On Sept. 1, when MLB rosters expand from 26 players to 28 players, the Boston Red Sox are going to have some difficult choices to make.
Prior to 2020, when the expansion was from 25 to 40, it was easier to make some choices, as you had more to choose from, but now with just two players of breathing room, it causes many teams to make choices they either don't want to or to make multiple moves throughout the last month of the year as they push towards the postseason.
The Red Sox are at a bit of a crossroads right now, and they are bound to make some tough decisions about who to bring up to help the big club, and who not to bring up.
Surely, it will depend on where they're at in terms of pitching or offense who they bring up, but here are two players they should consider, and two players who should not be in the conversation.
Red Sox call-up candidate No. 1: Bobby Dalbec
To say Bobby Dalbec has had an excellent season down in Triple-A Worcester is putting it mildly. Dalbec has hit over .280, hit 30 home runs and has driven in 64 runs. He has also collected 197 total bases in that time which includes 11 doubles, and two triples.
Dalbec has a had a major-league call-up caliber season all year, but there just hasn't been the space up in Boston. Now that he has gained some versatility, and played just about everywhere in the field with a lot of his reps coming at right field, shortstop and designated hitter, as opposed to his natural positions of first base and third base, it might be time.
If Dalbec gets called up and continues to hit the way he does, however, that puts Boston in a position where they could trade him for a valuable pitcher (or other asset they deem necessary in the offseason) or they could keep him in the big leagues for the following year and feel more confident if Justin Turner were to not pick up his player option in 2024.