Red Sox: Five potential closer options to target in free agency

Relievers the Red Sox should target in free agency to be their closer.

Upgrading the bullpen will be one of the priority tasks for the Boston Red Sox this offseason and the free-agent market offers several potential solutions.

Boston’s bullpen ranked last in the American League and fourth-worst in the majors this season with a 5.79 ERA. Red Sox relievers were leaned on heavily with a major league-high 278 innings but collectively provided below replacement-level value with a -0.6 fWAR. An over-reliance on an area of weakness isn’t an ideal strategy.

A starting rotation that’s expected to be vastly improved with the return of Eduardo Rodriguez and eventually Chris Sale will help reduce the workload of the relievers. That alone will lead to better results but the Red Sox still have work to do in order to assemble a bullpen worthy of a contender.

It starts at the back end by finding a new closer. The Red Sox shipped Brandon Workman to Philadelphia at the trade deadline, leaving Matt Barnes to hold down the fort in the ninth inning due to a lack of viable alternatives. We have enough evidence over the years that Barnes is not a permanent solution for the closer role. Boston’s front office is trolling us if they expect us to believe they will contend in 2021 without finding a more reliable closer.

A reunion with Workman is possible since he’ll be among the relievers with closing experience on the free-agent market. After watching him fall flat with the Phillies, it’s hard to view him as a reliable option. Workman had a short window of success and the Red Sox sold high. It’s best to move on and look at some of the other available options on the market.

Red Sox free agent target – Joakim Soria

He wasn’t utilized as the primary closing option during his two-year stint with the Oakland A’s but Joakim Soria has 223 career saves on his resume.

Soria was last used as a closer with the Chicago White Sox in 2018 until they traded him mid-season to the Milwaukee Brewers where he served as a setup man. He didn’t pitch poorly in Milwaukee but Soria was a bit of a disappointment based on the reputation that enticed the Brewers to acquire him. Soria carried that mediocrity with him to Oakland last year when he posted a career-high 4.30 ERA.

The right-hander bounced back with a strong 2020 season, posting a 2.82 ERA and 9.7 K/9. The strikeout rate was down slightly from recent years but it’s nearly identical to his career rate.

Soria only allowed one home run this year and he’s always been stingy with the long ball, owning a solid 0.8 HR/9 rate. His 3.1% HR/FB ranked 10th among major league relievers.

If there’s one glaring red flag with Soria, it’s his postseason track record. He owns a 10.13 ERA in 14 career postseason appearances. He allowed three earned runs in four innings of work split between this year’s Wild Card and ALDS. If the Red Sox plan to contend next year, they will need someone they can count on for the postseason stage.

The 36-year-old should be an affordable option looking for a short-term deal. He doesn’t have the greatest upside on this list but a shorter commitment allows Boston to remain flexible in case any of their internal options emerge as a viable closing candidate. If that happens, or if they find another path to an upgrade, they can cut bait fairly easily. Moving Soria to a setup role in that scenario is more feasible than it would be for someone they locked in to be a part of their future.

Red Sox free agent target – Blake Treinen

Blake Treinen was the best reliever in baseball in 2018 when he posted a ridiculous 0.78 ERA and 0.834 WHIP. The former A’s closer notched 38 saves that year and finished sixth on the AL Cy Young ballot.

The follow-up to that breakout campaign was a disaster, as Treinen produced a 4.91 ERA while dealing with a sprained rotator cuff that landed him on the injured list. Known for his tendency to keep the ball on the ground, Treinen’s home run rates jumped to a career-high 1.4 HR/9 and 16.4% HR/FB.

Treinen got his home run issues under control this year, allowing only one in 25 2/3 innings for a minuscule 0.4 HR/9. He led major league relievers with a 64 percent groundball rate (minimum 20 innings pitched), indicating he’s back on track. The result was a much more tolerable 3.86 ERA in 27 appearances as a setup man for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

One concern is that his strikeout rate dipped to 7.7 K/9 from 9.1 K/9 last year, which was down from his 2018 peak when he posted an 11.2 K/9.  He’s still pumping his fastball at over 97 mph though and he offset the lack of strikeouts by limiting walks with a 2.8 BB/9.

A solid season helped Treinen re-establish some value but he shouldn’t be too expensive considering he wasn’t a closer this year and the stench of his disappointing 2019 campaign might still be lingering.

Red Sox free agent target – Trevor Rosenthal

Once an All-Star closer who tallied 48 saves for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2015, Trevor Rosenthal ‘s career was derailed by Tommy John surgery that wiped out his 2018 season.

His return to the big leagues with the Washington Nationals last year started out as terribly as one could possibly imagine. Rosenthal allowed seven earned runs over his first three appearances without recording an out. By the end of April, Rosenthal owned a 36.00 ERA and had issued as many walks as the number of outs he recorded (nine).

The Nats placed Rosenthal on the injured list followed by a stint in Double-A to figure things out. He was notably better when he returned to Washington in June, allowing only one run in his first four appearances, but the team released him following a three-run implosion against Atlanta.

Rosenthal finished up the year with the Detroit Tigers where he allowed seven earned runs in nine innings, proving he still had work to do to rediscover his previous form.

Based on the results from this season, it appears he found it. Rosenthal joined the Kansas City Royals on a minor league deal and posted a respectable 3.29 ERA over 14 appearances. His production was appealing enough to attract a trade to the contending Padres and he tossed 10 shutout innings down the stretch with San Diego.

Overall, Rosenthal owned a 1.90 ERA, 0.845 WHIP and 14.5 K/9 this year.

It seems as though it’s been forever since Rosenthal was a reliable option to pitch in the ninth inning but he’s only 30 years old. If his success this year is any indication, Rosenthal still has plenty left in the tank to return to being a top-notch closer.

Red Sox free agent target – Alex Colome

Alex Colome was as reliable as any closer in the game this year, converting 12 of his 13 save opportunities while posting an excellent 0.81 ERA and 0.94 WHIP for the Chicago White Sox.

The insanely low ERA probably wouldn’t hold up over a full season but Colome produced a strong 2.80 ERA in 2019 and he owns a 2.95 ERA for his career.

Colome came up through the Tampa Bay Rays organization so Chaim Bloom knows him well. He was an All-Star in 2016 when he saved 37 games and posted a 1.91 ERA. The following year, Colome led the league with 47 saves.

He’s never been an elite strikeout artist but Colome’s career 8.2 K/9 is respectable. It’s somewhat troubling to see his strikeout rate drop to 6.4 K/9 this year but that might be a small sample-size fluke. Colome hasn’t lost any zip on his fastball, which sits in the 94-95 mph range, and his 15.3 SwStr% was actually a career-high.

The 31-year-old will garner plenty of interest on the free-agent market but his trustworthy track record and Bloom’s familiarity with him should make him one of Boston’s top reliever targets.