Brandon Workman
As we all know by now, Workman was impressive in his break-out 2019. He took over as the Red Sox closer role and had one of the lowest ERA’s (1.88) in baseball. Entering the season as a depth-piece on Boston’s roster, he exited the season as a top arm in baseball.
The righty walked lots of batters in 2019 (5.7 BB/9), but made up for it in not allowing any hits (3.6 H/9). Because he walks so many batters and throws so many curveballs in the dirt, Brandon is better in a spot where he can start an inning clean. If he comes on with runners on base, there is a good chance they will advance on a ball in the dirt.
Proving he was effective in the closer role, Workman seems most likely out of all of the internal options to become the closer. Cora may want to try the closer-by-committee route once again in 2020, but it seems risky.
In the sprint to the World Series in 2018, Kimbrel was always the anchor and traditional closer of the shaky bullpen. Now more than ever it seems like the Red Sox could use some stability. Until an external option such as Dellin Betances, Kirby Yates, or Will Harris are shaking their hand with Chaim Bloom, Workman should be regarded as Boston’s 2020 closer.