Red Sox Acquire Ottavino for PTBNL or Cash Considerations
The Boston Red Sox have acquired right-handed relief pitcher Adam Ottavino from the New York Yankees; first reported by Lindsey Adler of The Athletic. The Yankees are also sending right-handed pitching prospect Frank German to Boston in exchange for either a player to be named later or cash considerations. This being the first trade between the division rivals since 2014 when the Red Sox sent Stephen Drew to the Yankees for Kelly Johnson.
Ottavino now joins Matt Andriese, Hunter Renfroe, Martin Perez, Enrique Hernandez and Garrett Richards as the big league talent Chaim Bloom has brought in his second offseason as the Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer.
Ottavino’s History
The righty owns a career 3.53 ERA with a 1.312 WHIP in 10 seasons. Through the first two seasons of his three-year, $27 million contract he’s pitched in 97 games with the Yankees. In his first year in New York, he threw 66 and one-third innings. Ottavino had an ERA of 1.90 while striking out 88. Last season, however, he appeared in just 24 games with an ERA of 5.89 and a 1.582 WHIP.
He allowed 12 runs in 18 and one-third innings pitched, but the numbers can be deceiving. It’s worth noting that six of those 12 runs came in one appearance against the Toronto Blue Jays in Buffalo. Ottavino allowed six runs, four hits, two walks, and a home run while not recording an out on Sept. 7. Without this one outing, his ERA drops all the way to 2.98.
Implications for both sides
This move comes as a salary dump for the Yankees as the Red Sox will take on about $8 million of Ottavino’s salary for 2021 as New York sent $850,000 back to Boston. The Yankees made this move in an attempt to remain under the $210 million luxury tax threshold. If the Yankees wish to replace Adam Ottavino in the bullpen there are plenty of quality relief arms remain available on the free-agent market. Potentially cheaper options available could include Mark Melancon, Ian Kennedy, or David Robertson.
After adding Andriese, Richards, retaining Perez, and now acquiring Ottavino, Bloom is making a clear effort to improve the team’s pitching depth. The Red Sox have missed out on some of the higher-end pitchers on the market this offseason; however, the team has money to spend and there are still a handful of arms still available as potential fits. After a slow start to the offseason, it seems the market is solidifying. After a series of moves over the past week, it seems the Red Sox may have more work to do.
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