Luis Arraez is one of the most interesting players in baseball. He's a three-time batting champion with a penchant for never striking out, a skill set that is nearly as archaic as it is impressive.
The problem with being a one-trick pony is that teams tend to value well-rounded contributors. So it went for Arraez this past offseason, as his free agency tour devolved into a quiet, rumor-less void that only mercifully ended with the San Francisco Giants came calling in February.
There were 29 other teams that had their chance at him, including the Boston Red Sox. They all passed, claiming his game simply didn't have a place in the modern MLB.
Now, here we are in late April, and Arraez is doing his thing, boasting a .302/.333/.360 slash line, good for a 97 wRC+. Meanwhile, the Red Sox sit at 9-14, and only three of their regulars (Willson Contreras, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Wilyer Abreu) have been better at the plate than Arraez. Is it too early to feel regret?
Red Sox should be kicking themselves for not signing Luis Arraez
Arraez chose the Giants because they guaranteed him a spot at second base. That's something the Red Sox — who spent the offseason focusing on improving their porous infield defense from a season ago — were unwilling to do.
Of course, Arraez has been one of the best defensive infielders in baseball this year, finally dispelling years of below-average data. Among all second baseman, his +4 Outs Above Average ranks in the 98th percentile. By both that metric and Defenisve Runs Saved, he has been superior to Red Sox starter Marcelo Mayer.
Hindsight is always 20/20, and it's still far too early to draw any firm conclusions. Mayer should continue to improve as he gets more reps at the big-league level, and his standing as the franchise's shortstop of the future makes his development more important than any one-year contributions Arraez would have provided.
That being said... Arraez's bat would look so good atop the lineup right now. Contreras and Abreu are having to shoulder such an absurd load, and getting an on-base machine like Arraez ahead of them would grease the wheels so much on this floundering run production unit. It's hard to overstate the difference of a 97 wRC+ hitter and a 54 wRC+ hitter, especially when a majority of the lineup has been untrustworthy to this point.
Alas, nothing can be done about this, at least until the trade deadline. The best the Red Sox can do right now is hope for bounce backs from their usual stars (Roman Anthony, Jarren Duran, Trevor Story, etc.) and tread water until those big bats finally wake up.
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