Boston Red Sox bolster bullpen with signing of Chris Martin
The Boston Red Sox are slowly moving along this off-season. There’s still the Xander Bogaerts situation that needs to be resolved. Rafael Devers is still not signed to a long-term extension. Then of course, there’s the issue regarding the Red Sox bullpen.
However, the Red Sox took a good first step last night in improving their bullpen. They signed former Dodger reliever Chris Martin to a two year, 17.5 million dollar contract. The signing brings 36 year old Martin to a Boston bullpen that was one of the worst in the Major Leagues in 2022.
Chris Martin won’t walk people for the Boston Red Sox
The biggest reason that I like this signing is because of the fact that Chris Martin simply doesn’t walk people. You all see the stat in this Tyler Milliken tweet. Martin walked five total batters in 56 innings last season, combined with the Cubs and Dodgers.
When you do the quick math on that, that’s one batter every eleven appearances. Pretty good if you ask me!
It seemed like last season, Red Sox relievers had trouble with coming in and throwing strikes. How many times did we as Red Sox fans last season shake our heads or throw our arms up in disbelief because the bullpen walked in a run? Or walked the bases loaded? Too many times to count honestly!
So a guy that can come in and keep guys off the base paths via walks, is never a bad thing. First batter walks in an inning can always come back to haunt a team. It seems the Red Sox don’t have to worry about that with Chris Martin.
This signing shows the Boston Red Sox will actually make impactful moves!!!
This truly feels like the first of many moves to come with the Boston Red Sox. Let’s face it, they need to keep it going!
But it now shows us that Chaim Bloom will get deals done this off-season for truly impactful players. We heard about the “interest kings” being linked to players like Zach Eflin and Jose Abreu. Then they end up going to other teams and we say, “See, Chaim won’t get the deals done!”
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Almost nine million dollars a year for an impact reliever is a pretty good deal. I know the age of 36 for Martin is a genuine concern. But sometimes, the older veterans make the biggest productions.
So who’s next for the Red Sox? Extend Devers? Re-sign Bogaerts? Sign a legit starting pitcher? Only time will tell.
The bottom line with Chris Martin signing with the Boston Red Sox
I said it earlier in the article and I’ll say it again, this is a really good signing for the Red Sox. It gives the bullpen a dependable arm to lean on. But you can’t be done there!
Next. Put up or shut up time for Alex Verdugo. dark
Keep adding to the bullpen to get it back to being respectable. While you’re at it, why don’t you bring back your homegrown talent? The winter meetings begin next week and honestly, I expect a lot of fireworks to happen for this team. Chris Martin is a great start. Keep going, Chaim!