squad but with the lack of lefties in the relief, he has a solid chance. His numbers surely open the door and gt him a hell of a shot to earn his spot.
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It’s refreshing to see the Red Sox being proactive right out of the gate this offseason. Especially with how silent they were during last winter and at the trade deadline. Chaim Bloom and his team are coming out of the blocks hot and are aiming to get this team back to October. If they continue to make good personnel choices while satisfying the budget goals, it’s just a matter of time before the Red Sox are back in the Fall Classic.