Disproving Boston Red Sox fans’ most foolish complaints
By Daniel Fox
Red Sox CBO Chaim Bloom can’t run a big market team
Let me ask you, the cynical Red Sox fan: What move has Chaim Bloom made that has not worked? He joined the team after the 2019 season following a successful run with the Rays, and was immediately given the impossible task of trading future Hall of Famer Mookie Betts. Bloom is not at fault for the trade, as the orders came from above, but he was able to acquire Alex Verdugo, who has turned into a key piece in the Red Sox lineup.
Bloom was even better the next offseason. He selected Garrett Whitlock in the Rule 5 draft, who was the team’s most trusted reliever come postseason time. He signed Hunter Renfroe, who hit 31 home runs and drove in 96 runs. He signed Kiké Hernández to a two year-deal, who produced 5.9 WAR and became Babe Ruth in the postseason.
Yet Red Sox fans still complained. These are the Red Sox! We don’t do under-the-radar moves! We sign players to nine-figure deals, and trade them halfway through their contract! It was almost as if Red Sox fans were offended that Bloom was giving out short-term, low-risk contracts, as if being compared to the Rays, a team that is always in contention despite bottom-of-the-barrel payrolls, is a bad thing.
Bloom would finally give out a big contract this past offseason, signing second baseman Trevor Story to a 6-year, $140 million deal. Despite underwhelming offensive numbers, Story has been a key contributor to the Red Sox so far, perfect in 10 stolen base attempts and being one of the best defensive second basemen in the game. In addition to the Story signing, Bloom has continued his run of short-term steals, as new additions Matt Strahm, Rich Hill, and Michael Wacha have all exceeded expectations.
Fans will always want their teams to spend the big money to bring in the big stars, but recklessly shelling out cash without thinking about the future is how you end up like the 2019 Red Sox: A team without a farm system, in payroll hell, and a fired GM. Bloom has shown he can operate the best of both worlds, making the short-term deals that made him so successful in Tampa Bay while still spending money when the situation calls for it. Until he gives us reason to do otherwise, Bloom deserves the benefit of the doubt.