The Red Sox revamp the roster at 2013 Winter Meetings
The Red Sox were in desperate need of an overhaul following a miserable 2012 season that saw a toxic clubhouse mutiny against manager Bobby Valentine. A blockbuster trade in August of that season cleared about a quarter of a billion dollars in payroll to create the flexibility to revamp the roster.
There wasn’t one big splash made by the Red Sox during the 2012 Winter Meetings but they made a series of under-the-radar moves to bring in high-character veterans to change the culture in the clubhouse. Boston spent over $100 million on seven free-agents, many of whom proved to be as beneficial on the field as they were off the field. These moves were vital to Boston’s worst-to-first turnaround that resulted in a 2013 championship.
Among the notable additions was Shane Victorino, who was signed to a three-year, $39 million deal. He won a Gold Glove in his first season in Boston and provided a spark at the top of the lineup. His epic grand slam in Game 6 of the ALCS helped launch the Red Sox to the World Series.
Mike Napoli‘s deal took weeks to finalize when a hip issue prompted the sides to renegotiate but Boston laid the groundwork when they convinced him to sign during the Winter Meetings.
Koji Uehara was initially brought in to be a middle reliever but he ended up being the savior of the bullpen when the first several choices to handle the closer role didn’t pan out.
These were mostly short-term deals for aging veterans who only offered a temporary solution but they provided immediate dividends by dragging the Red Sox out of the basement and delivering a World Series title.