Zolak & Bertrand

Zolak & Bertrand

Zolak & Bertrand

For over a decade, Dustin Pedroia brought stability to second base for the Red Sox that had him on track for a potential Hall of Fame career before Manny Machado ruined it on April 21st, 2017. While Pedroia still somehow managed to play over 100 games that season, it was the final time a member of the Red Sox reached that benchmark at the keystone. Now, Craig Breslow and the rest of the front office are hoping Vaughn Grissom can break that 6-year trend.

Tyler Milliken ⚾️ on Twitter: "Manny Machado is the absolute worse. I wonder what Dustin Pedroia's HOF candidacy would look like if this play never happened.Pedroia has a career bWAR of 51.6. Jeff Kent finished his career with a bWAR of 55.4. Pedroia played 786 fewer games than Kent.#RedSox | #DirtyWater pic.twitter.com/mLvWamDAFx / Twitter"

Manny Machado is the absolute worse. I wonder what Dustin Pedroia's HOF candidacy would look like if this play never happened.Pedroia has a career bWAR of 51.6. Jeff Kent finished his career with a bWAR of 55.4. Pedroia played 786 fewer games than Kent.#RedSox | #DirtyWater pic.twitter.com/mLvWamDAFx

Immediately after the deal was announced, Chad Jennings of The Athletic reported that the Red Sox are expecting Vaughn Grissom to be their everyday second baseman. That pushed internal options like Enmanuel Valdez, Pablo Reyes, and David Hamilton all down the depth chart. For months, Whit Merrifield, Brandon Drury, and Jorge Polanco were speculated as potential options for the club, but Breslow chose the route of adding to the team’s young core.

If there’s one thing Braves’ POBO Alex Anthopoulos made clear after Chris Sale was flipped to Atlanta, it was that the Red Sox had their sights set on Grissom. While the Red Sox were able to shed $8.6 MM off their CBT ledger in the deal, there’s a reason they chose to eat a good portion of Sale’s money ($17 MM). Especially during a time when they’re reportedly trying to get more money off the books.

“I don’t want to speak for the Red Sox and their plans for him, but my understanding is he’ll get a great opportunity there,” Anthopoulos said. “We were in a position where we were trying to get a starter. I would have loved to have done a deal for less. I would have loved to have kept him and traded somebody else. It just wasn’t going to happen in our conversations (with Boston).”

  • Thomas Nestico on Twitter: "Vaughn Grissom produced extremely well in AAA last season as he found himself on the outside of Atlanta's 26-man roster.He displayed solid plate discipline with great contact rates, and he had a knack for lifting the ball. His MLB stint was underwhelming, but at 23, he has time https://t.co/lXp4ZcZmix pic.twitter.com/zILm625DBQ / Twitter"

    Vaughn Grissom produced extremely well in AAA last season as he found himself on the outside of Atlanta's 26-man roster.He displayed solid plate discipline with great contact rates, and he had a knack for lifting the ball. His MLB stint was underwhelming, but at 23, he has time https://t.co/lXp4ZcZmix pic.twitter.com/zILm625DBQ

    Grissom is a rare blend of a ballplayer who’s already worn out his prospect eligibility, is only entering his age-23 season, and has hit in the big leagues and absolutely tore up his first taste of AAA. It’s not too often that type of player is floated in trade talks. But that’s life for the Braves as they make another championship push with their core locked in for years to come.

    Drafted in the 11th-round in 2019, Grissom saw his stock skyrocket in 2022 as he jumped from High-A to the big leagues all in one season. It was a ridiculous ascension for a 21-year-old that was ranked 12th in the Braves system to start the year (Baseball America). He played a grand total of 22 games at AA before Anthopoulos came calling due to injuries to Orlando Arcia and Ozzie Albies.

    Even on the biggest stage, Grissom didn’t flinch, as he homered in front of the Fenway Faithful in his debut and also stole a base. It was impressive showing for the Orlando native, as he hit .291/.353/.440/.792 with 5 HR, 6 2B, and 5 SB in 41 games. He was compared to Michael Harris II, who made a similar jump from AA earlier in the season, except without the same defensive struggles (-5 OAA, 347 innings at 2B, 10 innings at SS).

  • Tyler Milliken ⚾️ on Twitter: "4 minutes of Vaughn Grissom highlights at AAA this past season:102 Games468 PA.330/.419/.501/.9208 HR36 2B4 3B14.1% K%12.0 BB%135 wRC+13/15 SBHe had a 45-game on-base streak and broke the @GoStripers' single-season double record. pic.twitter.com/Za6tJ6JIF4 / Twitter"

    4 minutes of Vaughn Grissom highlights at AAA this past season:102 Games468 PA.330/.419/.501/.9208 HR36 2B4 3B14.1% K%12.0 BB%135 wRC+13/15 SBHe had a 45-game on-base streak and broke the @GoStripers' single-season double record. pic.twitter.com/Za6tJ6JIF4

    It was those defensive concerns that set the tone for Grissom’s offseason, as he worked heavily with Ron Washington to take over the reins at shortstop in 2023. He ended up losing that battle to Orlando Arcia despite a strong showing in spring training, which raised a lot of eyebrows at the time. But after Arcia started the year on a strong note, he suffered a microfracture in his wrist that led to another extended opportunity for Grissom.

