The Boston Red Sox<\/a> have acquired right-handed relief pitcher Adam Ottavino<\/strong><\/a> from the New York Yankees<\/a>; first reported by Lindsey Adler of The Athletic. The Yankees are also sending right-handed pitching prospect Frank German<\/strong><\/a> 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<\/strong><\/a> to the Yankees for Kelly Johnson<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n Ottavino now joins Matt Andriese<\/strong><\/a>,<\/strong> Hunter Renfroe<\/strong><\/a>,<\/strong> Martin Perez<\/strong><\/a>,<\/strong> Enrique Hernandez<\/strong><\/a> and Garrett Richards<\/strong><\/a> as the big league talent Chaim Bloom has brought in his second offseason as the Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer.<\/p>\n 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. \u00a0In 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.<\/p>\n 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<\/a> 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.<\/p>\n 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<\/strong> Melancon<\/strong><\/a>, Ian Kennedy<\/a>,<\/strong> or David Robertson<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n Main ImageOttavino’s History<\/h2>\n
Implications for both sides<\/h2>\n
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>