Red Sox bolster pitching staff by adding Michael Wacha
The Red Sox have finally made a splash into the free-agent pool and the signing is another Chaim Bloom special. It’s appropriate that Boston makes their first offseason move on Black Friday as they won’t exactly be dropping buckets of cash. In his first free-agent pick-up ahead of the 2022 season, Bloom has gone out and signed right-hander Michael Wacha, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Right-hander Michael Wacha and the Boston Red Sox are finalizing a one-year contract, sources familiar with the deal tell ESPN. Wacha, 30, was solid in a starting role for Tampa Bay last season and is expected to bring depth to the Red Sox’s rotation. Deal is pending a physical.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 26, 2021
As Passan reports, the deal is for the 2022 season pending a physical. The money portion of the agreement has yet to be reported but based on his previous salaries, I’m guessing it’ll be somewhere in the $5-7M range. Not breaking the bank and if it doesn’t work out, it’s just for a year and nothing to lose sleep over.
We all knew that Bloom and the front office gang were going to be spending a majority of their time this winter seeking out pitching depth and that’s exactly what they’re getting with Wacha.
With Eduardo Rodriguez heading for the Motor City, it’s dire for the Red Sox to gain another reliable starter this winter. I don’t believe that Wacha is going to be the replacement for E-Rod, but he can at least fill the gap at the bottom of the rotation.
To me, the righty is a solid fifth starter, he’s not great but he’s also not awful. At the end of the day, that’s exactly what you want from the swingman in the rotation to get things back to the aces at the top of the order.
There’s plenty still in flux with this starting rotation as plenty of free agents are still available and plenty of young talent on the Red Sox roster. Tanner Houck and Garrett Whitlock are waiting in the wings with Connor Seabold chomping at the bit in Worcester.
We could see something similar to how 2021 ended for Garrett Richards and Martín Pérez where he starts in the rotation and as we get to the postseason he gets moved to the bullpen. Depending on the developments of Houck, Whitlock, and Seabold this offseason and spring, anything is possible. The Sox are more than familiar with the right-hander as he spent last season with rival Tampa Bay.
In two games against Boston this past season he held the fellas to a .243/.310/.324 line with four walks and 13 strikeouts. Wacha also did really well against the Yankees (.129/.215/.243) and Astros (.185/.233/.370), which is probably a big reason why Bloom signed him. Surprisingly, the Orioles beat the hell out of him in 2021 to the tune of .333/.391/.587 line with four homers and four doubles.
Again, he isn’t coming to Boston to be the ace of the staff, he’s here to fill out the bottom of the rotation with a possible trip to the bullpen in the mix. Only time will tell which version of the former All-Star we’ll get as he tends to be a bit of a rollercoaster starter.
Some seasons are good, some are bad, never too much in one extreme or the other. Literally exactly what teams are looking for in a fifth-day starter, just give the team a chance to win so they can flip the rotation.
We all know that Chaim Bloom isn’t done and this is merely a move to make sure the team has extra arms available to them. I understand bringing in a guy like Wacha and it makes sense to me on the surface as a textbook Chaim move. Bring in a low-risk player that could possibly find a resurgence in Boston. I’m sure some fans are losing their minds that the Red Sox haven’t signed every major free agent already, but just remember this, trust in Chaim.