Breslow Says Red Sox Will Build Around Core Amid Lockout Threat
Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow told reporters in Las Vegas the club has its core in place for multiple years. He gave few details on trades or signings as a possible lockout looms at the end of November.
Craig Breslow, chief baseball officer of the Boston Red Sox, said on the first day of baseball's General Managers' Meetings in Las Vegas that the club has core players under control for multiple years and plans to build around them. He spoke for about 25 minutes with local reporters, with a possible lockout hanging over the offseason.
The mood differed from a year ago. Then, Breslow said the Red Sox were hunting a top-of-the-rotation pitcher and a slugger. This time he offered few specifics.
Breslow said he could not predict how rivals would behave if a work stoppage arrives at the end of November. "I certainly understand the question, but don't have a great sense for how 29 other teams are going to act," he said. He added that deals can "end up dragging out longer than you would expect" and that timelines are "so hard to try and define."
No chasing other teams
Asked what the club might learn from the postseason runs of Milwaukee and Tampa Bay, Breslow urged caution. "I think it's important not to draw these absolute conclusions based on maybe one postseason," he said.
"I think we have to be careful not to chase what has been successful for other organizations," he said. He added: "I think we've got core players that should be part of championship-caliber teams under control for multiple years here in Boston. And our job is to build around them."
The message was that Boston will be opportunistic and will not change the roster just for the sake of change.
Lineup and shortstop
Breslow said he is counting on full seasons from Willson Contreras, Curtis Mead and Adley Rutschman. He named Mead, Roman Anthony and Rutschman as possible sources of "real power."
He is not worried about balance between left-handed and right-handed hitters, he said, because Wilyer Abreu can hit left-handed pitching.
Breslow was not ready to open shortstop to a competition between Trevor Story and Franklin Arias. He declined to speculate about a possible position change for Story.
"We know what Trevor is capable of doing when he's healthy and performing, this year was disruptive for a number of reasons. Injury, some struggles at times," Breslow said. "We still have a ton of confidence in Trevor, but any decisions like that are going to take place between Trevor and me far before I speak to anything publicly"
