5 Red Sox players who survived trade deadline but won't be on 2023 roster

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Which struggling Red Sox players won’t make the 2023 roster?

When the Boston Red Sox weren’t all-in sellers at the 2022 trade deadline, many people were surprised.

Even though they were 52-52 on the morning of the August 2 deadline, they were also 17 games out of first and decimated by injuries. Realistically, no trades could have saved the season, but the world was quite puzzled by how the Sox proceeded. Rather than unload the obvious impending free agents (JD Martinez, Nathan Eovaldi) to get under the luxury tax threshold, they sent Christian Vázquez to the Houston Astros, unloaded Jake Diekman to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for the club-controlled Reese McGuire, grabbed Tommy Pham from the Cincinnati Reds, and acquired Eric Hosmer from the San Diego Padres.

In retrospect, it’s clear the front office was taking more of a long view at the deadline than attempting to plug the numerous leaks in the roster. McGuire is under club control until 2026, Pham has a mutual option for 2023, and the Padres are paying the remainder of Hosmer’s contract while he continues to mentor Triston Casas, whom he’s known for years. All of these moves could prove to be difference-makers next year, but let’s reserve judgment on that for now.

For the first time in several years, the Sox are in a position to build a formidable roster. With immense financial flexibility and a blooming farm system (no pun intended), the Sox can bounce back from the disappointments and mistakes of 2022 by next spring.

Unfortunately, making some tough decisions about the roster will be key to ensuring a better year in 2023. Several players are reaching free agency, and only a handful have a chance of being brought back. A few former top prospects could be traded, and some players just aren’t good enough to make the cut.

Let’s look at five players who weren’t traded this season (for various reasons), but might not be on the 2023 roster, and why they probably shouldn’t be…

Ryan Brasier

Ryan Brasier has so many lives, he may as well be a cat.

His 5.92 ERA far outpaces his previous career-worst, 4.85 in 2019 (both numbers accumulated over seasons of 55+ innings). Over a career-high 65 appearances, including 11 games finished, he’s allowed 39 earned runs on 67 hits. In five save opportunities, he’s earned one and blown four.

Brasier is entering his final year of arbitration, and with his struggles on the mound this season, could very well be getting a pay cut from his $1.4M salary. But is affordability a good enough reason to keep him around when he’s been such a liability?

If the Sox are truly serious about building a better team for next year, low-cost options like Brasier don’t cut it. The Sox have more than enough financial flexibility to upgrade their bullpen and considering they blew 27 saves this year, tied for fourth-most in the game, they need to do better than Brasier.

Bobby Dalbec

Had Triston Casas not sprained his ankle in May, Bobby Dalbec might have been traded at the deadline.

Really, he probably should’ve been traded before the season began, but there’s no use revisiting that missed opportunity now.

With Casas figuring things out quickly at the big-league level, it seems likely that the Sox will be ready to put him on next year’s Opening Day roster. He’s already proven a better defensive player than Dalbec, and his plate discipline and power are improving by the inning.

At this point, there’s nowhere to put Dalbec. The Sox acquired Eric Hosmer from the San Diego Padres at the deadline, and with his former team paying the remainder of his salary, the Sox can keep Hosmer around for next-to-nothing. They were trying to get Dalbec to learn second base as a means of giving him playing time, but they also have Trevor Story and Christian Arroyo there. So, if the front office does what they’re supposed to do this offseason with regards to Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers, there’s really no room for him there, either.

Jarren Duran

With Kiké Hernández extended through 2023 and Ceddanne Rafaela skyrocketing through the farm system as one of the best all-around prospects the Red Sox have ever had, it seems like Jarren Duran is being edged out.

The 25-year-old has hit .218/.269/.355 with 67 hits in 90 games over his first two partial seasons. His plate discipline improved this season, but his ISO is significantly lower than league average and he’s compiled -0.8 WAR since coming up in 2021. He’s also proven to be a subpar defender, an untenable situation for the tricky dimensions of Fenway’s unique outfield.

Duran was a top prospect less than two years ago, so the Sox could, in theory, bundle him in a trade package. He’s young, club-controlled, and speedy on the basepaths. There’s definitely potential there, but it doesn’t seem like Boston is the place he’ll unlock it.

JD Martinez

Martinez had big (Papi) shoes to fill when he arrived at spring training in 2018, and he delivered immediately, slugging the Sox to their first championship without David Ortiz in exactly 100 years. In his first season with the club, he won two Silver Slugger awards, led MLB with a career-high 130 RBI and 358 total bases, and finished fourth in American League MVP voting. There was no game in 2020, but he’s been an All-Star in each of the other four years of his contract.

But after four mostly-stellar seasons in Boston (2020 was rough for everyone), his power declined at an alarming rate this year, which doesn’t bode well for free agency. Over 132 games this season, he’s hitting .272/.341/.433, with an OPS nearly 100 points lower than last season. He’s actually one double away from tying the career-high 42 he hit last year, which tied for the MLB lead, but the precipitous drop in homers has been a serious cause for concern. After homering 28 times in 148 games last year, he has just 13 homers this season – the fewest he’s hit in a full 162-game campaign since 2013 – and his ISO (Isolated Power) plunged from .232 to .161.

Now 35 years old, it doesn’t make much sense for the Sox to bring Martinez back. Had he had an incredible season, a Qualifying Offer would feel inevitable, but if they kept him for 2023 and he declined further, it would only sour his incredible time here.

Sometimes, it’s better to part on good terms and preserve fond memories.

Nathan Eovaldi

Nathan Eovaldi is another beloved member of the historic 2018 team who’s about to hit free agency.

It’s been a disappointing season for Eovaldi, who’s looked more nasty than Nasty on the mound this year. Over 99 2/3 innings, he’s posted a 4.15 ERA and has allowed the second-most home runs of any season of his career. He’s also dealt with injuries that sidelined him for two stints on the Injured List. After tying for the league lead with 32 starts last season, he’s only made 18 starts this year.

Eovaldi has a lengthy injury history, but he’s still been a workhorse throughout his career. Aside from the shortened 2020 season and 2019, when he worked as both a starter and reliever, this will only be the third season of his career in which he hasn’t made at least 19 starts, and the first time since 2013.

However, the way that Eovaldi put this team on his back in the 2018 and 2021 postseason runs is a rare ability that sets him apart from other starting pitcher options the Sox will consider this winter. Until last year’s ALCS, Eovaldi had a 1.93 ERA over 32 2/3 career postseason innings. Even with the way the Astros hit him in the pennant series, he’s still one of the most incredible October workhorses the Sox have ever had.

It would be risky to extend a Qualifying Offer to Eovaldi, but it would be foolish not to at least consider it. The cons are well known, but the pros might outweigh them.

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5 Red Sox who survived trade deadline but won’t be on 2023 roster