In Ranger Suárez, Red Sox hoping aggressive pivot to ‘Plan B’ works like magic once again | Chris Cotillo
Thirteen months ago, amid a big-game hunt for a front-line starter, Craig Breslow pulled off such a successful pivot that even Ross Geller would blush. The Red Sox are hoping history repeats itself this winter, too.
Last December, just a couple days after being outbid by the Yankees for top free agent starter Max Fried, the Red Sox re-engaged the White Sox in trade talks for Garrett Crochet and quickly landed him for a four-player package headlined by Kyle Teel. That move, then Crochet’s subsequent extension in early April, could not have worked out better for the Red Sox in Year 1, as the southpaw was the staff’s bonafide ace from the jump and finished second in the Cy Young race. Seemingly, the Red Sox didn’t get their first choice back then, but things worked out great. Now, it’s up to Ranger Suárez, signed less than four days after Alex Bregman’s departure to the Cubs, to prove, once again, that Plan B can be A-OK.
It’s not like Suárez’s name is one that was first mentioned in Red Sox circles this week — one key official, in reciting his realistic wish list for the club in early November, included Suárez as the major rotation addition alongside a Bregman reunion and another big bat — but it’s clear a potential deal with him had been on the back-burner for weeks. The Red Sox’ opening winter salvo, an out-of-nowhere trade for Sonny Gray right before Thanksgiving, re-shuffled the plans a bit, as team executives did not expect another major rotation addition (not counting a depth move like Johan Oviedo) before Opening Day. That stance was two-fold. One, the club believed in Gray’s projections enough to consider him a real No. 2 to Crochet. Two, there was a strong assumption that common ground would eventually be found with Bregman, meaning it was time for the club to get that deal done while adding another bat to the mix (Willson Contreras).
An offseason that netted the Red Sox the trio of Gray, Contreras and Bregman, plus an upside play in Oviedo, was the cleanest path as of two weeks ago, and would have been viewed as a success. But Boston’s best-laid plans were ruined Saturday when the Cubs poached Bregman away. Suddenly, it was time to pivot.
Sunday’s organizational meetings — with everyone in town after Saturday’s Fenway Fest event — were focused on talking through potential pitching additions, sources said, and the Red Sox quickly let word out that they were looking for a top arm, preferably left-handed. When that word reached Scott Boras, the superagent was ready to pounce. After weeks of back-and-forth about Bregman, Boras knew the Red Sox had money to burn (what was left over from the failed $165 million offer to Bregman) and fans to appease. A deal with Suárez, quite obviously, was reached rather quickly.
To get it done, the Red Sox didn’t get cute or attach any bells and whistles to their five-year, $130 million offer. There are no deferrals in Suárez’s deal, no opt-out clauses and, seemingly, no wonky performance bonuses or club options. The club will pay him an average of $26 million per year over the next half-decade to form a 1-2 punch with Crochet. In this case, simpler was better.
It’s fair to criticize Breslow and the organization for getting outbid for certain free agents like Pete Alonso, Bregman and even Fried a year ago. But credit is due to them for not letting the sting linger. At last year’s Winter Meetings, the Sox didn’t wait around long to make big moves after Juan Soto chose the Mets and Fried chose the Yankees. This time, they did the same. Delayed urgency, perhaps, but some urgency nonetheless.
Calling the Suárez signing a panic move in the wake of the Bregman news isn’t unfair, but sometimes panic can be good. Well-timed panic can lead to the urgency the Red Sox, throughout the past half-decade, have so often lacked when it comes to getting the player they covet. On Wednesday, they got their guy. Breslow waited for the right deal, on his terms, when it came to Bregman. Less than a week later, a realization was made that true discomfort — yes, $26 million for Suárez on an annual basis is likely a bit of an overpay — often gets things done.
A Red Sox front office that thought it had Bregman in the bag for weeks will readily admit that the offseason hasn’t gone as it thought it would. Again, the focus had totally turned to adding two big bats — with seemingly little interest in another starter, especially on the free agent market — just a few weeks ago. But not waiting around for others to dictate their next step benefited the Red Sox greatly this week, and they got their guy. In the process, the club raised its payroll to the $270 million range, a figure never reached in the franchise’s history.
The club’s deal with Suárez will ultimately be judged by how the lefty pitches over the next five years, and potentially just as much by how the next, inevitable shoe to drop — seemingly a trade in which another starter moves for a bat — works out. For now, it’s worth commending the Red Sox for not letting another opportunity to improve pass them by.
