Mazz: Newsflash – the Red Sox need starting pitching
It’s an old song with a terribly familiar refrain: the Red Sox need pitching.
Decades ago, after all, Roger Clemens often referred to pitching in Boston as “a second-class citizen,” largely because the Red Sox were known almost exclusively for developing hitters. But Clemens began a line of aces that included, in order, Pedro Martinez, Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett, Jon Lester and even David Price and Chris Sale, a succession of talents that would stack up well against any group in baseball. Beginning with Clemens’ breakout year in 1986, in fact, the Red Sox have won more games than any team in the game but the New York Yankees. And in the postseason, only the Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals have won more.
That is hardly a coincidence given what has generally been at the top end of the Red Sox pitching staff.
![FUKUSHIMA, JAPAN - JULY 28: Pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto #17 of Team Japan pitches in the second inning against Team Dominican Republic during the baseball opening round Group A game on day five of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Fukushima Azuma Baseball Stadium on July 28, 2021 in Fukushima, Japan. (Photo by Koji Watanabe/Getty Images)](https://985thesportshub.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/88/2023/10/GettyImages-1331048514.jpg)
FUKUSHIMA, JAPAN – JULY 28: Pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto #17 of Team Japan pitches in the second inning against Team Dominican Republic during the baseball opening round Group A game on day five of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Fukushima Azuma Baseball Stadium on July 28, 2021 in Fukushima, Japan. (Photo by Koji Watanabe/Getty Images)
Now, ask yourself this question: when is the last time the Red Sox had a true ace? The answer: probably 2018, when Chris Sale went 12-4 with a 2.11 ERA in 158 innings before a late-season injury that bega his demise. As we all know, the Sox won a franchise record 108 games in 2018 – 119 including playoffs – and claimed their fourth World Series title in a 15-year span.
But they’ve essentially been without an ace ever since.
![SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 25: Blake Snell #4 of the San Diego Padres pitches against the San Francisco Giants in the first inning at Oracle Park on September 25, 2023 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)](https://985thesportshub.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/88/2023/10/GettyImages-1701490948-300x200.jpg)
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 25: Blake Snell #4 of the San Diego Padres pitches against the San Francisco Giants in the first inning at Oracle Park on September 25, 2023 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
So who’s out there? Let’s start with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who is everything the Sox should want in a free-agent target. Yamamoto won’t turn 26 until next August, strikes people out and doesn’t walk many – at least in Japan. Will the Sox pay for him? History says yes. Sale was 27 when the Red Sox acquired him by trade, Beckett was 25, and even Daisuke Matsuzaka was 26 when the Red Sox broke the bank for him (relatively speaking) in late 2006.
The obvious problem: everyone wants Yamamoto, including the Yankees, Mets, Dodgers and beyond. The price is going to be historic for a Japanese player with no history of success in the majors.
![PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - OCTOBER 11: Aaron Nola #27 of the Philadelphia Phillies tips his cap to the crowd as he walks back to the dugout after being relieved against the Atlanta Braves during the sixth inning in Game Three of the Division Series at Citizens Bank Park on October 11, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)](https://985thesportshub.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/88/2023/10/GettyImages-1730484931-300x200.jpg)
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – OCTOBER 11: Aaron Nola #27 of the Philadelphia Phillies tips his cap to the crowd as he walks back to the dugout after being relieved against the Atlanta Braves during the sixth inning in Game Three of the Division Series at Citizens Bank Park on October 11, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
Beyond Yamamoto, the market looks deep. While we mentioned in a previous post that someone like Dylan Cease could be available by trade, so, too, could Cleveland’s Shane Bieber (who slipped some this year). The free agent field includes Blake Snell, Aaron Nola, Shohei Ohtani (as a DH only in 2024) and Julio Urias, as well as a cast of others (Jordan Montgomery, Lucas Giolito, Marcus Stroman, Sonny Gray, etc.) who could be classified as upper middle class.
Could the Red Sox get one of those guys or, even better, two? Between prospects and money, they certainly have the currency. The question is whether they have the stomach, leadership and intent, placing an immediate gut check on the administration that succeeds the dismissed Chaim Bloom.
Relatively soon, we should have some answers.
But by all accounts, the Sox have to go big here.
Mazz: The 2024 Red Sox offseason plan