Boston Red Sox Offseason To-Do List
By Jason Burke
Full-Time or Platoon?
The biggest question when it comes to replacing Big Papi will be whether or not Boston Red Sox management is looking for a full-time DH like they had with Ortiz, or looking to implement a slew of players like many other teams around the league are doing these days. They should use the spot as a half day for regular players, or defensive liabilities, but there is no guarantee that’s the plan moving forward.
Of course, if the Sox would like one bat to fill that spot in the lineup, there are two big bats that could do the job, and Boston has seen plenty of both.
The first is Edwin Encarnacion, who hit 42 bombs and drove in 127 in 2016. The Blue Jays are likely to re-sign either Encarnacion or Jose Bautista, with Edwin being the more likely of the two. If the Sox can make a run at him, they should, but on their terms.
The second full-time option is Mark Trumbo, who adjusted his swing heading into this season and saw it pay big dividends en route to a 47 home run, 108 RBI performance.
Both can play in the field, but wouldn’t necessarily have to, and both are right-handed bats that could presumably abuse the Green Monster in left.
If the Red Sox are looking for internal options, moving Travis Shaw over to first to make way for Yoan Moncada at third would make some sense, while having Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval rotate turns in the DH spot. Shaw at first also represents a defensive upgrade over Hanley.
With Moncada in the lineup, the roster would take on a different look as his speed is one of his biggest weapons, and he would essentially be replacing the less than speedy Ortiz in the lineup. This could lead to a minor change in philosophy in Boston where speed takes on more of a starring role. It’s tough to see the Boston Red Sox spending more money on a full-time DH when they already have a couple of highly paid options to take over those at-bats. Adding a big bat would help the offense in the short-term, but could also stall the development of some of their younger players that are on the cusp of making their debuts.