Red Sox: Aaron Sanchez is a perfect low cost signing after the lockout

The Red Sox should look into Aaron Sanchez

Chaim Bloom showed great restraint before the lockout kicked in while other teams spent like they hit the Powerball. He used his usual tactic of working toward low-cost/big payoff signings that could help fill the vacancies that the Red Sox currently have. When the lockout eventually ends he should continue down that path and give a call to Aaron Sanchez.

Sanchez may not be the flashy signing that many in Red Sox Nation are clamoring for, but guess what, it’s not always about signing the biggest names on the board. The team finally got back into the good graces of the old Luxury Tax and with a new CBA still undecided, there’s no reason to upset it right out of the gate.

I’ve been a fan of Sanchez in the past and feel that he could be a solid addition to this roster. I fully believe that he would be a better signing than some of the past arms Bloom has brought in. Hell, even compared to Michael Wacha and Rich Hill I’d still lean in Sanchez’s way. Even with some time on the IL in 2021 he still had a decent season and can help Alex Cora’s rotation.

This past season the righty was able to total a 3.06 ERA through 35.1 innings of work for the Giants despite missing 86 days with a biceps injury. It isn’t all sunshine and rainbows though as the right-hander carried a 1.73 K/BB ratio and a 1.330 WHIP. Still, as a fourth or fifth starter, I think he could be that swingman that we had hoped Garrett Richards or Martín Pérez would’ve been.

What makes him the perfect signing for the Red Sox once again goes back to Chaim’s tactics and why he’s built a club much better than it should be so soon. He sees what players were, are, and what they could be. Sanchez is just 29-years-old and could have plenty left in the tank if given the right opportunity.  Given his age, injury history, and his current salary he could be an absolute steal for the Boston CBO.

Some will scoff at this idea, but again Bloom isn’t going to go out there and sign every big-name player still available when the lockout ends. Chaim has seen many of his competitors follow that game plan just to have it blow up right in their faces. Look no further than the goof in the Big Apple. Doling out big money contracts with nothing to show for it. That’s not the Chaim Bloom way and it’s no longer the way the Red Sox operates either.

“The Sanchize,” could compete for that final rotation spot with Hill and Wacha and even if he doesn’t get the starting job he’d be a solid long relief option for AC when the time comes. We saw Tanner Houck spend time as both a starter and long reliever in 2021 but he’ll surely lock in that starting job in spring training, this opens the door for a secondary position for Sanchez.

We have no idea when this lockout is going to end and when free agency fires back up it’s a guarantee that free agents will be flying off the shelves like TVs at a Black Friday sale at Best Buy. This is all about filling the holes in the lineup and bringing in a guy that still has age and ability is a plus. Sanchez offers experience, quality, and a budget-friendly salary that should have his phone ringing the second things get back on track.