    This time around, Grissom wasn’t able to get much going on either side of the ball. From April 14th to May 6th, he hit .277/.314/.308/.622 with 2 doubles and -8 Outs Above Average mostly at shortstop. He didn’t see the big leagues again outside of a 4-game cameo in August and making the final out of the NLDS.

    Instead of pouting after not running away with the job, Grissom went down to AAA and put in the work. He did nothing but hit, posting a lethal line of .330/.419/.501/.921 with 8 HR, 36 doubles, and 4 triples in 102 games. That included a 45-game on-base streak and him breaking the doubles record for the Gwinnett Stripers on the final day of the season.

  • Keep in mind, this was still his first taste at the AAA level and it was only his age-22 season. That’s a sign of strong makeup, which he consistently was credited with throughout his time in the Braves’ organization. Not to mention, Gwinnett’s ballpark is known to be a safe haven for pitchers.

    Diving further into the numbers, while Grissom held his own at home with an .820 OPS, he exploded in more offensively friendly environments on the road with a .999 OPS. There also wasn’t any concerning platoon splits, as he worked a .930 OPS against RHP and .904 against LHP. Strong signs he should be able to handle an everyday role in the big leagues.

    Grissom didn’t show any concerning platoon splits, with a .930 OPS against righties and .904 against lefties. That profiles well with the Red Sox hoping to use him in an everyday role.

  • Jared Carrabis on Twitter: "Braves top prospect Vaughn Grissom just absolutely blasted his first big league home run and pimped the shit out of it. pic.twitter.com/uzBv4mUNBm / Twitter"

    Braves top prospect Vaughn Grissom just absolutely blasted his first big league home run and pimped the shit out of it. pic.twitter.com/uzBv4mUNBm

    Grissom’s profile as a hitter is a bit of throwback, as he emphasizes the ability to constantly put the ball in play and not strikeout. Last season, he finished with a 13.9 K% and 86.3% Z-Contact%. It was hard to just make him swing-and-miss, which was evident by his 21.9% Whiff%.

    Defensively, while Grissom split his season between shortstop and second base, it became clear that he was better suited for the latter. When he was called-up in 2022, he had barely had any experience playing second base. The hope is now that he’ll be able to handle the position a bit better in the big leagues with more reps underneath his belt.

    Most evaluators aren’t expecting Grissom to win any Gold Gloves, but if he’s average or even a little below, his bat should make up the difference. It’s not like he’s a stick in the mud either, as he stole 13 bases in 15 attempts last season. He was playing left field and third base in the Puerto Rican Winter League, which shows some of the versatility he can also bring to the table.

  • One thing fans will come to love about Grissom is that he’s willing to do anything on the field. Unlike many guys who are shortstops in the minor leagues, he has no problem appearing at other spots. He made that clear during an interview with Ben Ingram last fall.

    Just looking at Steamer’s projections for Grissom, it’s clear they view him becoming one of the better second baseman in the league. They have him slotted for 123 games with a slash line of .285/.354/424/.778 with 9 homers, 29 doubles, and 3 triples. That’s good for a 110 wRC+ and 2.1 fWAR.

    Grissom registering a 110 wRC+ would’ve ranked as the 9th-best mark amongst second baseman in 2023, just behind Ha-Seong Kim. His 2.1 fWAR would’ve been 15th-best, right ahead of Whit Merrifield, who was an All-Star. Last season, Red Sox second baseman were worth 0.7 fWAR overall with a .663 OPS, which ranked 22nd in baseball.

  • Tyler Milliken ⚾️ on Twitter: ".@BaseballAmerica has moved Nick Yorke back into their Top 100 list at 96. Nice to see his stock going back up after a strong start to his first stint at AA. .287/.400/.464/.868 with 6 HR, 7 2B, and 3 3B in 44 games.Also... Marcelo Mayer is now up to 8.pic.twitter.com/5pq9F26HEO / Twitter"

    @BaseballAmerica has moved Nick Yorke back into their Top 100 list at 96. Nice to see his stock going back up after a strong start to his first stint at AA. .287/.400/.464/.868 with 6 HR, 7 2B, and 3 3B in 44 games.Also... Marcelo Mayer is now up to 8.pic.twitter.com/5pq9F26HEO

    It’s easy to see the upside with a player like Grissom, who could offer a really strong floor at second base for a team badly needing to stabilize the position. He feels like a better version of Nick Yorke in my eyes, who had a solid season at AA, but continued to tinker with his mechanics and had more swing-and-miss than many anticipated. Both have their struggles defensively, with Yorke showing improvement since being drafted, but Grissom has athleticism on his side with the versatility mentioned above.

    For over a year now, Yorke has been included in every mock trade proposal imagined. Grissom joining the Red Sox will only fan that flame, with the potential of a Marcelo Mayer deal being slightly easier to swallow. I’m not saying you trade Mayer just to do so, but it feels a bit more realistic now as the Red Sox hunt for a young cost-controlled starter.

    Still, that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for Mayer down the line. It’s not wild to envision Grissom holding down second base for this season and being used around the diamond moving forward. He could easily profile as a 2B/3B/LF option that gets 400+ at-bats in a season.

    Either way, the Red Sox are putting their eggs in the Grissom basket for 2024, while hoping he can establish himself as a fixture on the roster for years to come. If he lands anywhere close to that mark, justifying the swap for Sale will be easy. It’s clear now that ownership wanted Breslow to show creativity in the trade market and he’s done just that so far.

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