Red Sox Could Cut Ties With $55 Million Starter After Ranger Suárez Deal

It was intelligibly a anticipation that nan Boston Red Sox could adhd to nan rotation coming into nan offseason. But adding 3 awesome convention starters wasn't connected galore folks' radars.

On Wednesday, nan Red Sox reportedly agreed to a five-year, $130 cardinal woody for Ranger Suárez, nan erstwhile All-Star starting pitcher of nan Philadelphia Phillies. Suárez joins newcomers Sonny Gray and Johan Oviedo successful what is abruptly a loaded rotation down Cy Young runner-up Garrett Crochet.

However, Boston still needs discourtesy aft losing 3rd baseman Alex Bregman to nan Chicago Cubs. It appears nan Sox now person nan pitching extent to waste and acquisition someone, but if that becomes their caller strategy, nan evident mobility is who gets moved.

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Could Red Sox move connected from Brayan Bello?

The astir evident candidates to beryllium traded if nan Red Sox want a existent effect bat are lefties Connelly Early and Payton Tolle, some of whom maintained imaginable position aft debuting successful nan last period of nan regular play this year.

However, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic besides hinted astatine nan notion that Brayan Bello could beryllium traded heading into nan 3rd twelvemonth of his six-year, $55 cardinal hold successful a file connected Wednesday.

"While nan Red Sox for illustration Bello, nan upside of Early and Tolle whitethorn beryllium much enticing. Bello has yet to scope his ceiling pinch nan nine and is group to make astir $9 cardinal successful 2026," McCaffrey wrote.

"As it presently stands pinch Suárez’s $26 cardinal mean yearly salary, nan Red Sox payroll has pushed past nan 2nd luxury taxation bracket of $264 cardinal to astir $270 million. Trading Bello could bring nan squad conscionable nether that $264 cardinal threshold, but they’d besides person to relationship for immoderate net owed to an incoming player."

The Red Sox worrying astir nan 2nd luxury taxation period astatine this constituent would surely anger a instrumentality guidelines that conscionable wants a big-market squad to enactment for illustration it. With that said, there's a cleanable logic to giving up Bello alternatively than 1 of nan younger arms pinch a higher ceiling.

Yes, Bello posted a career-best 3.35 ERA this past season, but each 1 had to spot was Alex Cora coming to nan mound to yank him 28 pitches into a commencement successful nan playoffs to cognize nan Red Sox still didn't peculiarly spot nan 26-year-old to beryllium a existent rotation staple.

The question, though, is which position players Bello mightiness assistance nan Red Sox entree to connected nan waste and acquisition market.

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