It’s Purple Sox Rookie Growth Program week and pitchers and catchers report back to spring coaching in lower than a month. Seven questions as baseball’s return attracts nearer:
1. Why are the Sox haggling with Jarren Duran?
For most individuals, together with athletes within the early years of careers with little or no job safety, $500K is a life-changing sum. For a multibillion-dollar sports activities franchise such because the Purple Sox, it’s a drop within the bucket.
It’s additionally how a lot stood between the Purple Sox and Jarren Duran ultimately week’s deadline to keep away from going to arbitration. Duran filed at $4 million, his membership provided $3.5 million.
Come on.
Duran was among the best all-around gamers within the sport final season. He led the majors in plate appearances, at-bats, doubles, triples, and was nominated for a Silver Slugger and Gold Glove. Not solely was he a first-time All-Star, he was named the sport’s MVP.
The Purple Sox averted arbitration with their different three eligible gamers, Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, and Garrett Crochet, and even settled effectively underneath the projected sums with Houck and Crawford. They had been additionally keen to supply Juan Soto $700 million a month in the past and have barely spent in free company, however can’t shell out an additional $500K for Duran?
It’s no secret that arbitration is a recipe for catastrophe. Of their respective media availabilities at Fenway Fest on Saturday, supervisor Alex Cora described it as “a foul course of” and stated “it doesn’t make sense,” and crew president and CEO Sam Kennedy referred to as it a “needed evil.” Each expressed how glad they’re to not be concerned within the precise ordeal.
But, right here the Purple Sox go, nonetheless. Barring an settlement earlier than the hearings start on the finish of the month, they’ll pressure Duran to sit down with them and take heed to a crew consultant inform him and everybody else within the room precisely why he isn’t definitely worth the cash. Then an impartial arbiter will resolve whether or not it’s monetarily true or not. Both method, he’ll have to sit down there and take it.
Unsurprisingly, the apply doesn’t engender a lot goodwill with gamers. After Corbin Burnes’ listening to with the Brewers two years in the past, he instructed reporters, together with the AP, “There’s no denying that the connection is unquestionably harm.”
“You form of discover out your true worth,” Burnes defined. “They received it. However when it got here right down to profitable or dropping the listening to, it was greater than that for me.”
With Duran, specifically, the Purple Sox are taking part in an particularly harmful and pointless sport. He’s been very open about battling psychological well being and shallowness. Getting picked aside by his employer proper earlier than spring coaching is among the many worst methods to kick off a brand new season on the job. And because the crew’s leadoff man, his efficiency units the tone for each sport. If he’s struggling, the Purple Sox will wrestle.
The Purple Sox would possibly have the ability to beat Duran in a listening to and save a few of their treasured pennies. But when they will’t keep away from sitting down at that desk with him, they’ll lose it doesn’t matter what. And it’ll value them much more.
2. Which prime prospects from the Rookie Growth Program will make their MLB debut in 2025?
With the annual Purple Sox Rookie Growth Program underway and fewer than a month till pitchers and catchers are as a result of report back to spring coaching, it’s getting simpler to think about a 2025 season stuffed with prime prospect debuts. Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell, maybe Marcelo Mayer?
3. Would the Purple Sox actually signal a prime prospect to a pre-debut extension?
By Baseball America’s estimation, Anthony is at the moment the No. 1 prospect in baseball. Earlier this month, MLB executives voted the Purple Sox farm system as the very best within the league.
Does that imply Craig Breslow goes to leap the gun and ink Anthony or Campbell to a pre-debut extension? Unlikely. These talks haven’t occurred but, the 2 prime prospects instructed WEEI at Fenway Fest.
Whereas such contracts are very reasonably priced in comparison with what a participant can command if he proves to be a prime expertise on the big-league degree, they’re nonetheless dangerous. There’s no approach to know the way a participant will pan out. Followers as soon as thought of Michael Chavis and Bobby Dalbec the incoming saviors of the Purple Sox offense. Scott Kingery was a High 100 prospect when the Phillies signed him to a six-year, $24 million contract earlier than his MLB debut. Kingery struggled in varied stints on the big-league degree, and has solely performed one sport within the majors since present process season-ending shoulder surgical procedure in July ‘21. In November, the Angels acquired him from the Phillies for money issues.
It’s way more possible the Purple Sox do one thing alongside the traces of Ceddanne Rafaela’s contract. The defensive standout received referred to as up late in ‘23 and performed 28 video games, then signed an eight-year, $50 million extension (which maxes out at $62 million over 9 years) final April.
4. Why wasn’t Roki Sasaki within the Purple Sox?
Sasaki’s posting window closes on Jan. 23, however for Boston, that window closed way back. As of final week, the Purple Sox hadn’t even been granted an in-person interview with the Japanese pitching phenom and his brokers. As an alternative, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported Monday that the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, and Toronto Blue Jays are the finalists to signal Sasaki.
5. Will Masataka Yoshida play the outfield in 2025?
It seems Yoshida’s relegation to designated hitter final season turned out to be extra as a result of a nagging damage than his defensive skills. Now that he’s rehabbing from the required surgical procedure, the Purple Sox are hoping to make use of him in each roles, thereby opening up extra flexibility within the DH position.
The Purple Sox actually prize defensive versatility and positional flexibility. At Fenway Fest on Saturday, Cora introduced that speedy infielder David Hamilton will spend a while within the outfield throughout spring coaching. Marcelo Mayer, the group’s prime shortstop prospect, will broaden his horizons by taking part in some second and third base.
And if the Purple Sox need to commerce Yoshida, displaying groups that he affords greater than only a bat will definitely assist.
6. Is Kristian Campbell psychic?
Add ‘Predict Celtics rating’ to the lengthy checklist of Campbell’s abilities. In a video on the Purple Sox X account of him and Anthony attending Sunday evening’s sport at TD Backyard, Campbell predicted the Celtics would put up 120 factors.
7. When are the Purple Sox including a right-handed bat?
Members of the Purple Sox brass acknowledged that the roster stays incomplete. When and the way they’ll full it stays to be seen.
